Today we’d like to introduce you to Patrick Pham.
Patrick Pham was an original member of the opening team at Uchi Houston in 2012, where he started as a line cook and slowly worked his way up to the sushi bar. Once there, he met his mentor/“sushi daddy,” Yoshinori Katsuyama, who played an integral role in training him into the sushi chef he is today. While slowly rising in the ranks at the sushi bar, he met Seong Lee and finally took over as Head Sushi Chef after Yoshinori departed from Uchi. After three years of working together and planning for the future, the duo teamed up with Nan & Company Property’s real estate agent, Andrew Lin, to host a private pop-up dinner called Secret Taste in November 2018. The goal was to promote Patrick and Seong as rising chefs in the unique setting of a $6m mansion for sale. At the dinner, Patrick and Seong announced their plan to create the first handroll focused sushi bar in Houston called Handies Douzo. As their following grew, Patrick and Seong were invited to Bravery Chef Hall, where they opened Kokoro in July 2019. Following the success of their first restaurant, Handies Douzo followed in the Historic Heights in December 2019.
Has it been a smooth road?
We knew opening a restaurant (let alone 2) wouldn’t be easy, if it was easy everyone would do it! Food is truly our passion and our all-star team has helped make the process much smoother. There were definitely speed bumps throughout the openings, but we took them as learning lessons and overcame them. The biggest struggle we faced, like many others, has been Covid-19. Due to the pandemic, we were limited to operating Kokoro for delivery / to-go and decided to temporarily close Handies Douzo in mid-March. The amount of support and love from the Houston Community is what kept us striving to survive and to continue doing what we love, feeding Houstonians one tasty bite at a time! In an effort to help give back during the crisis, we have donated hundreds of meals to front line workers with our friends at Community First.
So let’s switch gears a bit and go into the Kokoro and Handies Douzo story. Tell us more about the business.
Kokoro is located in the Bravery Chef Hall in downtown Houston where we specialize in sushi and yakitori. Handies Douzo is located in the Historic Heights and is the first restaurant in the city focused on handrolls. At Kokoro, we are known for our curated seasonal fish selection from the famous Toyosu Market in Japan and our Chicken Fat Rice is always a fan favorite. At Handies Douzo, we have added our own flair to handrolls with our unique recipes that can’t be found anywhere else!
How do you think the industry will change over the next decade?
Food is always evolving and changing, especially in Houston, with our diversity! I’m actually pretty excited to see what the next 5-10 years will be in the Houston food scene.
Contact Info:
- Address: 409 Travis St Houston, Texas 77002
3510 White Oak Drive Houston, Texas 77007 - Website: Kokorohtx.com Handiesdouzo.com
- Phone: 8328310912
- Email: Kokorohtx@gmail.com / Handiesdouzo@handiesdouzo.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kokorohtx/?hl=en
Image Credit:
Vivian Leba @supervy
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