 Rusty Komori, and this is Beyond the Lines on Think Tech, Hawaii. I was the head coach of the Punahou Boys Varsity Tennis Team for 22 years, and we were fortunate to win 22 consecutive state championships. My books Beyond the Lines and Beyond the Game are about leadership, character, and creating a superior culture of excellence, which is what this show is all about. My special guest today is the founder of the hugely popular Roy's Restaurants. He is Super Chef Roy Yamaguchi, and today we are going Beyond Restaurants. Hey Chef Roy, how's it going? Going well, Rusty. Thank you very much for the invitation to Beyond the Show. Oh, super good to see you, and I know that you were born in Japan, but how did you like growing up in Japan? Well, Japan to me was great. Going into Japan gave me the opportunity to learn kind of both sides, both cultures, and, you know, I lived on an army base, a US army base, and being involved with the military aspects earlier on at the same time, being able to walk off base and go right into Japan and Tokyo and everywhere else was incredible part of my life. Well, I'm sure the food had a lot of influence on you, because the two times I've been to Japan, I just absolutely love the food over there. Well, the food is great. And, you know, as a kid, you know, walking off base, I used to always go eat ramen, gyoza, you know, all the Japanese stuff. And then the days that I didn't go off base and stayed on base, now I'm going to go to the cafeteria and eat the hamburger with gravy on French fries. So Chef Roy, how did you get interested in becoming a chef? Well, you know, I have to say at the age of 16, I took home Mc in high school, and a friend of mine said, hey Roy, you want to take home Mc? And I said, well, what is that? He goes, don't worry about it, we'll meet a lot of girls. Oh, that's a good reason, that's a good start. I didn't meet a lot of girls, but I really did like cooking. You know, I had invited my school counselor to this luncheon that I made. You know, it was a turkey lunch, and he really enjoyed it, and he said, hey Roy, you know what, I think you have a Mac for cooking. And so, you know what, let me do some research and find out some culinary schools and that's all that all came about. So Chef Roy, when and why did you start Roy's restaurants? Well, I have to say, you know, I was in Los Angeles for about 11 years working in different types of restaurants. And then I went to, of course, I went to school in New York, culinary school in New York. And when I went to Los Angeles, you know, working a lot of different restaurants, I ended up working in this one restaurant where I became the chef. And after that, you know, I opened a restaurant in Los Angeles and it was a failure. I lost a lot of money. Our group lost a lot of money, almost went bankrupt. And I decided that after that happened, you know, I would open another, my next restaurant I would open would be something different, and it would have more of my personality input. And then, you know, with my cousin finding a location that we're in currently, you know, I was able to put a partnership together. And that's how, you know, the restaurant got open. Well, I got to say, I absolutely love your Roy's Hawaii Kai restaurant. I mean, I try to go there as much as possible when I can. And your dishes, your food, it's so good. It's so consistent. Your service is great. Why is that? Well, you know, I can't take all the credit for that. But you know, my vision many, many years ago, my open Roy's 33 years ago, was to make sure that we had a culinary culture and that we would put all of our emphasis on making sure that we have creative food. But yet we have a lower service. So, you know, putting all of that together, you know, it's our team that really works hard together with the vision and the goals that I have set, you know, back 33 years ago. Now, how often do you change your menu? Well, our menu has changed, you know, of course, it's changed time to time. You know, there's a lot of things that we look on, look at on a day to day basis to make sure that we can get the ingredients in. So the core menu is always going to stay where we have eight items that we call plastics that we keep on the menu. And then other than that, depending on what we get in and what we're able to get fresh is what goes on the menu. But, you know, the menu does stay sane pretty much all year round. So maybe about four, five, six, seven different things that may change from, you know, every month or every couple months. Yeah, no, that's key because, you know, we all love to have our favorites from your restaurants. And Chef Roy, you know, during this COVID time, how have you been able to adapt and survive during this challenging time? Well, I think what's extremely important is that, you know, our team came together. That's number one. And number two, you know, the community came together. And we have a huge support from our community, you know, at our restaurant. But