Don Yamauchi: Palmetto Bluff Execetive Chef We would like to announce that Don Yamaichi will be assuming the role of Executive Chef at Palmetto Bluff. A native of Chicago, Yamauchi is the product of a true melting pot. The son of a second-generation Japanese American father and Filipino mother, Yamauchi spent his childhood near the Loyola University campus on the North side. His interest in food came early, with the aromas and flavors of his mother’s cooking and the exotic flavors of Japanese cuisine from his father’s family—plus his own all-American love of fast food, a weakness for him to this day At 11, Yamauchi moved with this family to Skokie, known for its large Jewish community. Living next door to a Rabbi and his family, young Yamauchi would often visit there to turn on the home’s stove and electrical appliances for the family on the Sabbath. Along the way, he learned the flavors of yet another cuisine. From fifth grade on, Yamauchi enrolled in all the home economics and cooking classes available to him. After working in the fast food industry, he enrolled in Kendall Culinary College. Two years later, he got a job at the North Shore Hilton Hotel. His real training, however, started when he joined the staff at Carlos’ Restaurant, a highly successful four-star restaurant, where he worked under French Chef Roland Liccioni. “It was definitely challenging,” he says, “trying to learn all the basics of fine French cooking while awakening to the flavor combinations in the French tradition.” When Liccioni left Carlos’ to take over Le Francais, Yamauchi moved on to Le Mikado, an innovative spot where he tried his culinary wings. He later returned to Carlos’ Restaurant as sous chef under Gabriel Viti. When Viti left, Yamauchi took over as Executive Chef, and he was named in the “Top Ten New Chefs in America” by Food & Wine Magazine. In December 2020, Don along with his wife Cleta, Jeramie, and Debra Campana opened 400 Rabbits on 975 Rabbit Road, Sanibel Florida. It was a 250-seat Mexican-inspired menu. In September 2022, Hurricane Ian not only destroyed Sanibel but the restaurant as well.
22 Palmetto Bluff Club Living | AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 2023