Page 21 - March 2021

Bringing premium and authentic Nikkei cuisine to a global audience in exciting and

modern-fine dining restaurants that entwine art, entertainment and music, Chotto
Matte offers a unique dining experience that fuses Japanese and Peruvian food.

Here, RLI sits down with Founder and Owner Kurt Zdesar to discuss the concept
and how the brand is looking to grow in the years to come.

They then became the first in London to offer a video cities and parts of North America are places of interest
instruction guide alongside their recipe cards and the success for the brand at the moment. Doha, Qatar
of this led to a virtual cooking experience where Kurt and the Kaizen, the Japanese philosophy of change for better, is
Executive Chef would setup Zoom calls and guide viewers in the brands DNA. The business is always improving and
through a unique menu tailored to this experience. Zdesar believes customers are loyal because of this and the
“These past 12 months have shown us that we have a huge value on offer at Chotto Matte locations. They have a genuine
following and people were ready to climb over walls to get offering, real Nikkei cuisine, real materials; it is a product that
to us. During the brief times we were able to reopen the has been ten years in the making.
business the locations would fill up immediately and this was “Driving down costs, understanding margins, carefully
a very humbling experience,” says Zdesar. selecting partners and deals, market research, managerial
A dynamic business, Chotto Matte is more than just a controls and mechanisms, taking from learning and sharing the
restaurant and in times like these the concept thrives. Given varying experience of our teams are the key drivers behind
the heavier restrictions on entertainment venues and night our success to date I feel,” says Zdesar. “We spend a lot of time
venues, they offered a comparable experience in a food with our key staff members reviewing the business and making
setting which really helped to draw in large crowds. key decisions in the way that we feel is best for the business.”
“From DJ’s, live cooking and mixologists on show, Building a fast-growing business presents many challenges,
everywhere you look in our locations we provide something to counter this, the key people at Chotto Matte, Kurt included,
for our customers to see. We aim to create an atmosphere are moving into different locations around the world to assist
that takes you away from everyday life which is more in managing the business globally so they can ensure new
important than ever given the reality of our current situation,” teams are trained before they regroup.
Zdesar explains. “The restaurant business is a combination of the dining
As a huge fan of travelling and experiencing new experience – fine dining, casual, fast – the design, the service
cultures, Zdesar is keen to find partners in many locations and for me ultimately and most importantly, the food. It is a
where he feels the brand would work. He feels locations difficult business and every single ingredient has to be right or
such as India, Mexico, China, Singapore, major European the recipe does not work,” Zdesar concludes.

Toronto, Canada

London, UK
MARCH 2021 RETAIL & LEISURE INTERNATIONAL 21