with that, you know, I have to say that, you know, we doubled down on social media. And we doubled down on trying to get the message across to our customers and for future customers that, hey, we're open. We have takeouts. And, you know, when the time comes, we're able to reopen or indoor dining again, we're going to be here. So that was our message. So what are the status of your Hawaii restaurants now? How many do you have open? Oh, in Hawaii, we have 10 scattered among the four islands. And we currently have eight open out of 10. So I think that's a pretty great number. When you think about, you know, we have many restaurants that are in the first concentrated areas. Yeah, no, that's really good. I'm happy to hear that. And I want to pick your brain a bit here, Chef Roy, because, you know, you're a great leader. And I want to know, you know, people define success in various ways. How do you define success? Well, I appreciate, you know, saying that I'm successful, you know, because I look at success as the day-to-day things. Of course, you know, you have to look at the future and you have to plan and all of that good stuff. But, you know, I look at how, as my success as making sure that, you know, we take care of each guest in one dish at a time, because we find success on a day-to-day basis. I mean, we have to make sure that we do great things today, or else we have no tomorrow. And so, success, of course, is, you know, having our customers come back and back and building that conduit, but at the same time, you know, we can easily lose that by serving a plate that's not to what our customers are used to or what they would like it to be. Yeah, no, that makes sense. And in my books, you know, I talk about leadership and creating a superior culture of excellence, and that's exactly what you do, you have done, and you continue to do. So, I want to know, what do you feel the best leaders do? Well, you know, I think number one, they lead by example, and they listen. So, you know, I'm always a person, you know, I mean, I truly believe that my leadership skills are defined, and our culture is defined by my actions. What I do is an individual, whether it be at work or off of work, and I'm a type of person that likes to lead by what I do. And definitely, my work ethic has always been strong from day one, and I believe that we built a culture around it. Well, that's so true. I mean, hard work works, and hard work beats talent when talent doesn't work hard. And another thing in my book that I talk about, Chef Roy, is, you know, every successful team is a reflection of their leader, and the leader is a reflection of their team. It goes both ways. What do you look for when you hire employees? Well, number one, I look at and look for a sparkle in your eyes. You know, I look for someone that really has interest. You know, someone that knows it all to me is really not good for our culture. I mean, we need someone that has a lot of passion, a lot of life that wants to learn, that wants to do good. So, I mean, good human beings. And I think that, you know, we want to make sure that they have that sparkle, because with that sparkle, they can do a lot of different things and make a lot of changes. Now, you know, achieving success, you know, winning a championship or becoming number one, you know, having the number one restaurant, you know, just achieving success is a hard thing, but sustaining it is even harder. So, when you reflect back on your years as a restaurant owner, why have your restaurants continued to sustain success? Well, I always say people. I have to say that, you know, that's our number one asset, and that's our number one resource. You know, I have to say that it's our people that continue to work hard and embrace my vision, my goals, my dreams, and those dreams are kept alive through the people that have worked for us and continue to work for us. And Chef Roy, who would you say is a leader that you greatly admire? Well, this leader that I really admire and respected was one of my instructors, one of my so-called teachers over at the Culinary Institute of America, you know, the cooking school that I went to, and Mr. Lee Roy Folsom, Chef Folsom was definitely one of the individuals that really inspired me to continue to learn what I've learned and to continue to work hard to, you know, make sure that, you know, our culinary culture never goes away. Wow. You know, great leaders are never complacent. They're always trying to find ways to improve themselves. So, what do you do to continually improve yourself as a great leader? Well, one thing I always do is work hard. I mean, there's not enough hours in the day, but at the same time, you know, you have to sit back and, you know, relax and, you know, you have to kind of like rejuvenate yourself. But to me, I always, I'm a firm believer that we can do things better all the time. And, you know, we work on recipes, we work on our service standards. And all of those things, I believe, help