Sugawara Shogo

Katsuragi lies at the foot of Katsuragi Mountain, one of the sacred peaks of the Yamato range. Sugawara's restaurant is surrounded by the agricultural fields of Nara's rural southwest — far from the tourist temples — creating Italian cuisine from Japan's most ancient farmland.

Shogo Sugawara is the young owner-chef of Lega' in Katsuragi (Nara Prefecture), an Italian restaurant whose name means 'to bind' or 'connect' — reflecting his mission to link Italian culinary traditions with Nara's local ingredients. The restaurant earned its first Michelin star in 2024.

Japan — trained in Italian cuisine; connecting Italian technique to Nara Prefecture's Yamato ingredients

Career

• Chef at Italian restaurants in Japan, Kansai, Japan (2000s–2015)
• Owner-Chef at Lega', Katsuragi, Nara (2015–present)

Mentored by Italian culinary tradition applied to Japanese seasonal produce.