About the Chef
From Student
to the Sushi Counter.
I'm Maharjan — a sushi chef working in London's Japanese restaurant kitchens. I didn't plan any of this. I came to London for a university degree and ended up spending the last five years learning one of the most precise crafts in professional cooking.
The Journey
Nobody starts at the sushi counter.
I came to London to study. The Japanese restaurant industry was already part of my community here — my uncle had been working in it for over 15 years. I started at the very bottom, washing dishes in a super busy branch of Taro London. No glamour, no knives. Just learning the rhythm of a professional kitchen — how a service runs, how senior chefs move and communicate under pressure.
That foundation matters more than people realise. Everything I've learned since built on top of those early shifts.
From there, each move was about learning something specific. Not planned — just following what I needed to learn next.
Taro London — First Branch
Washing dishes in one of London's busiest Japanese restaurants. Learned kitchen line working, cleaning, and how to support senior chefs during service. My entry point into professional Japanese kitchen culture.
Taro London — Second Branch
Moved to a moderately busy branch and got my real education. Learned authentic hot food — gyoza, curry, ramen, soba — while developing knife skills and cuts. Slowly earned the opportunity to roll and make sushi. Taro is extraordinary: incredibly simple food, extraordinary taste. This became my base in the sushi world.
Eat Tokyo
Left Taro to learn from masters — real Japanese sushi chefs with over two decades of experience. At Eat Tokyo I learned fish handling at a higher level: prepping many kinds of fish, storage, freezing, and quality control. Most importantly, I learned to sharpen knives properly from Japanese chefs who had been doing it their entire careers.
Kiyoto Sushi — Currently
Joined Kiyoto because I wanted speed, volume, and the kind of pressure you only get in a truly relentless environment. Kiyoto is one of the busiest sushi bars in London. This is where I work today — every service, still sharpening my skills alongside the knives.
Japanese Kitchen Blades
On Knives
The first time I held a properly sharp blade.
Coming from standard kitchen knives, picking up a properly sharpened Japanese blade for the first time felt completely wrong — in the best possible way. The edge looked almost like razor glass. Thin, precise, and nothing like the thick Western knives I was used to.
That sharpness isn't just about cutting faster. It's about cutting cleaner. When you're slicing raw fish for sashimi, a clean cut through the muscle fibres makes a visible difference to the texture on the plate. The knife isn't just a tool — it's part of the dish.
Five years of working with Japanese knives every single day has taught me more about them than any guide could. That's what I try to share here — not theory, but what I've actually learned in a professional kitchen under real pressure.
Why This Site Exists
01
For Young Chefs Starting Out
When I started, I learned everything by watching, asking, and making mistakes. I want to make that process easier for the next generation entering Japanese kitchens — sharing practical knowledge that took me years to pick up.
02
For Home Cooks Who Love Sushi
Making sushi at home is absolutely possible with the right knowledge and tools. I want to guide home cooks through the equipment, technique, and ingredients so they can make something genuinely good in their own kitchen.
03
For Anyone Curious About Japanese Food Culture
Japanese food culture is deep, fascinating, and largely misunderstood outside Japan. Recipes, dining etiquette, knife culture, authentic ingredients — I want to cover all of it in a way that's accessible and genuinely useful.
"I'm still learning every day. This site isn't the work of a master — it's the honest account of someone in the middle of the journey, sharing what they've discovered so far."
Start with the knife guides.
Everything I've learned about Japanese knives — written for beginners and professionals alike.