make me better on a day-to-day basis, because we're trying to always achieve great things. And we're always trying to make sure that our customers, if you walk through the doors, because they have high expectation that we can deliver and give them the welfare. Yeah. No, I totally agree. And your grandfather, did he, did he have a restaurant as well? Yes. Thanks for asking. My grandfather actually was in the grocery business. And, but in the early 40s, he opened a restaurant in Wailuku, you know, serving meals to the plantation workers. And, you know, he would make, you know, beef chops or beef stew, you know, gallons and gallons at a time and sell them for, you know, five cents or whatever it might have been back then. But, but, you know, that's where I got my, you know, passion and love for cooking, because, you know, he would ask me, hey Roy, what do you cook? You know, and, and, and I would tell him, and I would tell him, you know, grandpa, you know, I work 16, 17 hours a day. And he goes, oh, that's nothing. And he goes, I used to work 16, 17, 18, 19, 20 hours a day. And when I used to stand up, I used to stand on just a cement floor. That's amazing. That's, that's so true. I mean, they, they work hard back in the days. And what, what are some qualities that you admire from your grandfather besides that hard work? Oh, he was very humble, very humble, humble man. So that's why, you know, I opened this restaurant in Wailea called the Humble Market Kitchen, because it was to honor my grandfather, who was very, very humble. And, you know, he had to work in a restaurant, and he had his own restaurant, which is the kitchen, and he also owned the market. So, you know, humble market kitchen. Wow, that's really good to hear. And Chef Roy, you know, when, if you reflect back, I mean, everyone that becomes successful, they, they have to deal with certain adversities and challenges. What do you feel was a big adversity that you dealt with in your life that you overcame? Oh, you know, I'm not so sure it was an adversity, but, you know, my, you know, we didn't really have a good family life when I was growing up. And, you know, I never really spent time at home. And I was, I left home when I was 17. And, you know, I haven't looked back and, you know, I've made it on my own after leaving home. So, you know, I think that family life that I didn't have, and, you know, being on my own since the age of 17, I think, you know, it taught me a lot of different things about life and how I needed to work hard. And then, you know, I couldn't trust anybody else but myself. And if I didn't do it on my own, you know, I wouldn't have anything. So, that kind of propelled me to view what I do today. So, you know, you have, you have a great team of people around you and, and you're the leader. How do you get everybody to have that, that right mindset to really welcome challenges? You know, rather than thinking, oh, why is life happening to me versus life is happening for me and to really look forward to challenges. How do you as the leader get your team to really stay positive and how do you inspire them? Well, I think from day one, I've always been vocal about, you know, how I want things done and how I need it done now. Not tomorrow, I need it down today. And, you know, because, you know, in the kitchen, we're always fighting time, meaning that, you know, if we don't get the meal out in time, you know, we're going to have some angry customers. So, you know, timing has always been an issue for me. And to make sure that we get it done today, not tomorrow. So, so, so those are the things that I've always worked on. So being vocal about it. But yet, you know, sharing our goals. And at the same time, you know, I don't know when it was maybe about seven, eight years ago, you know, I hate being on television. And I hate competition. But I said to my guys, you know what, I'm going to take the leap of faith and enter, you know, top chef master. And, you know, as everybody might have seen or not seen, you know, I was eliminated within five minutes. But, but anyways, you know, that's, you know, I said, you can't be scared. You know what, if you're scared, you know, that's means you're, if you're scared, it means that you care. So, you know, use that, you know, that, that energy and that attitude to overcome and do things that normally you wouldn't do. Well, that's definitely an adversity there that you overcame. I mean, so overall, how did you like that top chef experience? Oh, it was great. You know, I was nervous, you know, but hey, listen, at the end of the day, and I didn't win, you know, like, you know, obviously after being eliminated, after five minutes, but, but anyways, you know, it was great. You know, as I had a great feeling, and I just was so proud to been able to not, not only been selected as a contestant, but because it was the first year, it was the first season and the first episode that I was on. So of course, you know, I mean, it was, it