In restaurants and kitchens there's
this idea that there's only room for one woman.
It's kind of a shame that you can't take
female out of the equation.
How we approach Japanese food is
knowing exactly whose shoulders we're
standing on.
My name is Yael Peet
and my name is Elena Yamamoto.
And we are partners and co-chefs
at Karasu.
We both grew up in New Jersey.
I was raised in the states by
a white mother and a Japanese father.
When I got hired here I was supposed to be
just a line cook.
Yael was above me
but she's the one that brought the idea
to the owners that maybe we should be
equals. Normally you don't
lessen yourself to bring somebody else up.
This place is really small.
It's not the kind of place that can handle a
brigade and to find someone I could trust
who cared about the food as much
as I did. And for Elena and I to say, all right,
we're a team on this.
It was the only way it could function.
Cheers.
To the coffee I left behind.
Ah, so sweet. It is so sweet.
Karasu is a
Japanese American restaurant
and cocktail bar.
I always loved the flavors of Japanese
cuisine more than anything.
And I wanted to see something beyond
sushi and ramen and what people are really
familiar with.
We serve our own take
on izakaya food. Izakaya food
is food that goes with drinks.
You never go to an izakaya and
don't drink.
We change our menu constantly.
Walking through the farmer's market we see what's
in season, what looks good, and then
make adjustments accordingly.
And that was right out of Montalk.
Gorgeous.
Just about the same size as me.
That's how we size them.
I think it's interesting that both of us
were doing stuff that was a little more
artistic before culinary.
I wanted to illustrate.
And animate.
And then when I started cooking as like this
just feels more fulfilling
to me than drawing something on a piece of
paper.
Art is about communication for me and
interacting with the viewer.
You put something in front of someone
that you've created and you see
their reaction.
You just feel connected.
I was like, well, if I'm actually going to
pursue this as a career I should probably
really pursue it.
And that's when I moved to Japan.
That's where I feel like I really found my voice
but I wasn't allowed to do a lot of things
especially being half Japanese like you're
in a really weird in-between
place.
There's this saying in Japanese where you
steal with your eyes and that was kind
of my mantra while I was there it's like
well, if I can't work with
this or if they won't show me this
I can watch it.
And I can taste it afterwards.
Elena moved back from Japan midsummer
and suddenly the things I enjoyed doing
were combined with a way greater knowledge.
The menu here started small based
off of what we could do in the confines
of that kitchen.
It makes it kind of fun to figure
out a way to make a really beautiful meal
with really limited tools.
It's like how can we steam
something without creating steam
and roast something without creating smoke
in a kitchen with no vent.
Once the doors open it's
a little bit of an adrenaline rush.
I've always called it getting ready for war.
There's no breathing, there's no thinking,
you're just moving.
You're performing for people in
limitless combinations.
It's about food, it's about drink, it's
all of these things together.
So it's not just about the food that we're
putting on the table.
I want it to be good, obviously, but
I don't want it to be so good that you stop
talking. Food is so social for me.
And to look out on to the dining room and see
people having that experience.
That's all I ever really wanted.
App on 74.
Pickles special.
That's one of my favorite specials
we've done in a while.
When you toss around these ideas of
authenticity and who's allowed to cook what,
it's less about that and it's so much more
about knowing the history of what you're
cooking and like giving credit where credit
is due. It's not my recipe it's my
grandmother's, or it's not my recipe, it's this
person's. I learned it and I'm
trying to do it justice.
We're trying to be humble about
how we approach Japanese food
and I'm saying that as a Japanese citizen.
I like to say that I'm always studying
and trying to learn more like there's
nothing wrong with being a student.
We are so lucky to have so much positivity.
There's always a moment where I'm like Is
someone going to think we're dudes and be
surprised but mostly people are just really
encouraging.
I think the opportunities that are available for
women now are changing in little ways.
But,
that's not to say that there's not more room
for improvement, especially within the food industry.
I know that I love cooking.
And I know that I love creating
an environment for people to come
together and I just hope
that I get to continue doing that.
My name is Elena Yamamoto and my name is
Yael Peet.
And I am a boss.