is a

Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...

chef, best known as an Iron Chef on the Japanese TV cooking show ''

Iron Chef is a Japanese television cooking show produced by Fuji Television. The series, which premiered on October 10, 1993, was a stylized cook-off featuring guest chefs challenging one of the show's resident "Iron Chefs" in a timed cooking battle bui ...

'' and its spinoff '' Iron Chef America''. He is also known for his unique style of presenting food.

Career

Morimoto received practical training in

sushi is a Japanese cuisine, Japanese dish of prepared , usually with some sugar and salt, accompanied by a variety of , such as seafood, often raw, and vegetables. Styles of sushi and its presentation vary widely, but the one key ingredient is " ...

and traditional

Kaiseki or is a traditional multi-course Japanese dinner. The term also refers to the collection of skills and techniques that allow the preparation of such meals and is analogous to Western haute cuisine. There are two kinds of traditional Japanese ...

cuisine in

Hiroshima is the capital of Hiroshima Prefecture in Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 1,199,391. The gross domestic product (GDP) in Greater Hiroshima, Hiroshima Urban Employment Area, was US$61.3 billion as of 2010. Kazumi Matsui h ...

, and opened his own restaurant in that city in 1980. Influenced by Western cooking styles, he decided to sell his restaurant in 1985 to travel around the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. His travels further influenced his fusion style of cuisine. He established himself in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

and worked in some of

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

's prestigious restaurants, including the dining area for

Sony , commonly stylized as SONY, is a Japanese multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. As a major technology company, it operates as one of the world's largest manufacturers of consumer and professional ...

Corporation's executive staff and visiting

VIP A very important person or personage (VIP or V.I.P.) is a person who is accorded special privileges due to their high social status, influence or importance. The term was not common until sometime after World War 2 by RAF pilots. Examples inc ...

s, the Sony Club, where he was

executive chef A chef de cuisine (, French for ''head of kitchen'') or head chef is a chef that leads and manages the kitchen and chefs of a restaurant or hotel. A chef patron (feminine form ''chef patronne'') (French for ''boss chef'') or executive chef is ...

, and at the exclusive Japanese restaurant ''

Nobu Nobu Hospitality, LLC is an American company founded by Nobu Matsuhisa, Robert De Niro, and Meir Teper in partnerships with Drew Nieporent as an Operator with Myriad Restaurant Group. Background In 1987, Nobu Matsuhisa moved to Los Angele ...

'', where he was

head chef A chef de cuisine (, French for ''head of kitchen'') or head chef is a chef that leads and manages the kitchen and chefs of a restaurant or hotel. A chef patron (feminine form ''chef patronne'') (French for ''boss chef'') or executive chef ...

. While at Nobu he got his start on the ''

'' television show. Several months after the weekly run of ''Iron Chef'' ended in 1999, he left Nobu to collaborate with Starr Restaurants and opening his own ''Morimoto'' restaurant in

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

in 2001. His first expansion was a Morimoto restaurant in Chelsea in New York City. Architecturally, this New York City restaurant has exposed concrete, a signature element of architect Tadao Ando, who designed the restaurant in collaboration with

Goto Design Group GoTo (goto, GOTO, GO TO or other case combinations, depending on the programming language) is a statement found in many computer programming languages. It performs a one-way transfer of control to another line of code; in contrast a function c ...

and structural engineers Leslie E. Robertson Associates. Mr. Morimoto has restaurants in

Mumbai Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second- ...

and

New Delhi New Delhi (, , ''Naī Dillī'') is the capital of India and a part of the National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT). New Delhi is the seat of all three branches of the government of India, hosting the Rashtrapati Bhavan, Parliament House ...

called ''Wasabi'' and has opened multiple locations of ''Morimoto'' around the world. In July 2010, he opened a

Napa Valley Napa Valley is an American Viticultural Area (AVA) located in Napa County in California's Wine Country. It was established by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF) on January 27, 1981. Napa Valley is considered one of the premier ...

location of his flagship ''Morimoto'' restaurant, followed in October 2010 by a

Waikiki Waikiki (; haw, Waikīkī; ; also known as Waikiki Beach) is a neighborhood of Honolulu on the south shore of the island of Oahu in the U.S. state of Hawaii. Waikiki is most famous for Waikiki Beach, which is one of six beaches in the district ...