was, it was really rewarding in that sense. But, you know, I wish I would have lasted a little longer than the minutes. I mean, if you would have blinked your eye, I would have been off screen. Now, Chef Roy, earlier, you mentioned the first restaurant you ever started, it failed. Why, why do you, you know, when you look at these other restaurants that are failing, what are some of the reasons they fail? Well, I mean, I can't speak for others, but you know, for myself, you know, it was a lack of teamwork. We didn't know what we were doing, meaning that I myself was not a good leader. I couldn't put the team together. I couldn't gel everybody together. And, you know, I wasn't able to communicate my message thoroughly. And, you know, we were relying on too many of the outside factors, and we didn't control what we should have controlled and planned for the future. Oh, no, those are great insights. And what would you say is the best advice you ever received? Well, I mean, there's a lot of great, great advice, you know, that I receive all through my life. And so, you know, I can't really think of one to second, but, you know, I mean, I guess one of the things is, you know, keep it simple, dummy. I agree. I like to keep things really simple and clear. I mean, clarity is key, right? Your direction. Your direction for sure. Yeah. And, Chef Roy, what would you say is an example of you taking a risk? Well, I mean, so, you know, being on that show was one of them. And, you know, for me, you know, whenever we open a restaurant, I mean, I mean, I'm thinking of risk because, you know, I'm always, you know, but it's a calculated risk. I mean, you never know what, when it comes to business, I mean, you never know what's going to happen. But, you know, on a day-to-day basis, I mean, it's just, when I think about risk, it's something that if you don't do it, I mean, that's even a bigger risk. So, to me, is to think it and to really do your performance, you know, do what you need to do, do what you have to do, because the consequences could be worse. And you don't want to take the risk of not doing it when you can do it. Yeah, I totally agree with you. And, Chef Roy, how did the Hawaii Food and Wine Festival get all, you know, get started? Well, yeah. Well, thanks for asking me because that's one of my passions also is that, you know, because I actually started the Hawaii Food and Wine Festival with my wife, Denise, and also Chef Ellen Wong. And, you know, we used to do this dinner at Roy's Hawaii for many years. Chef Ellen and I, it was called Roy and Friends. So Ellen and I would invite other, you know, chefs and we would have these dinners. And it was for the Farm Bureau. And one day, you know, after we had one of the events, I told, you know, Denise Hayashi back then, I said, hey, Denise, you know what, and Dino Kimono, you know, a great farmer. I said, you know, I think the event is going to be kind of too small. I mean, and it could be larger. So, you know, you guys should really think about having a big event. And so, you know, at Roy's, we used to do these anniversary parties where we even invite chefs, you know, our 10th anniversary or whatever it may be. So I said, you know, have like this party and have this festival. And, you know, maybe you can get, we'll, you know, get the chefs in. And Denise said, hey, maybe I'll, you know, see if the state wants to get involved, because festivals has always been used as a promotional effort for a certain entity, meaning maybe a hotel or something or a restaurant, right? So I said, let's do it for the state. Why don't we do it for the state? Why don't we have something that the state can be proud of and the state can provide some seed money. And then we can have everybody involved to make this festival a great festival for the state, not for a certain entity. And then that's how it came about. And, you know, this year was the 10th year of the festival. And, you know, of course, unfortunately, we couldn't do a large event. And it was smaller events, which was just as successful. When you think about all the different events that Denise had planned at individual restaurants, and the outcome was great. Well, I find it so interesting to see how, you know, how it all began, because that, I mean, you're so right. It just ended up growing in every year into this huge, a huge event. And I had so much fun with that. And it's amazing to see how much everyone else is supporting. How does that make you feel? Oh, it makes me feel great. You have to understand that the Hawaii Food and Wine Festival is the 501c3. So all the money that we raise, it's given back to the community, to the different charities that we, you know, support. But more importantly, it trickles down to a lot of people, because you have to understand that the hotels are involved, the restaurants are involved, you have the airlines involved, you know, the different tourist segments, and then you have the different purveyors. So it trickles