Kentaro ‘Katsuya’ Uechi was born and raised in Los Angeles, California. He is the eldest son of Katsuya Uechi, and grew up watching his father run their first restaurant in Studio City. As a child, Kentaro helped the family business, and would wash dishes and bus tables. In 2006, he started training in the kitchen and worked his way up to sushi chef. In 2008, Katsuya and Mutual Trading Company formed the Sushi Institute of America, where Kentaro was an instructor. In 2012, The Little Izaka-ya by Katsu-ya opened lead by Kentaro as head chef. Currently, Kentaro holds the position of Executive Chef and oversees all restaurants in Katsu-ya Group.