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only stat ...

location, and a

Maui The island of Maui (; Hawaiian: ) is the second-largest of the islands of the state of Hawaii at 727.2 square miles (1,883 km2) and is the 17th largest island in the United States. Maui is the largest of Maui County's four islands, which ...

location in October 2013. Morimoto Waikiki closed in December 2016. In 2018 the chef announced two new ventures for the neighborhood, branches of his ''Morimoto Asia'' and ''Momosan'' chains. In November 2012, Morimoto opened ''Tribeca Canvas'' in New York's

Tribeca Tribeca (), originally written as TriBeCa, is a neighborhood in Lower Manhattan in New York City. Its name is a syllabic abbreviation of "Triangle Below Canal Street". The "triangle" (more accurately a quadrilateral) is bounded by Canal Stre ...

neighborhood, featuring Asian-inflected takes on American

comfort food Comfort food is food that provides a nostalgic or sentimental value to someone, and may be characterized by its high caloric nature, high carbohydrate level, or simple preparation. The nostalgia may be specific to an individual, or it may app ...

. After a string of bad reviews and flagging business, he closed the restaurant for a revamp in August 2013, and that October opened the restaurant ''Bisutoro'', with his interpretations of classic bistro fare, in the same space. ''Bisutoro'' suffered the same fate as its predecessor and closed in January 2014. Morimoto also owns ''Morimoto XEX'' in

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...

, a spin on his Morimoto concept with separate

Teppanyaki , often confused with , is a post-World War II style of Japanese cuisine that uses an iron griddle to cook food. The word ''teppanyaki'' is derived from ''teppan'' ( 鉄板), the metal plate on which it is cooked, and ''yaki'' ( 焼き), whic ...

and sushi floors. Morimoto XEX received a Michelin star in the 2008 Tokyo

Michelin Guide The Michelin Guides ( ) are a series of guide books that have been published by the French tyre company Michelin since 1900. The Guide awards up to three Michelin star (classification), stars for excellence to a select few establishments. The ac ...

. Morimoto appeared as an Iron Chef in '' Iron Chef America'', a spinoff from the original Japanese ''

'' series, and in its spinoffs ''

The Next Iron Chef ''The Next Iron Chef'' is a limited-run series on the Food Network that aired its fifth season in 2012. Each season is a stand-alone competition to select a chef to be designated an Iron Chef, who will appear on the Food Network program ''Iron ...

'' and ''

Iron Chef Gauntlet ''Iron Chef Gauntlet'' is a television series on Food Network that began airing on April 16, 2017. The series is a reboot of the ''Iron Chef'' and ''Iron Chef America'' series that gained popularity on Food Network and is hosted by Alton Brown, w ...

''. Chef Morimoto has also developed a line of specialty beers in collaboration with

Rogue Ales Rogue Ales is a brewery founded in 1988 in Ashland, Oregon. The company brews their own beer, distills their own spirits, farms their own ingredients and coopers their own barrels. Rogue has locations in Oregon and Washington. History Rogue Ales ...

Newport, Oregon Newport is a city in Lincoln County, Oregon, United States. It was incorporated in 1882, though the name dates back to the establishment of a post office in 1868. Newport was named for Newport, Rhode Island. As of the 2010 census, the city had ...

, consisting of the Imperial Pilsner, Soba Ale, and Black Obi Soba Ale. In 2005, he partnered with businessmen

Paul Ardaji Paul W. Ardaji is an American film producer, former international advertising and marketing executive, and restaurateur. Ardaji is particularly notable for his role as producer during the early stages of production for the award-winning American ...

