Genya Morita

Musouan sits in Nara Park, steps from Todai-ji (home of Japan's largest bronze Buddha) and surrounded by the ancient Buddhist landscape of Nara. The restaurant name references the Zen concept of 'munen muso' (no mind, no thought) — an ideal of cooking freed from ego, serving only the ingredients and the season.

Genya Morita leads Musouan in Nara Park, a restaurant located near Todai-ji Temple that connects fine kaiseki dining with the contemplative spirit of Japanese tea ceremony. His cooking reflects 'musouan' (the hermitage of no-thought) — a Zen-inspired philosophy of cooking that uses Nara's seasonal ingredients in a spirit of simplicity and clarity.

Japan — trained in Japanese kaiseki; deeply influenced by Zen philosophy and Nara's Buddhist temple culture

Career

• Chef at Japanese kaiseki restaurants, Nara and Kansai, Japan (2000s–2015)
• Chef at Musouan, Nara Park, Nara (2015–present)

Mentored by Japanese kaiseki tradition; Zen philosophy.