Sushi-ya

"In Silicon Valley, the IPO of the internet company Netscape Communications in 1995 ignited the internet and initial public offering (IPO) boom. A series of billionaires emerged, and real estate prices soared. However, when we were looking for a store in the early 1990s, it was, in retrospect, just before “the dawn.” There were still many vacant shops along the streets with signs that read “Vacant” and “Tenants Wanted.” “We want a place about the same size or slightly smaller than our current store.” Initially, the two of us had such conversations. Ideally, the location would be not too far from University Avenue in Palo Alto, where our restaurant Sushi-ya is located, so that regular customers could visit."

"At Sushi-ya, Toshi’s Sushi, and Katsurei, we’ve welcomed many executives besides Steve, but Steve left a strong impression among them. Thinking about why that was, one thing that comes to mind is that Steve always called personally to order takeout sushi and came to pick it up himself in torn jeans. Even when visiting the store, he made his own reservations, and at some point, emails became more frequent, but he still sent those himself. Executives, who are naturally busy, typically have secretaries at their companies and often hire individuals personally for various tasks in their daily lives. However, Steve was an unusual executive who did everything himself. CEOs like that were hard to find."