High Yaki The Sea Description

Carlos Sotomayer (previously of el Efante) is the man behind the menu at owner Justin Xu’s High Yaki The Sea, the seafood-centric sister to the Japanese yakinuki restaurant that bears the same name, High Yaki, and izakaya Hundo – predecessors that both place a stronger emphasis on land rather than sea dwellers. 

Whereas High Yaki and Hundo are overtly Japanese in style and kitchen design, High Yaki The Sea ties together a blend of Western cooking techniques with splashes of Japanese, Thai and Southeast Asian flavors – noted in the presence of a Combi oven and Salamander broiler rather than the binchotan charcoal-grill that sits as the focal point for Justin’s other two restaurant kitchens. 

The 50-seater venue was outfitted by MTM Design, the same agency behind High Yaki and Hundo, along with other well-known Shanghai venues like Heritage by Madison, El Willy, and Pirata. Similar elements – charcoal-burnt wood-paneling, contrasting surfaces of concrete, marble and brass, and prevalent earth tone hues – share the same vein, yet High Yaki The Sea has its own distinct identity – a sort of edgy, modern elegance, less assertive than its forbears.