Amin Abbas

Takamasa Osawa, a Japanese chef and founder behind Biriyani Osawa, is one of Tokyo’s most sought-after specialty counters and a recipient of the Michelin Guide Tokyo Bib Gourmand.

Known for his disciplined, Japanese-crafted interpretation of biryani, Chef Osawa has become a key figure in Japan’s evolving South Asian dining scene.

Chef Osawa was recently in Dubai for strictly limited pop-up from Nov. 26 to Dec. 2 at Yamanote Atelier’s Ferdous 2 branch bringing Tokyo’s cult-favorite biryani counter Biriyani Osawa (ビリヤニ大澤) to Dubai.

A special VIP preview event was held on Nov. 25 and was attended by  The Consul-General of Japan in Dubai, IMANISHI Jun, Yamanote Atelier’s founder Sheikh Suhail Al Maktoum and other VIP guests.

Chef Osawa told Arab News Japan about his inspiration for cooking: “My inspiration for cooking originated from a lifelong passion for flavored rice dishes. As a child, I preferred to flavor my own rice at home—for instance, by mixing it with Chinese dashi to create an instant fried rice flavor. This initial interest evolved significantly when I encountered biriyani during a trip to South India around 2009. I was shocked by the complexity and quality of the biriyani I tasted, describing it as an encounter with a ‘delicious cooked rice with a curry flavor.’ I became instantly hooked, eating biriyani nearly every day while traveling. Upon returning to Japan, I was frustrated that authentic biriyani was unavailable or poorly made. This led me to decide I ‘must make it myself’, thus dedicating myself to researching and perfecting the dish.”

“My curiosity led me to research and start cooking biriyani when I realized that I could make it better myself,” he added.

Back in Tokyo, Osawa immersed himself in modern Indian cuisine through professional kitchen work and community-driven experimentation. He co-established the Japan Biriyani Association, introduced large-batch biryani culture to local food enthusiasts.

Chef Osawa began his professional career around 2012. “After dedicating myself to studying and making biriyani after my trip to India, I started working at the Indian restaurant ‘Garam Masala’ in Kyodo. In March 2012, while working there, I also established my own temporary, shared-kitchen restaurant called Biriyani Masala.”

“My core concept is ‘Biriyani Fundamentalism’ (ビリヤニ原理主義). This philosophy where my exclusively focuses on the taste of biriyani. My goal is singular: to make the ultimate, overwhelmingly delicious biriyani that will move anyone, regardless of their background (“biriyani that everyone can be moved by”).

“I operate with the motto: ‘I will do anything to make it delicious.’ My pursuit is not regional replication but transcending local tastes by prioritizing maximum aroma and excellent rice texture. I aim to elevate biriyani in Japan, driven by the strong belief that “if I cannot make delicious biriyani, I have no value in being alive,” he added.

The story of “Biriyani Osawa” is one of determined recovery and unwavering focus on quality according to Osawa.

“After falling into depression and unemployment during the pandemic, I was encouraged by an acquaintance who suggested raising funds through crowdfunding. I decided that challenging himself in a “severe environment”—where customers pay a high price and demand perfection—was necessary to improve his craft.”

“I launched a campaign in May 2021, aiming for ¥5 million, but ultimately raised over ¥13 million from 963 supporters. I opened the shop in Kanda, Tokyo, in August 2021. Although the location was initially difficult (an office district during the pandemic), I was confident that the quality of his biriyani would attract customers from all over Japan. I borrowed a total of approximately ¥15 million to fully realize his concept.”

“The restaurant’s mission is to offer the highest quality biriyani possible. The core concept is simplicity and purity: only one menu item (biriyani) is served, and the operation is fully reservation-only with an all-at-once start timed to the precise moment the biriyani is cooked. The space is designed with a 10-seat counter wrapped around the kitchen to provide the shortest possible distance for serving the freshly steamed, highly aromatic biriyani. I’m aiming to prove that a restaurant focusing solely on a single dish can succeed by maintaining uncompromising flavor.”

“The main challenge was the financial risk, especially during a pandemic, which requiring me to take out significant loans despite successful crowdfunding. Furthermore, the ongoing challenge is maintaining consistency in the highly unstable large-batch cooking process, constantly refining every step scientifically to deliver the “ultimate biriyani” every day.”

Since opening, Biriyani Osawa has sold out every seating, received national culinary recognition, and established Chef Osawa as one of Japan’s most dedicated specialists in biryani.

Chef Osawa’s first contact with the Middle East was in 2013, when he travelled through Sharjah city in the UAE and Iran. “At that time, I was already deeply interested in rice, spices, and the cultures that shaped biryani, so the region left a strong impression on me. I visited Dubai for the first time in 2023, guided by a close friend who has lived here for many years. The purpose of the trip was simple and pure: to eat biryani. From the moment I arrived, I felt an energy and scale that I had never experienced before — even compared to Singapore, where my wife is based and which I visit often”.

“Dubai felt faster, more ambitious, and incredibly diverse. The city is unbelievably clean, the architecture is grand, and people from so many countries live together peacefully. That shocked me in the best way. What resonates with me most is Dubai’s openness to foreign cultures”.

“As a historic trading port, the city has a natural flexibility and acceptance toward different people, religions, and cuisines. And of course, the presence of a strong spice culture makes me feel at home.  People here grow up eating real Indian, Pakistani, and Bangladeshi food — not adaptations — and that is deeply inspiring”.

“One of the most memorable things for me was realizing how common biryani is in Dubai. You can find it everywhere: late at night, via delivery, in cafeterias, kiosks — and in so many different styles. For someone like me, who has been promoting the idea of “making biryani a national dish of Japan” for the past 15 years, it was emotional to hear my friend say, “Here in the UAE, it already is a national dish.”

“In a world where many countries are struggling with anti-immigrant sentiment — Japan included — the UAE has built a society on tolerance, diversity, and coexistence. As someone who introduces foreign cuisine in Japan, I truly respect that. It made me believe even more strongly in the power of food to create understanding between cultures”.

“Serving biryani in Dubai — a city that is effectively one of the “homes” of modern biryani — is an honor. If my Tokyo-style biryani can be appreciated here, where people know the dish better than almost anywhere else, then I will feel that my craft has real meaning. That is my goal, and my motivation,” he added.

Chef Osawa’s next major goal is to pursue the ultimate evolution of biriyani globally and locally.

“My ultimate dream is to expand and open a restaurant in India. I believe having a base there would allow him to bypass ingredient importation and focus on local producers, seasonal ingredients, and further elevate the taste of biriyani.”

“I intend to continue using my current shop as a “laboratory” to cook and refine my recipes daily, constantly feeling that the next batch can be even better than the last.”

“While currently focusing on the high-end, singular-menu style (like Ginza sushi), I’m aspiring to diversify biriyani’s presence in Japan, including creating cheap, mass-market biriyani and even supervising convenience store products. My ultimate mission is to make biriyani a staple in Japanese food culture, hoping that future generations will say: “Biriyani was born in India, and later developed in Japan.”