MASAKO MORISHITA

After growing up in her family’s nearly 100-year-old restaurant and bar in Kobe, Japan, Masako Morishita has cooking and hospitality in her blood. From her first memories of learning how to make dumplings with her mother to the familiar smells of dashi, mirin, and soy in her grandma’s kitchen, Masako’s style of cooking has always emphasized the nostalgia and memories of her childhood over conformity to the traditional Japanese style of cooking. Masako cites her mother, who shares her love for experimenting with different ingredients and techniques, as inspiration for her innovative style.

Masako moved to the Washington, D.C. area in 2013 to audition as an NFL dancer. Not only did she successfully make the Commander’s team, but she became the team’s first ever captain to be born outside of the United States, thus beginning her journey of sharing tastes of her Japanese heritage with the wider D.C. area. In 2019, Masako launched her first pop-up concept OTABE (a Japanese word meaning a mother encouraging her children to eat) while working a 9-5 job with the goal of introducing the flavors of her childhood to D.C. Her unique style of cooking Japanese comfort food, using occasionally unconventional methods and ingredients, soon caught the attention of others in the D.C. restaurant industry, and she left the corporate world to work fulltime as Maxwell Park’s executive chef in 2021. The following year, Masako was selected as a StarChef’s Rising Star, joining the ranks of five other DC chefs who demonstrated exemplary culinary skills while leading and supporting DC’s culinary community.

In October of 2022, Masako was named executive chef at Perry’s, the legendary Adams Morgan establishment, and set to work on retooling the nearly 40-year-old restaurant’s culinary program with her signature style of authentic Japanese comfort food. Current standout dishes like the Garlic Edamame Dumplings served with parmesan, lemon, and chives or the Miso Butter Clams with miso dashi broth and togarashi demonstrate Masako’s easy adoption of non-traditional and traditional ingredients alike in her cooking. Since taking on her latest role at Perry’s, Masako has been selected to join the American Culinary Corp an initiative led by the US State Department to aid with public diplomacy through food, hospitality, and the dining experience.