, a credited Film Producer (ALI) starring Will Smith, and Paul Ardaji, Jr., through Ardaji Restaurant Ventures, LLC in an aborted Asian

bistro A bistro or bistrot , is, in its original Parisian incarnation, a small restaurant, serving moderately priced simple meals in a modest setting. Bistros are defined mostly by the foods they serve. French home-style cooking, and slow-cooked foods ...

venture which was to be called PauliMotos Asian Bistro. The relationship between the Ardajis and the Iron Chef broke down when the Ardajis could not raise the $20.0 million necessary capital to open 11 locations throughout the United States. In September 2015, Morimoto opened the Pan-Asian restaurant ''Morimoto Asia'' at

Disney Springs Disney Springs (previously known as Lake Buena Vista Shopping Village in 1975, Walt Disney World Village in 1977, Disney Village Marketplace in 1989, and Downtown Disney in 1997) is an outdoor shopping, dining, and entertainment complex at the ...

Walt Disney World The Walt Disney World Resort, also called Walt Disney World or Disney World, is an entertainment resort complex in Bay Lake and Lake Buena Vista, Florida, United States, near the cities of Orlando and Kissimmee. Opened on October 1, 1971, th ...

in Florida. In April 2016, Morimoto opened the restaurant ''Momosan Ramen & Sake'' on Lexington Ave. in New York City. In October 2021, Morimoto opened the restaurant ''Momosan Ramen Boston'' on Causeway St. in Boston, Massachusetts.

''Iron Chef''

Morimoto's official win/loss/tie record on ''

'' is 16-7-1. Morimoto's costume on ''Iron Chef'' was silver with red trim and a picture on the back of

and

American flag The national flag of the United States of America, often referred to as the ''American flag'' or the ''U.S. flag'', consists of thirteen equal horizontal stripes of red (top and bottom) alternating with white, with a blue rectangle in the c ...

s tied together in a sheaf. On ''Iron Chef America'', he donned the standard blue Iron Chef outfit with white trim and a patch of the Japanese flag on his sleeve (the other Iron Chefs having flags from their respective countries on their sleeves). In his professional life, to distinguish himself from his on-screen persona, Morimoto wears (purely

aesthetic Aesthetics, or esthetics, is a branch of philosophy that deals with the nature of beauty and taste, as well as the philosophy of art (its own area of philosophy that comes out of aesthetics). It examines aesthetic values, often expressed th ...

){{Citation needed, date=October 2008

glasses Glasses, also known as eyeglasses or spectacles, are vision eyewear, with lenses (clear or tinted) mounted in a frame that holds them in front of a person's eyes, typically utilizing a bridge over the nose and hinged arms (known as temples or ...

. Unlike his predecessor,

Koumei Nakamura , is a celebrity chef. Most famous for being the second Japanese Iron Chef on the show, Iron Chef, he has worked at numerous restaurants such as the Oriental Hotel in Osaka, ''Nadaman'' in the Hotel New Otani, and the ''Nadaman'' Singapore in t ...

, Morimoto's introduction as an Iron Chef came with little fanfare, debuting the week following Nakamura's retirement battle against

Yukio Hattori Dr. is best known as an expert commentator on the Japanese television show ''Iron Chef''. Hattori is also the fifth president of the Hattori Nutrition College; the ''Iron Chef'' end credits mention that the program is "produced in cooperation wi ...

. Morimoto was chosen based on his style of cooking, which seemed to border on

fusion cuisine Fusion cuisine is cuisine that combines elements of different culinary traditions that originate from different countries, regions, or cultures. They can occur naturally and become aspects of culturally relevant cuisines, or they can be part of ...

