Roy Yamaguchi

Roy Yamaguchi Group of Restaurants - Honolulu, HI

Roy Yamaguchi is a celebrated Japanese-American chef, restaurateur, and founding member of the Hawaii Regional Cuisine movement and Hawaii Food & Wine Festival. In 1993, he became the first Hawaii-based chef to receive the prestigious James Beard Award for “Best Pacific Northwest Chef.” He is the chef and founder behind acclaimed restaurants including Roy’s Restaurants Hawaii, Roy’s Beach House, Eating House 1849, and Humble Market Kitchin. At its height, the Roy’s brand expanded to more than 30 locations worldwide, including Japan, Guam, the Philippines, and the Cayman Islands.

In 2024, Yamaguchi partnered with the Puyallup Tribe to open a new restaurant in Tacoma, Washington, blending international flavors with the culinary traditions of the Northwest Indigenous community. He has also collaborated with MSC Cruises to create Asian Market Kitchen, a signature pan-Asian dining experience aboard the cruise line’s next-generation ships.

Yamaguchi was born and raised in Tokyo and is a graduate of the Culinary Institute of America (CIA). His early career included time in some of California’s most prestigious kitchens, including L’Ermitage, Michael’s, and L’Escoffier. He opened his first restaurant, 385 North, in Hollywood in 1984 before launching the original Roy’s in Honolulu in 1988, which helped define modern Hawaiian cuisine.

An influential figure in culinary media, Yamaguchi hosted six seasons of Hawaii Cooks with Roy Yamaguchi on PBS and appeared on Top Chef Masters and Iron Chef USA. His accolades include California Chef of the Year, Nation’s Restaurant News Fine Dining Hall of Fame, and the 2022 CIA Augie Award.

Roy Yamaguchi has long championed culinary education. He has served as a lecturer in restaurant entrepreneurship at the University of Hawaii and was the CIA’s commencement speaker in both 1996 and 2009. In 2023, he was appointed Executive Director of the Culinary Institute of the Pacific at Kapiolani Community College.

He is also active in nonprofit and industry leadership, serving on boards including the U.S.-Japan Council, Go For Broke National Education Center, Hawaii Ag & Culinary Alliance, and the CIA (as trustee emeritus). He has been instrumental in raising funds for the development of the Culinary Institute of the Pacific.