down, and it's touched by a lot of people. And at the very, very end, the consumer is able to enjoy it. And all that money that we raise goes back to the community as charity. So it's a good thing. Yeah, it's truly a fantastic event. And you know, that's inspiring just to see how you came up with that idea, you know, with you, Denise and Chef Allen, and then how it just kind of kept growing. And I like hearing that. So Chef Roy, personally or professionally, what's something that you want to do, but you just haven't done yet? Well, I've always wanted to skydive or bungee jump, but I don't think that's going to happen. You know, we talk about, you know, I mean, doing something risky. I'm not so sure if the risk is rewarding. Well, you know, I got asked to skydive before, and I was like, oh, I don't know about that. I like the earth, but you want to go, huh? Well, yeah, I've thought about it, and you know, I'm scared of heights. And, you know, I've gone to, you know, Grand Canyon, and you know, I've gone to, you know, different places where, you know, height could be a factor, and you know, I overcame those situations by crawling, but you know what happens. Well, you got guts. I want to make sure that when you end up doing the skydive, make sure there's pictures. I want to see it. Now, Chef Roy, you know, when you look at a lot of these young chefs that, you know, are aspiring to become successful like you or, you know, want to follow a path to really having their own place, what advice would you give to these young chefs? Well, I think most importantly, don't be scared. You know, I mean, to me, you know, when you have talent, you know, you need to showcase it, and you need to work with it. So, don't be scared. But at the same time, you have to be smarter about it. You know, just because you're talented doesn't mean that you're going to be a success. I mean, talent doesn't always equate to, you know, success. So, because there need to be an audience. An audience has to be there to receive it. So, always think about, you know, who your audience is, your customers, and you know, to be smart about when you open, how you open, and how you want to be perceived by your customers. So, I think to, you know, to a lot of younger chefs, let's not be, you know, egotistical. You know what, you know, I mean, you can have a certain amount of attitude. But at the end of the day, you know, let's be humble. Yeah, no, that's great advice. And Chef Roy, you know, looking at yourself now, okay, today versus you 20 years ago, what are some, what are some things that you learned about yourself today versus you 20 years ago? Well, I mean, I learned about myself one more every day, I guess. I mean, you know, there's, you know, I mean, you know, I get happy, I'm sad, you know, I get worried, you know, and all of those things, you know, always come about. And, you know, when I do get those different feelings, you know, I try to, you know, tackle them or, you know, try not to norm. But, you know, there's something that you learn about yourself, I guess, whether it's, you know, it's, I don't know, it's just these little things that just pop in your head. And, you know, before I go to bed or something, you know, something might pop up and go, oh, you know, you know. Well, Chef Roy, I want to thank you for taking time to join me on the show today. I really love your restaurants and I want everybody to go and support you because, I mean, they should. I mean, whether they live in Hawaii or whether they're visiting, I mean, it's such a great experience. Don't you think? Well, I appreciate that. You know, well, I do think that, and, you know, I really appreciate you saying that because, you know, our team works extremely hard on a day-to-day basis to make sure that we do things right. And, you know, especially during these COVID times, it's even harder for restaurants and, you know, not only support Roy's, but, you know, for all your viewers, support all the restaurants that they enjoy going to. And, you know, all restaurants, you know, to me, restaurant people are good people. And, you know, we're always asked to provide when there's a charity, you know, and don't get me wrong, frontline workers and, you know, you know, all of that is all great stuff. And, you know, we're secondary to all of that. But, you know, please understand that restaurant people are good people and they want to help you and take care of you. So, you know, for everyone out there, all your viewers, please support all of the restaurants that you enjoy going to. Well said. Thank you, Chef Roy, and I'll see you soon, okay? Thank you, I appreciate that. Thank you, Aloha. And thank you for watching Beyond the Lines on Think Tech Hawaii. For more information, please visit RustyKamori.com, and my books are available on Amazon and Barnes & Noble. I hope that Chef Roy and I will inspire you to create your own superior culture of excellence and to find your greatness and help others find theirs. Aloha.