, as well as his international experience. Morimoto was initially reluctant to accept the title of Iron Chef, but accepted fearing the show would hire someone else. Originally, he had planned to incorporate some of the dishes that he had routinely prepared in New York for ''Iron Chef'', but discovered that previous challengers and Iron Chefs had already made similar dishes. He would become known as the Iron Chef whose dishes always seemed to come out of left field—a famous example is his Bell Pepper Sushi in a

battle in 1999. He would usually have a bottle of

Coca-Cola Coca-Cola, or Coke, is a carbonated soft drink manufactured by the Coca-Cola Company. Originally marketed as a temperance drink and intended as a patent medicine, it was invented in the late 19th century by John Stith Pemberton in Atlanta ...

to drink while cooking on the show; on one occasion he combined it with

nattō , spelled as natto in standard English language use, is a traditional Japanese food made from whole soybeans that have been fermented with ''Bacillus subtilis'' var. ''natto''. It is often served as a breakfast food with rice. It is served wi ...

to fashion a dessert dish. Morimoto competed in the first

battle in Kitchen Stadium on June 18, 1999, against challenger Keiji Nakazawa. There were five theme ingredients for the battle: tuna, eggs, Kohada (Japanese Gizzard Shad),

Anago is the Japanese word for salt-water eels, normally referring to ma-anago ('' Conger myriaster''). Ma-anago are used for a seafood dish in Japan. They are often simmered (sushi) or deep-fried (tempura), compared to unagi (freshwater eels) which ...

, and Kanpyō. Both chefs were given time before the battle to properly prepare the sushi rice (''sushi-meshi)''. Morimoto defeated Nakazawa. Morimoto is also memorable for being the target of Tadamichi Ohta, a vice-chairman of the Japanese Culinary Association and head of the notorious "Ohta Faction" of Japanese chefs, themselves noted for targeting all the Japanese Iron Chefs starting with Michiba. The Ohta faction lost three battles with Chef Morimoto before finally winning one when challenger Seiya Masahara defeated Morimoto in the

anglerfish The anglerfish are fish of the teleost order Lophiiformes (). They are bony fish named for their characteristic mode of predation, in which a modified luminescent fin ray (the esca or illicium) acts as a lure for other fish. The luminescence ...

battle. The Ohta faction was not happy with just one win, however, and they sent in challenger Yusuke Yamashita, a

sake Sake, also spelled saké ( ; also referred to as Japanese rice wine), is an alcoholic beverage of Japanese origin made by fermenting rice that has been polished to remove the bran. Despite the name ''Japanese rice wine'', sake, and indee ...

specialist, to battle Morimoto. At that time, Morimoto had lost two straight battles and no Iron Chef had ever lost three in a row. The theme ingredient for that battle was cod roe and the battle ended in a tie. The overtime theme ingredient was

scallions Scallions (also known as spring onions or green onions) are vegetables derived from various species in the genus ''Allium''. Scallions generally have a milder taste than most onions and their close relatives include garlic, shallot, leek, chi ...

and Morimoto was able to defeat Yamashita in a 3–1 decision. In his first battle with

Bobby Flay Robert William Flay (born December 10, 1964), is an American celebrity chef, restaurateur, and reality television personality. Flay is the owner and executive chef of several restaurants and franchises, including Bobby's Burger Palace, Bobby's ...

in New York, battle rock crab, Morimoto famously declared that Flay was "not a chef" because Flay stood up on his

chopping board A cutting board (or chopping board) is a durable board on which to place material for cutting. The kitchen cutting board is commonly used in preparing food; other types exist for cutting raw materials such as leather or plastic. Kitchen cutting bo ...

after completing his dishes. Morimoto went on to defeat Flay in the New York Battle, the results of which Flay contested believing he was "given inferior cooking space and equipment" and because he had cut himself in addition to suffering several

electric shock Electrical injury is a physiological reaction caused by electric current passing through the body. The injury depends on the density of the current, tissue resistance and duration of contact. Very small currents may be imperceptible or produce ...

