In 1999, Cho Venevongsa opened his first Wasabi restaurant in Winnipeg’s iconic Osborne Village. Despite years of experience working in a sushi restaurant, Cho faced an uphill battle as a refugee of Laos cooking Japanese cuisine in a city where Wasabi — at the time — was one of four sushi restaurants.
Operating a sushi restaurant at a time when Western palates were still skeptical of sushi was challenging, but Cho’s deep understanding of firmly-rooted traditions and techniques of making sushi paired with his desire to innovate helped Wasabi thrive.
Over 20 years later, Wasabi has enjoyed consistent success thanks to a commitment to using the finest quality ingredients, an appetite to learn and experiment, and an unrelenting passion for providing an elevated sushi experience.
