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Moto Saito 1907 - 1989

Moto Saito was born in 1907 in Nagoya, Aichi Japan, and died at age 81 years old on June 13, 1989 in Tokyo.

Moto Saito

Tokyo, Japan.

1907

Nagoya, Aichi, Japan

June 13, 1989

Tokyo, Japan

Female

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Moto Saito Moto Saito (1907 - 1989)

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Moto Saito's History: 1907 - 1989

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Introduction

Famous Japanese Restaurant Owner, SAITO'S. Moto Saito, a restaurateur who was among the first to introduce Japanese cuisine to New Yorkers, died of heart failure June 13 in Tokyo. She was 82 years old and lived in Tokyo. From 1957 to 1985, Mrs. Saito maintained a restaurant, Saito, first on West 55th Street and later on East 46th Street. In 1985 she returned to Japan, where she had established another Saito. She was a familiar figure in the New York restaurant, dressed in traditional costume and supervising the service. She also cut a dashing figure in other restaurants, bejeweled and fur-clad, believing that restaurateurs should sample the cooking of other establishments. Mrs. Saito was born in Nagoya, Japan. She said she grew up in a geisha house and was trained in Kabuki dancing. In her restaurant, she continued the art of pleasing people, attempting to explain sushi and educate diners. A memorial is to be held July 28 at 6 P.M. at the Japanese American Association of New York at 7 West 44th street. There were no survivors.
1907

Birthday

1907

Birthdate

Nagoya, Aichi Japan

Birthplace

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Professional Career

Intro “My work is finished, now that there are so many fine Japanese restaurants in New York.” Always fast to spot a trend, Moto Saito said these words in 1979, some 22 years after she had brought the first fine Japanese dining establishment to New York City. Her eponymous restaurant, Saito, introduced authentic Japanese cuisine including sushi in 1957 to New Yorkers accustomed to only steakhouses, French and Italian restaurants. Moto Saito may have already known the answer, but few others could have guessed, that over the next 35 years after her pronouncement, the Japanese food she introduced would grow to become one of the dominant cuisines in NYC. I would postulate that there has never been a finer time than right now to dine at Japanese restaurants in New York City. But that is today. It has taken Japanese cuisine 60 years to achieve its preeminence in New York among foods from around the world. The first generation was the small group of Japanese restaurants from the 1950’s to around 1975, among them was Moto Saito opening Saito in 1957. A former geisha, she greeted her customers daily in a traditional kimono and obi. Supposedly, Moto Saito grew up in Nagoya in a geisha house. Her patron was a leading Japanese right wing politician. Madame Saito, as she was called, opened her first restaurant in Tokyo in 1932. The original New York Saito was such a success that in 1963 she moved to a three level showplace located at 131 West 52nd Street that featured Ozashiki rooms, shoeless dining, a sushi counter and all kinds of fine Japanese cuisine. She reportedly kept a dossier on every famous Japanese politician and businessman in New York and her restaurant was the center of Japanese life in NYC for many years. Moto Saito closed Saito in 1985 and retired to Japan. Moto Saito remains an under appreciated pioneer in New York City restaurant history.
06/13

1989

Death

June 13, 1989

Death date

Heart Failure.

Cause of death

Tokyo Japan
Death location

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Obituary

Moto Saito, a restaurateur who was among the first to introduce Japanese cuisine to New Yorkers, died of heart failure June 13 in Tokyo. She was 82 years old and lived in Tokyo. From 1957 to 1985, Mrs. Saito maintained a restaurant, Saito, first on West 55th Street and later on East 46th Street. In 1985 she returned to Japan, where she had established another Saito. She was a familiar figure in the New York restaurant, dressed in traditional costume and supervising the service. She also cut a dashing figure in other restaurants, bejeweled and fur-clad, believing that restaurateurs should sample the cooking of other establishments. Mrs. Saito was born in Nagoya, Japan. She said she grew up in a geisha house and was trained in Kabuki dancing. In her restaurant, she continued the art of pleasing people, attempting to explain sushi and educate diners. A memorial is to be held July 28 at 6 P.M. at the Japanese American Association of New York at 7 West 44th street. There were no survivors.

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7 Memories, Stories & Photos about Moto

Kazuko Komori in front of a James Dean drawing.

Amanda S. Stevenson

16.8k+ favorites

12/17/2023

Kazuko Komori in front of a James Dean drawing.

She visited New York and the New Yorker did an article about her. Kazuko Komori had interviewed James Dean. I never met James Dean but he stayed at the house of my buddy Shirley Ayers.

Date & Place: Not specified or unknown.

Comments

Takarazuka's fantastic all female troupe.

Amanda S. Stevenson

16.8k+ favorites

12/16/2023

Takarazuka's fantastic all female troupe.

My friend, the famous choreographer, Molly Molloy, created a show for them and their precision astounded her. They weren't allowed to go home until they danced perfectly in unison.

Date & Place: Not specified or unknown.

Comments

Amanda S. Stevenson

16.8k+ favorites

12/16/2023

Moto Saito

This is a portrait of Moto Saito.

Date & Place: Not specified or unknown.

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Amanda S. Stevenson

16.8k+ favorites

12/16/2023

I taught myself some basic Japanese when I was a nerdy teenager in 1959.

I met a very famous and exciting Japanese Journalist, the Hedda Hopper of Japan. Her name was Kazuko Komori, but in Japan, they reversed the name to Komori Kazuko. It was in Manhattan and I was an autograph hound and meeting thousands of movie, theater, and singing stars was my weekend hobby. Kazuko was really impressed with me because I also interviewed celebrities, so I was the American teenage version of herself.
Kazuko took me to Madame Moto Saito's Restaurant but instead of eating in the restaurant, we ate in Saito's apartment. She put a plate of food in front of me that looked like watermelon half-moon candies. I went to take one, and Mrs. Saito slapped my hand and said, "No use fork!" I laughed, "I thought it was watermelon candy."
So Mrs. Saito and Kazuko laughed too. I said, "I have been eating with chopsticks since I was four years old." (I was fifteen years old.) So Mrs. Saito gave me chopsticks and the two ladies were delighted to see my expertise with chopsticks. I talked about various Japanese theater arts and mentioned seeing the (all-female dance troupe) amazing Takarazuka dancers in person. That was pretty jaw-dropping to them.
A few years later I met John F. Kennedy's translator and introduced Masao Kunihiro to Madame Saito. I did a tribute here on AncientFaces to Masao Kunihiro who ended up becoming a very famous author and professor.
Madame Saito's Restaurant was the Restaurant of Choice for all distinguished Japanese visitors for the next 28 years.

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