Akira Back

Akira Back (born Sung Ook Back in 1974 in Seoul, Korea), is a Michelin-Starred [1] chef. He was given the nickname "Akira" by a family friend from Japan ("Ook" translates to "Akira" in Kanji).

Early life

Back was born and raised in Seoul, Korea. He took a serious interest in baseball at a young age and decided to move to Japan to pursue it. Back's baseball career ended shortly afterward, when his father's business took their family to the U.S. in 1989, eventually ending up in Aspen, Colorado.

At age 15, Back began his snowboarding career and spent 7 years on the professional snowboarding circuit. He appeared in various extreme sports movies.

Culinary career
Lounge at Yellowtail Japanese Restaurant & Lounge in Las Vegas

After ending his snowboarding career, Back went on to study at the International Culinary School at The Art Institute of Colorado. In 1993, he began his first culinary job working at Kenichi in Aspen as sushi prep cook. He was later recruited to Kenichi in Austin, Texas and then in Kona, Hawaii, where he worked as the opening chef.

In 2008, Back debuted Yellowtail Japanese Restaurant & Lounge, Chef Akira Back at Bellagio Resort & Casino in Las Vegas. Featured dishes include Big Eye Tuna Pizza, Lobster Carpaccio, and Kobe Beef Tataki, among others. Yellowtail's celebrity clientele includes Taylor Swift, Eva Longoria, Wilmer Valderrama, Pink & Carey Hart, Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen, Kelly Osbourne, David Arquette, Ryan Kewanten and Joe Jonas.

In 2017, Back's Dosa earned a Michelin Star.[2]

Iron Chef

During the 2006 Food & Wine Magazine Classic in Aspen, a producer of Iron Chef America approached Back after tasting a menu that Back had presented. Back immediately agreed to appear on the show, saying that he loved it and "grew up with it".[3] On an episode that aired March 16, 2008, he lost to Bobby Flay in a spinach battle. It was stated that he studied under Iron Chef Masaharu Morimoto.[4]

References
  1. Group, Hakkasan. "Las Vegas Celebrity Chef Akira Back Awarded Michelin Star for Acclaimed Restaurant, DOSA in Hometown of Seoul, South Korea". www.prnewswire.com.
  2. Stapleton, Susan (10 November 2017). "Akira Back's Dosa Earns a Michelin Star". Eater Vegas.
  3. Stonington, Joel (2007-09-07). "Local man ready to throw down on 'Iron Chef'". The Aspen Times. Retrieved 2008-03-17.
  4. "Iron Chef - Akira Back vs Bobby Flay". Iron Chef America. Season 6. Episode 81. 2008-03-17.
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