Chef Minh’s inspiration at Akira is driven by his experience growing up surrounded by food created lovingly by his late mother.  A single parent raising her three sons in a new country, she taught Minh that through hard work and pride in your craft, your passion will shine.  

Minh worked his way through the ranks in the kitchen of Kiku of Tokyo San Francisco from washing dishes, preparing food to eventually being assistant to Executive Chef Gomi-San for twelve years. After Kiku, Minh became Executive Chef at Hana Zen restaurant for five years and a sushi chef at Otoro for four years.  Minh’s experience in preparing elaborate dishes in the Kaiseki style at Kiku inspired him to open Akira in late 2016.

While the popularity of modern sushi, blending traditional with new ingredients, at Akira we do things the old fashion way: using seasonal ingredients with exquisite presentation.  Chef Minh wants you to experience traditional Japanese cuisine as prepared in the traditions of Japan.