Maiko Kyogoku

Maiko Kyogoku is the founder of Bessou, a Japanese American food brand based in New York City. What began as a neighborhood restaurant in 2016 has flourished into two quick-service restaurants, one at the James Beard Food Market at Pier 57 and the other at Terminal 4 at JFK International Airport. Bessou also makes Pom Pom Popcorn, a line of Japanese-flavored popcorn snacks and pantry essentials sold in more than 200 stores nationwide.

While the brand has evolved over the years, it has stayed true to its name, which loosely translates to “home away from home,” and to one simple mission: to nourish people in more ways than one, with good food, warmth and a sense of belonging. That mission began in the family kitchen. Kyogoku grew up in the restaurant business as the daughter of one of the Upper West Side’s first sushi restaurateurs, but her fondest food memories are from her parents’ table, where a home-cooked Japanese meal was her family’s love language.

She went on to work with esteemed chefs and groups including Daniel Boulud, Blue Ribbon and the Thompson Hotel Group before opening Bessou. There, she celebrates her culinary heritage with the finesse of those professional kitchens and the multicultural prism of a lifelong New Yorker. Her family recipes are at the heart of many of the dishes, down to the house-made condiments, even as the menu happily colors outside the lines of traditional Japanese home cooking. Along the way, Bessou has been widely praised by New York Magazine, The New York Times and Time Out.