Fumi Nakatani is the restaurant manager of the award winning Japanese restaurant & bar, MASU by Nic Watt at SKYCITY. Recently, he gained the international qualification in saké from the London-based Wine & Spirit Education Trust (WSET) which makes Fumi the first saké professional in New Zealand! He will aim to share his newfound skills and knowledge with the team at MASU to make their customers' experiences even better.
The 43 year-old achieved the advanced level qualification with a distinction pass rate and plans to use his new qualification to continue to build awareness and excitement of saké culture and saké in NZ.
Very proud of his Japanese culture, Nakatani feels he almost has a responsibility for spreading the word about the culture surrounding the famed beverage.
“Building and sharing the knowledge about saké is a goal I share with Nic-san and the team at MASU,” Nakatani says.
Keep on reading to find out more about Fumi!
Fumi was part of the original management team at MASU when it first opened in September 2013, and had previously worked at a few well-known Japanese restaurants. Fumi's first job in hospitality was a dish washer, where he worked his way up as he gained experience and taken opportunities.
What is a typical day for you?
At the start of each day I open up the restaurant, bringing fresh energy for the day. I check emails and reservations, then prepare for the first staff briefing of the day before lunch. During lunch I’m always keeping an eye on things, talking to customers and ensuring they have a fantastic time at MASU. In the afternoon that’s when I usually have time to do some admin work, do interviews, have meetings and talk to my duty managers and of course have a little break! Then we get ready for the dinner service which is much more intense.
And what do you enjoy about your job and SKYCITY?
The thing I enjoy most about my work is interacting with customers and making them happy. I love it when they acknowledge and thank you. What I like most about working at SKYCITY include the organisational support - we have teams from marketing and wardrobe here to help us do our best – and of course the staff! Everyone here is very friendly and always saying Hello.
What makes SKYCITY different to other places you’ve worked?
I like that SKYCITY is a big company and we get lots of support from the business day to day.
What’s your favourite employee benefit and why?
It would have to be the employee car parking. It’s so cheap and very handy to work.
What is your Ethnicity and what’s your favourite dish that reflects your ethnic background?
I'm Japanese. Sushi and Kai seki are meals I always ate when out at a restaurant. Kai seki is a degustation style of food, which can consist of up to 10 different dishes. The dishes are based around the seasons, so the ingredients change regularly. A regular family meal I had growing up was Nitsuki. It’s made with fish, soya sauce, sake, mirin and sugar. There was always fish with our dinner meals. Seafood is very important to Japanese people.
Why is this dish your favourite and what significance does it hold for you?
When I was growing up, I had the sea on one side and the mountains on the other side. We would gather all the ingredients that these locations would produce to create our meals. This style of cooking is like a family inheritance. My mother cooked this way, my grandmother cooked this way, and also my great grandmother.
Thank you for sharing your story Fumi!
