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This story is published in partnership with Life & Thyme.
Jon Yao got off to a prodigious start in the limelight. In 2016, his parents leased a place in a strip mall in Santa Monica with the intention of creating a fast-casual, lunchbox joint for UCLA students. Instead, Yao then 25 years old took it over and opened his restaurant, Kato, which immediately drew attention for its ambitious and photogenic plates, like a buttermilk pudding adorned with rose ice and smoked hamachi with scallion oil.
Squeezed into a 970-square-foot space with a smart tasting menu, it was heralded as a broadly Asian restaurant with Taiwanese, Chinese, Californian and Japanese influences. It was still representative of who I am, but less focused, he says. Halfway through, I served my mom s steamed fish, and it was well-received by our guests. That gave me confidence in the flavors of my childhood.