Liwei Liao

Born in Taiwan and raised in Bayside, New York, Liwei Liao has spent over 30 years working with fish from sea to plate. As a fisherman, fishmonger, and chef, he has perfected the art of catching, harvesting, processing, and dry-aging fish. At Joint Seafood, the largest dry-aged fish producer in the world, Liao and his team supply award-winning chefs across America with the finest quality seafood. Within the market, visitors will find custom-built dry agers where specialty fish are hung to rest like fine wines until optimal moisture content, texture, and flavor have reached their peak. Liao’s love for fish began at a young age, learning how to gut and clean fish from his father. He even caught and conditioned his first tuna by the time he was 11. After earning an engineering degree from UCLA, Liao worked in operations and global supply chain management in Silicon Valley. He later chose to follow his passion, honing his cooking skills as a private chef and operating multiple cafés for nearly eight years. That ultimately led him to open Joint Seafood as a full-time passion project. Liao’s vision is to change how fish is sold and valued. His background outside of commercial seafood allows him to innovate, creating a one-of-a-kind fish market. During fishing trips, Liao realized that fresh fish isn’t always superior. His deep dive into traditional Japanese fish preservation techniques led him to master dry-aging as an art form. In 2016, his passion culminated in the opening of Joint Seafood. The market doubles as a sustainable fish shop and mini café, also housing his latest concept, Uoichiba (Japanese for “fish market”), a dry-aged fish hand roll and chirashi bar with multiple locations in Los Angeles. Liao believes that there’s nothing better than catching a fish and sharing it at the table with friends and family. Given the significance and symbolism of fish in Chinese culture, his fish-butchery methods emphasize respect from harvest to table, ensuring the fish is aged for maximum flavor, texture, and purity.