Tyson Cole facts for kids

Tyson Cole (born September 3, 1970) is a famous chef and restaurateur who lives in Austin, Texas, USA. He is known for his amazing Japanese and fusion cooking.

Tyson Cole's Journey to Becoming a Chef

Tyson Cole started his cooking career in a very humble way. He began as a dishwasher at a Japanese restaurant called Kyoto in downtown Austin, Texas.

From Dishwasher to Sushi Maker

While working at Kyoto from 1992 to 1996, some staff members left. This gave Tyson a chance to start making sushi. At the time, he was also studying at the University of Texas Austin. He was interested in painting and architecture.

Learning from a Master

In mid-1996, Tyson began training under a master chef named Takehiko Fuse. Chef Fuse owned Musashino Sushi Dokoro in Austin, Texas. Tyson worked with him for six and a half years. During this time, he also learned to speak Japanese. Later, he continued his training at a sushi restaurant called Bond Street in New York City.

Tyson Cole's Restaurants

After years of hard work and learning, Tyson Cole started opening his own restaurants.

Uchi Austin

In May 2003, Tyson Cole opened his first restaurant, Uchi. It is a sushi restaurant in Austin, Texas, and quickly became very popular.

Uchiko Austin

On July 6, 2010, Tyson opened his second restaurant, Uchiko. The name "Uchiko" roughly means "offspring of Uchi." For a while, a chef named Paul Qui was the main chef at Uchiko. Paul Qui later won the TV show Top Chef: Texas. Tyson Cole was his mentor and even appeared on an episode of Top Chef to support him.

Expanding to Other Cities

Tyson Cole then started to open Uchi restaurants in other cities.

• In July 2012, he opened the second Uchi location in Houston, Texas.
• On June 1, 2015, Uchi Dallas opened its doors. This was his fourth restaurant.

Loro: A New Kind of Restaurant

In 2018, Tyson Cole teamed up with Aaron Franklin. Aaron Franklin is famous for his barbecue restaurant, Franklin Barbecue. Together, they opened a new restaurant called Loro. Loro combines their two favorite types of food: Asian and Texas cuisine.

Awards and Recognition

Tyson Cole has received many awards for his cooking and his restaurants.

"Best New Chef" Award

In 2005, Food & Wine Magazine named Tyson Cole one of the "Best New Chefs." This was a big honor, given to only ten chefs that year.

Iron Chef America

In March 2008, Tyson led a team of chefs from Uchi to compete on the Food Network show Iron Chef America. They competed against the famous Chef Masaharu Morimoto.

Other Notable Awards

• In 2006, he won the "Healthy Chef Showdown" from goodhealth.com. He won by a very small margin!
• In 2009, Saveur magazine named him one of the "Top 6 Texas Tastemakers."
• From 2008 to 2010, Tyson Cole was a semifinalist for the "Best Chef: Southwest" award from the James Beard Foundation.
• Finally, in 2011, Tyson Cole won the prestigious James Beard Award for "Best Chef: Southwest." This is one of the highest honors a chef can receive in the United States.