Junya Yamasaki

Junya Yamasaki is the chef behind Yess in Los Angeles, and who honors Zen philosophy by cooking Japanese food with entirely local California ingredients.

Chef

The Chef

Chef Junya Yamasaki is a renowned, self-taught chef and fisherman celebrated for his inventive take on Japanese cuisine. As the visionary behind YESS, a restaurant that merges traditional Japanese culinary techniques paired with modern, innovative flavors and locally foraged ingredients, Chef Yamasaki brings a fresh perspective to the dining scene; formerly of London's acclaimed Japanese noodle bar Koya, he has also been deeply influenced by Zen practices and the slow seafood movement he has championed in Los Angeles.