Shinobu Namae

Shinobu Namae is the chef-owner of L’Effervescence, a three Michelin-starred restaurant in Tokyo's Nishi-Azabu district that he opened in 2010, specializing in modern French cuisine using 99% Japanese ingredients. Born in Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture in 1973, he graduated with a degree in politics from Keio University before entering the culinary world, starting as a dishwasher and progressing through stages at Michel Bras' restaurants in Laguiole, France, and Toya Japon in Hokkaido, where he served as sous chef from 2005. He later worked as sous chef and in pastry at Heston Blumenthal’s The Fat Duck in Bray, England, in 2008, before returning to Japan to launch his restaurant, which earned its first Michelin star in 2012, second in 2015, third in 2021, and a Green Star in 2023.