One sentence about the restaurant

THE FOUNDER

ALVARO PEREZ MIRANDA

Álvaro Perez Miranda has cultivated a unique approach to hospitality through an uncompromising dedication to quality, authenticity, and attention to detail. Born in Venezuela, Perez Miranda studied art in the U.S. and Italy before moving to Tokyo. He spent a total of 15 years in Japan promoting Italian cuisine, eventually producing, building and managing more than 70 restaurant projects.. 

Perez Miranda opened his first Japanese restaurant, the casual sushi bowl eatery Wabi Sabi, in 2018, followed by the upscale Hiyakawa two years later. By 2023, APM had added two more concepts, both in partnership with master sushi chef Masayuki Komatsu: Midorie, a sister establishment to Wabi Sabi, and Ogawa, a 12-seat omakase sushi experience inspired by Osaka’s kappo-style cuisine. 

Across all of APM’s concepts, Perez Miranda has worked tirelessly to manifest the highest standard of Japanese culinary artistry in Miami, adopting Japanese principles such as omotenashi (mindful hospitality), komakai (fine attention to detail), and sensai (sensitivity) in pursuit of a perfectly authentic experience. This extends not only to ingredients – painstakingly sourced from across Japan, particularly Tokyo’s Toyosu fish market and Ibaraki prefecture – but to treating guests with the utmost care and warmth, making them feel as comfortable and at home as if they were at the home of a cherished friend. Through his art business Blackship Gallery, Perez Miranda has also been able to place stunning artworks in each restaurant, commissioned by the celebrated Japanese artists in his portfolio. 

All of this has earned Perez Miranda and his businesses extraordinary accolades. He was named a Goodwill Ambassador for Japanese Cuisine by the country’s Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, and Fisheries, the first U.S. Latino to hold such an honor, in 2023. In 2024 Perez Miranda was appointed Culinary Ambassador of Ibaraki, the largest agricultural prefecture in Japan, known widely for the finest products including Hitachi Wagyu and Ibaraki melon, by the governor of Ibaraki Mr. Ōigawa. 

In 2024, Perez Miranda’s omakase restaurant, Ogawa earned a Michelin Star in its first year of operation and was named the highest rated fine dining restaurant in America. In January 2026, Perez Miranda opened his first non-Japanese restaurant concept in South Florida with Chefs Osmel Gonzalez (Entrenos, Michelin Star/Michelin Green Star) and Camila Salazar – Emelina, a Cuban fine dining restaurant in West Palm Beach’s Historic Flamingo Park District.