Sushi Chef Ota was born in Kumamoto Kyushu, Japan. He worked as a sushi chef in the Japanese cities of Kobe, Tokyo and Osaka. In 1982, when Chef Ota came to San Diego he was introduced to local sea urchin. He found that it was the best tasting sea urchin he had ever had and the taste experience immediately changed his life. He decided to stay in San Diego and opened Sushi Ota in 1990.