The Nobu You Don't Know

As he celebrates his downtown restaurant's 30th anniversary, Nobu Matsuhisa discusses the disaster and depression that nearly ended his career before it began.

- ADAM ROBB

You arrived in the U.S. in Anchorage, Alaska, when you were 28 years old. It was 1977, and you had previously been running restaurants in South America. Why did you make the move?

After four years working in Peru, then Argentina, I wanted to work in another country one more time before returning to Japan. When I was introduced to a partner in Anchorage, I thought it was my last chance, so I went to Alaska. Anchorage was a pipeline for oil and gas, so business was very good.

It was a Japanese restaurant, and it was an early success. What went wrong?

I took my first day off 50 days after the restaurant opened. It was the last Thursday in November, Thanksgiving. My family and I were celebrating my opening at a friend’s house with beer and turkey when my business partner called and told me I should come back to the restaurant.

Anchorage is very small. It’s very dark at night, especially during holidays when everything is closed. I went outside, and I could see fire and smoke in the middle of downtown. This was my restaurant, and I’d lost everything. From that moment, I was only thinking, How do I kill myself?