Hai Si brings chef Yoshi Okai’s culinary spark to Aspen

Get ready. 

Aspen’s latest restaurant Hai Si — an underground izakaya concept by acclaimed chef Yoshi Okai is set to launch June 27 on Aspen’s Restaurant Row. 

The grand opening preview celebration for the public will be from 1-4 p.m., June 21 at the 2025 Food & Wine Classic. Reservations are required. 

Hai Si means “yes, yes,” mixing the Japanese word for yes “hai” and the Spanish word for yes, “si” to describe an original fusion culinary experience created by Okai, which combines Japanese cuisine with Spanish touches.

Chef Yoshi Okai will be in attendance during this First Taste of Hai Si featuring sustainable seafood provided by Wildtype, a sake fountain, live chain stitching, and flash tattoos. 

“I wanted to bring something new to the scene. Something Aspen is ready for,” Okai said. “I am the only one doing this cuisine here, and I think it will stand out in a way that Aspen will appreciate and understand.”

His latest restaurant in Aspen will be a novel experience, separate from his restaurant Otoko in Austin, Texas, or anywhere else. 

“Japanese cuisine has so many rules. But I don’t like rules,” he explained. “I want to have a new cuisine I can be excited about and do whatever I want.”

Kyoto, Japan-born Okai became well-known in Aspen after being named one of 2017 FOOD & WINE magazine’s Best New Chefs, an accolade the chef and punk rock singer had not anticipated.

“Surprised! Definitely a surprise because at the time they called to tell me when I was in the middle of making rice — they called twice,” he said of receiving the award. “When I answered the call, I was shocked, ‘Who is calling? Whose decision is this?”  

Okai has also excelled in the music world, playing with The Kodiaks, Black Panda, and Kuro Neko since his move to Austin in 1998.

New Waterloo Director of Impact and Experience John Thompson, who works behind the scenes at the Chef’s various restaurants, refers to Okai’s latest culinary brainchild as “a taste you never expected, but have always been missing.” 

“Guests leaving Hai Si should feel like they have experienced something completely new in the world of dining, having had interactive moments they can’t wait to repeat,” Thompson said.

To complete the required RSVP for the grand opening party, please write to info@haisiaspen.com. 

Hai Si will be at 308 E. Hopkins Ave., beneath Sway, a Thai restaurant. Sway and the downstairs restaurant Hai Si are co-owned by New Waterloo and Infinite Hospitality. Infinite Hospitality is an Aspen-based hospitality company founded in 2021. Sway, also led by Okai, opened in 2023.