s during the battle. This led to the two chefs competing once again in Japan during the 21st Century Battles. Morimoto lost to Flay in the re-match with Japanese lobster as the theme ingredient.{{cite news, last=Marin , first=Rick , url=https://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9A0DE0D8133FF935A35755C0A9679C8B63 , title=Lobsters at Five Paces, Knives and Egos Bared, work=New York Times , date=2001-06-06 , access-date=2011-04-17 Nevertheless, Flay would become an Iron Chef along with Morimoto in the American spin-off, '' Iron Chef America''. The two would face off a third time with Morimoto defeating Flay during the Holiday Ice Battle in November 2009. A fourth battle between the two would take place in an episode which aired on January 1, 2012, with Flay and

Marcela Valladolid Marcela Luz Valladolid (born July 19, 1978) is an American chef and author. She was the host of the Food Network television series ''Mexican Made Easy'', and a judge on the Food Network series '' Best Baker in America''. Early life Valladolid wa ...

defeating Morimoto and teammate

Andrew Zimmern Andrew Scott Zimmern (born July 4, 1961) is an American chef, restaurateur, television and radio personality, director, producer, businessman, food critic, and author. Zimmern is the co-creator, host, and consulting producer of the Travel Channe ...

in a sea whistle salmon battle by a narrow 51-50 margin.

''Iron Chef America''

Morimoto and Hiroyuki Sakai were the only two original Iron Chefs to appear on ''Iron Chef America: Battle of the Masters''. On this

Food Network Food Network is an American basic cable channel owned by Television Food Network, G.P., a joint venture and general partnership between Warner Bros. Discovery Networks (which holds a 69% ownership stake of the network) and Nexstar Media Group ...

special series, he lost two battles with American Iron Chefs Mario Batali and

Wolfgang Puck Wolfgang Johannes Puck (born July 8, 1949) is an Austrian-American chef and restaurateur. Early life and career Puck was born in Sankt Veit an der Glan, Austria. He learned cooking from his mother, who was a pastry chef. He took the surname ...

, but won a tag team battle along with partner Bobby Flay against Batali and Sakai. When ''Iron Chef America'' was greenlighted as a regular series, it moved from

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

to New York. When Puck was unavailable, Morimoto came on board to replace him. His voice is usually dubbed by American

voiceover Voice-over (also known as off-camera or off-stage commentary) is a production technique where a voice—that is not part of the narrative (non-diegetic)—is used in a radio, television production, filmmaking, theatre, or other presentations. ...

personality

Joe Cipriano Joe Cipriano is an American voice over actor, radio and TV on-air personality, and author. Early life and education Cipriano was born September 8, 1954, in Waterbury, Connecticut. He attended Watertown High School. Career Cipriano began his ca ...

during the judgment phase of the show; during the battle, his use of English is not dubbed, but conversations with his sous-chefs in

are subtitled. In 2007, Morimoto's third year at '' Iron Chef America'', he published his first cookbook, ''Morimoto: The Art of New Japanese Cooking''. As of October 2021, Morimoto's win/loss/tie record on '' Iron Chef America'' is 26–17–1, and his total combined record for both Iron Chef series is 41–21–2. Morimoto opened a restaurant in the

Boca Raton Resort & Club The Boca Raton is a luxury resort and club in Boca Raton, Florida, founded in 1926, today comprising 1,047 hotel rooms across 337 acres. Its facilities include two 18-hole golf courses, a 50,000 sq. ft. spa, seven swimming pools, 30 tennis cour ...

in late 2008. He has spent time there ensuring a successful launch of the restaurant. In ''

'', Iron Chef Morimoto has made several appearances as a guest judge.

