He turned regional ingredients into national acclaim

Chef David Utterback, owner of Omaha’s Ota, Yoshitomo and Koji, is a leading force in reimagining Japanese cuisine in the American Midwest. A self-taught sushi chef and multiple-time James Beard Award semifinalist, including in 2026, he was also the first Nebraska-based finalist for Best Chef: Midwest (2023) and has earned national acclaim, with Ota frequently cited among the country’s top sushi counters. In this conversation, he discusses innovation versus expectation, regional sourcing and building systems that balance consistency with creative freedom.

 —Interview by Kelly Dobkin, edited by Bianca Prieto

You’ve challenged long-held perceptions of sushi through concepts like Ota, Yoshitomo and Koji—how do you balance innovation with guest expectations, especially in markets that may be newer to high-end omakase?

I think sushi restaurants, since the beginning, have underestimated guests' tastes and dumbed everything down. We try not to do that. We put a lot of thought into every aspect of a guest's time in our space—how we're presenting items, how we're talking about them and how guests will experience them, but beyond that, we try not to tailor the items too much. You're either going to get it, or you don't. We bring in high-quality products, match that with education about why those products are special and let the guests decide for themselves. It's kind of created a policy for us of: "If you don't like what we do or how we do it, that's okay, and there's a hundred other sushi spots in town that will do it exactly how you'll like it, and thanks for giving us a shot." When we stopped trying to be everything for everyone, the restaurant got exponentially better.

Incorporating Midwestern ingredients like Iowa wagyu into traditionally Japanese formats is a bold supply chain decision—what operational or sourcing advantages (or challenges) have you discovered by localizing a cuisine that’s typically import-driven?

To me, that was in the heart of what sushi is. In Japan, sushi is a regional food whose construction and ingredients change based on local tastes. It's only natural for us to try to find items in our region that can be made into sushi. We're just getting started, and my intention is for us to identify and incorporate more regional and domestic products.

As a self-taught chef who was offered an apprenticeship with Jiro Ono, how has your unconventional path shaped your approach to training teams and maintaining standards across multiple concepts? 

I understood early on that finding chefs who had the hunger to self-train was rare, and few of those working with us would be lifelong sushi chefs. So I took a page out of Joël Robuchon's playbook. At the restaurant, we practice system cooking—dishes and components are broken down and portioned out specifically for each dish. Construction is made simple, and so we hope to have a system where a lot of the finesse has been taken out of the dish, and almost anyone can execute high-quality items out of our restaurant. Maintaining consistency and standards across concepts is the tough part, and it's all about managing your systems. That being said, more skill-based positions like making nigiri simply require a lot of repetition and practice. 

The Prep's Take 

Don't let what's popular in your area dictate what kind of concept you open. Bringing in new genres and cuisines can be a welcome change for the local dining community. Going the unconventional route can be your secret to success.

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The Prep is written by Kelly Dobkin and edited by Bianca Prieto.