For Chef Haruka Katayanagi, a lifelong devotion to culinary craft can be traced back to a single formative moment in his childhood home in Okayama: a modest, thick-cut steak prepared by his father, seasoned only with butter and soy sauce. Despite its simplicity, the memory left an enduring impression and shaped his lifelong reverence for simplicity executed with precision. Years later, as Chef Haruku began his formal training in 1998, first within a hotel kitchen and then across three distinguished Tokyo restaurants, he encountered wagyu for the first time. Its depth, purity, and nuance crystallized his guiding philosophy: that exceptional ingredients deserve to be approached with restraint, intention, and the quiet sophistication of Japanese technique.

 

In 2006, after nearly a decade of refinement, Chef Katayanagi opened Zen in Nihonbashi Kobunachō. The restaurant quickly garnered acclaim, earning a Michelin star in the Michelin Guide Tokyo 2016. A year later, he reimagined the concept as Hanayagi, inspired by the phrase “柳緑花紅真面目,” meaning “willows are green, flowers are red - the world as it truly is.” This ethos continues to shape Katayanagi’s approach: an insistence on sincerity, purity, and an almost meditative respect for ingredients. In 2022, he relocated Hanayagi to Ginza, where his exacting standards and understated elegance were once again recognized with a Michelin star, marking a decade of consecutive accolades from 2017 through 2026.

 

Chef Katayanagi’s dedication extends beyond the kitchen. As a J.S.A.-certified Sommelier and Chevalier of the Ordre des Coteaux de Champagne, he brings a deep appreciation for the harmony between cuisine and beverage, ensuring that every detail of the dining experience is considered with the same artistry as his cooking.

 

As he introduces Karyu to the Miami Design District, Chef Haruka Katayanagi brings with him this rare blend of mastery, humility, and reverence. His cuisine, rooted in Japanese tradition and elevated through decades of disciplined craftsmanship, invites guests to rediscover the quiet luxury of ingredients presented with clarity, intention, and soul.