About Shinichiro Takagi

Chef Shinichiro Takagi is chef/patron of the acclaimed Zeniya restaurant in Kanazawa, his native city on the west coast of Japan. Takagi uses fresh, local fish and other ingredients from his home region of Ishikawa prefecture for his superlative Kaiseki-inspired cuisine.

‘A meal at Zeniya is a true zen moment, one never to be repeated that requires the full presence of mind’

After completing a bachelor’s degree in commercial science at Nihon University, Takagi followed the family passion for food (his late father was a chef, as is his younger brother who also works at Zeniya) and undertook culinary training at Arashiyama Kitcho in Kyoto, one of the most lauded and exclusive restaurants in Japan. Aged 27, Takagi returned home and joined the kitchen brigade at Zeniya and was appointed executive chef five years later.

Named after Zeniya Gohei, a Kaga merchant from the late Edo period who was a pioneer of overseas trade, the restaurant boasts a traditional Japanese interior with a counter with seven stools, where the chef spends the majority of his time, serving his 10-course tasting menus on classic Japanese lacquerware directly to diners. There are also eight private dining rooms at the back of the restaurant for a more intimate dining experience.

Takagi’s multi-course dinners, paired with sake, are inspired by the traditional meals served before Japanese tea ceremonies and are created individually for each customer. So a meal at Zeniya is a true Zen moment, one never to be repeated and that requires the full presence of mind of both chef and customer.

When you make a reservation at Zeniya, you will be asked a series of questions such as where you come from, what you don’t like to eat and if you’ve been to other
restaurants in the area so that chef Takagi can plan a bespoke menu based on seasonal produce from the market that day. Favoured ingredients include the roe of fish caught in the Sea of Japan, abalone that’s slowsimmered until meltingly tender and rare regional mushrooms.

Takagi has lectured at the prestigious Tsuji Culinary Institute in Osaka and Tokyo. He is active on the international gastronomic scene, travelling abroad to cook his Kaiseki food and participate in culinary events. He has cooked alongside Alain Ducasse and Guy Savoy at a charity banquet in Paris to help victims of Japan’s earthquake and tsunami.