Other television appearances

In 1999, Masaharu Morimoto and Rokusaburo Michiba went to Indonesia appearing on ''Resep Oke Rudy'' broadcast on

RCTI RCTI (''Rajawali Citra Televisi Indonesia'') is a West Jakarta-based Indonesian free-to-air television network. It is best known for its soap operas, celebrity bulletins, news, and sports programmes. It was first launched in 1989, origina ...

and Media Partner Tabloid Wanita Indonesia. In the 2010 season of American version of ''Hell's Kitchen'', Iron Chef Morimoto made an appearance on the show teaching the contestants how to make sushi. The contestants then had to replicate his dish. In Season 8 of ''

Top Chef ''Top Chef'' is an American reality competition television series which premiered on Bravo on March 8, 2006. The show features chefs competing against each other in culinary challenges. The contestants are judged by a panel of professional chef ...

'', Iron Chef Morimoto was the Guest Judge. Each finalist had to make a "Last Supper" for one of the judges. Finalist Antonia Lofaso prepared a traditional Japanese meal for Morimoto, consisting of

miso soup is a traditional Japanese soup consisting of a dashi stock into which softened miso paste is mixed. In addition, there are many optional ingredients (various vegetables, tofu, '' abura-age'', etc.) that may be added depending on regional a ...

and a

sashimi is a Japanese delicacy consisting of fresh raw fish or meat sliced into thin pieces and often eaten with soy sauce. Origin The word ''sashimi'' means "pierced body", i.e. "刺身" = ''sashimi'', where 刺し = ''sashi'' (pierced, stuck) ...

bento A is the Japanese cuisine, Japanese iteration of a single-portion take-out or home-packed meal, often for lunch. Outside Japan, it is common in other East and Southeast Asian culinary styles, especially within Chinese cuisine, Chinese, Korean c ...

. In 2016 he participated as a guest in the 6th edition of '' Masterchef Italia.'' His task was to evaluate the contenstants in cooking a selection of Japanese dishes. Morimoto has made guest appearances as himself on the

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...

television series ''

Hawaii Five-0 Hawaii Five-O or Hawaii Five-0 may refer to: * Hawaii Five-0 (2010 TV series), ''Hawaii Five-0'' (2010 TV series), an American action police procedural television series * Hawaii Five-O (1968 TV series), ''Hawaii Five-O'' (1968 TV series), an Ame ...

'', which is filmed on location in Hawaii. He made his first appearance in the season 1 episode " Ma Ke Kahakai". In Season 10 of ''

MasterChef ''MasterChef'' is a competitive cooking show television format created by Franc Roddam, which originated with the UK version in July 1990. The format was revived and updated for the BBC in February 2005 by executive producers Roddam and John ...

'', Iron Chef Morimoto was the Guest Judge for the King of the Crabs battle. Morimoto made a guest appearance in the 4 Million Subscriber Special of '' Binging with Babish'', in which he prepared fugu for Andrew Rea's "death sandwich."

Charity work

In April 2011, Morimoto sang at the Thousand Hearts Benefit for Japanese earthquake relief in California.

Awards

Culinary Hall of Fame Culinary arts are the cuisine arts of food preparation, cooking and presentation of food, usually in the form of meals. People working in this field – especially in establishments such as restaurants – are commonly called chefs or ...

Induction.{{cite web, url=http://www.culinaryhalloffame.com/culinary-media/press-releases/2855 , title=Masaharu Morimoto Inducted , website=Culinaryhalloffame.com , date=2012-12-26 , access-date=2016-11-17

References

{{Reflist, 30em

External links

{{commonscat
Official site for Masaharu Morimoto, the person
*{{IMDb name, id=0605481, name=Masaharu Morimoto
Masaharu Morimoto
at the Chef and Restaurant Database {{S-start {{Succession box, before=

, title=Iron Chef Japanese, after=''None'', years= February 27, 1998 - September 24, 1999 {{S-end {{Iron Chef {{Authority control {{DEFAULTSORT:Morimoto, Masaharu 1955 births Food Network chefs Living people People from Hiroshima Head chefs of Michelin starred restaurants Japanese television chefs American television chefs American male chefs