All you need to know about Nobu Matsuhisa
Robert Young
Updated on January 03, 2026
Nobu Matsuhisa, a Japanese chef and restauranteur, is worth $200 million. In his name, Nobu Matsuhisa runs a global culinary empire of high-end sushi restaurants. His hallmark meal is black cod in miso, which combines traditional Japanese cuisine with Peruvian ingredients.
Nobu has grown into the international hospitality market with upscale hotels in addition to his trademark restaurants. He and his family own Matsuhisa Restaurants and Nobu Hospitality, as well as Nobu Restaurants alongside Robert De Niro.
Who is Nobu Matsuhisa?
Nobu Matsuhisa was born in Saitama Prefecture, Japan, on March 10, 1949. He is the eldest of two brothers. When Nobu was seven years old, his father was killed in an automobile accident, and he was raised by his mother. Following the patriarch’s passing, the family began traveling throughout the world, exposing Nobu to a diverse range of global cultures in all their splendor and flaws.
How old is Nobu Matsuhisa?
He is currently 74 years old.
What is Nobu Matsuhisa’s net worth?
The Japanese chef is estimated to be worth $200 million.
What is Nobu Matsuhisa’s career?
Nobu got a work as a dishwasher at the Matsue sushi restaurant in Shinjuku, Tokyo, after graduating from high school. He eventually received sushi master training t here. Seven years into his career, Nobu was urged to create his own restaurant in Peru by a regular customer who was Japanese-Peruvian.
Following this advise, Nobu relocated to Lima, Peru in 1973 and established a Matsue restaurant with a sponsor. Nobu was forced to improvise because he couldn’t find several of the crucial ingredients he’d used back home in Japan. As a result, he began developing his own cooking technique, which combines Japanese and Peruvian cuisines.
Nobu had to close his Lima restaurant after three years of operation. He later relocated to Argentina, and then to Anchorage, Alaska, where he opened a new restaurant. Unfortunately, an electrical fire destroyed the restaurant approximately two weeks after it opened. Nobu moved to Los Angeles, California in 1977 and worked briefly at the Japanese restaurants Oshou and Mitsuwa.
Nobu Matsuhisa founded his first Matsuhisa restaurant in Beverly Hills, California, in 1987. It went on to become one of the town’s most fashionable hangouts, as well as a favorite of celebrities. Robert De Niro, one of those celebrities, quickly became Nobu’s lifelong friend and business partner. The Oscar-winning actor persuaded Nobu to expand his culinary empire to the East Coast after falling in love with the chef’s black fish in miso.
In 1994, Nobu launched his first Nobu-branded restaurant in New York’s Tribeca district, in collaboration with De Niro, as well as financier Meir Teper and fellow restaurateur Drew Nieporent. Three years later, Nobu expanded internationally to London. Following that, the chain expanded to Malibu, Tokyo, and Las Vegas. In addition, a Matsuhisa restaurant has opened in Aspen, Colorado.
In the twenty-first century, Nobu restaurants continued to open around the world. Restaurants have opened in Miami, Dallas, Dubai, Hong Kong, Waikiki, San Diego, Melbourne, Perth, Mexico City, Kuala Lumpur, and Chicago. Meanwhile, Matsuhisa-branded restaurants have opened in Denver, Munich, St. Moritz, Mykonos, and Paris, among other locations.