Toshi Ueki — Founding Partner, Blue Ribbon Sushi
Role: Founding Partner, Blue Ribbon Sushi Born: Japan, 1951 Moved to US: 1969 (age 18) Passed: 2020s (exact date not confirmed in sources) Partnership with Blue Ribbon: 1995–death
Career in Japan
- Started in kappo-style restaurants of Kyoto at age 16
- Kappo is a formal Japanese culinary tradition emphasizing knife work, seasonal ingredients, and counter dining — the direct ancestor of modern omakase
Career in the US
- Kiicho NYC — 1969 to 1976 (arrived with this restaurant)
- Sushi Kazu NYC — 1976 to 1986
- Own restaurant — 1986 to 1995
Blue Ribbon Partnership
Toshi met eric-bromberg and bruce-bromberg in 1995. That year, they opened Blue Ribbon Sushi at 119 Sullivan Street in SoHo — the original sushi location. The partnership between Toshi’s four decades of Japanese culinary mastery and the Brombergs’ hospitality vision created a new category in New York dining.
bowie-fu joined as a waiter at the Sullivan Street opening and built his entire career in the division Toshi helped found.
Legacy
Upon Toshi’s death, eric-bromberg and bruce-bromberg honored him by naming a 12-seat omakase restaurant in his memory: Ueki (West Village). This intimate format — the most personal expression of Japanese culinary tradition — was a deliberate tribute to how Toshi understood food.
“Toshi continues to be a powerful and enduring symbol of what we strive to accomplish in our restaurants and in life each and every day.” — Blue Ribbon official statement
Significance for Brand
Toshi’s story is one of the most important in the Blue Ribbon canon. A Japanese master who spent decades in New York before meeting the Brombergs — the partnership was built on mutual respect and shared standards, not a business transaction. This origin story is central to the authenticity of the sushi division.
ADS note: Any brand work for the sushi concepts (sushi, sushi-bar-grill) should acknowledge this legacy — even indirectly through tone, restraint, and respect for tradition.
Ueki Restaurant (Memorial)
The Ueki restaurant (ueki-omakase-menu) is the most direct expression of Toshi’s legacy within the Blue Ribbon family. The 12-seat omakase format — counter dining, chef-driven progression, no choices — mirrors the kappo tradition Toshi first trained in at age 16 in Kyoto.
The sake program at Ueki is particularly significant: ranging from approachable Junmai at 600/bottle and a flagship Daiginjo at $1,070/bottle (Asahi Shuzo Tsugo), the depth and curation of the program reflects the sake culture Toshi brought to Blue Ribbon Sushi beginning in 1995. Blue Ribbon’s own-label sakes (Junmai, Ginjo, Daiginjo, Genshu, Nigori) are all featured on the list — a through-line from Toshi’s original vision to the present.
See the full menu: ueki-omakase-menu