The restaurant’s interior is calm and minimal but at the same time homely and welcoming. The cool qualities of steel, glass, and polished concrete are offset by the natural warmth of wood furnishings and soft lighting. The open kitchen with its wood-burning stove sits center-stage, creating a focus around which stylishly dressed cooks and servers silently circulate to a smooth soundtrack of soft R&B and indie music. The walls display artworks by local Asian American artists, reinforcing the restaurant’s proud allegiance to both the San Gabriel Valley and the Asian American diaspora. For those who fail to secure a coveted dining reservation, there is also the option of one of the seven seats at the bar, which offers a limited menu of light bites to accompany the extensive list of drinks.
Kato’s self-taught head chef and co-owner Yao was born to Taiwanese parents and raised in the San Gabriel Valley in Southern California, home to the largest Asian American population in the country and many fine providers of the diaspora’s cuisine. His culinary experience prior to opening Kato in 2016 was limited to stints in a few restaurants. But when his parents’ plan to run a fast-casual takeout business from a small unit in a West LA strip mall fell through, he felt ready to take on the lease and launch his fine-dining restaurant. Kato quickly gained a reputation for its beautifully presented, Asian-influenced tasting menus, which gradually evolved to focus increasingly on reinterpretations of the dishes Yao’s mother cooked for him as a child. He was rewarded first with recognition from the James Beard Foundation as a Rising Star Chef semifinalist in 2018, and then in 2021 as winner of the Michelin Guide’s California Young Chef Award.
Ryan Bailey is the Director of Operations, Sommelier/Wine Director and Co-Owner of Kato. A Sonoma County transplant, Ryan started his career while in high school at The General’s Daughter. After studying and working in physical therapy, Ryan redirected his career towards his passion in wine and continued his formal education at the Culinary Institute of America at Greystone in St. Helena. While in school he fine-tuned his skills as a Sommelier at the Michelin star and James Beard Nominated restaurant The Kitchen, in Sacramento. Following his time at CIA, Ryan pursued certifications in wine, beer, and sake. In 2013, Ryan joined the team at NoMad in New York City, and quickly rose to Head Sommelier. In 2017 after working harvest overseas, he relocated to Los Angeles where he built the world’s largest Champagne list.
Nikki Reginaldo is Kato's GM and Managing Partner. Nikki is a Filipino American from the San Gabriel Valley. While studying her degree in Business and Hospitality, Nikki was a project manager for a brewery, office manager for a wedding photography firm, and a marketing manager for an IT company. Nikki started her journey with Kato Restaurant in 2016, a few months after its opening. Kato received its initial Michelin star under her front of house management. In 2022, along with the move she became managing partner overseeing all events, guest relations, onboarding, and IT. . Her dedication to hospitality has stemmed from the joy of making others feel warm and welcome in a restaurant setting.
Kato received its first Michelin star in 2019 and took first place in the Los Angeles Times’ list of 101 Best Restaurants the same year. It returned to the top of that list in the 2023 edition, following the restaurant’s move and expansion in 2022. More recently, Kato won the One to Watch Award associated with the 2024 edition of The World’s 50 Best Restaurants. Kato continues to impress diners with its innovative but nostalgia-tinged expression of the Asian American culinary experience.
