Life & Work with Roy Henry of Torrance CA

Today we’d like to introduce you to Roy Henry

Hi Roy, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
It all started at home. Cooking has always been a part of my life and culture. I’m Mexican and Filipino, both my parents cooked very often and I always found myself in the kitchen helping prepare for meals.
In college I was taking culinary courses and it wasn’t until I was offered an opportunity to go to a trade for Hibachi/Teppan style cooking. It focused on teaching all of the different techniques and special skills that it takes to become a Professional Hibachi Chef.

The first Hibachi restaurant I started working for was Benihana in Torrance California. I was there until the COVID-19 pandemic broke out and the Los Angeles County was shut down. After not having work for months a lot of ex-chefs and even ex-management got together to form these Private Hibachi companies. Once the pandemic started to die down and places started opening up again I returned to Benihana but the new the county regulations made it so the restaurant only offered take out. I soon left Benihana and got hired by a private Hibachi business.

The first Hibachi catering company I had worked for was about 4 years. I met a lot of people, learned so much and gained the experience of cooking and entertaining for large crowds. They taught me a lot when it came to a private business as opposed to working in a corporate owned restaurant. I learned to cater and decorate events to make it look professional. I learned to deal with situations only a catering company could experience. How to create invoices and menus, create social media traffic and I can go on. It only took me a matter of time before I decided I could provide all of the services on my own. I wanted to create something for myself. In 2024 we started the Hibachi Royale company.

Now we are proud to serve our guest with our amazing home made sauces and dressings. We want to provide quality Hibachi food along with amazing entertainment the whole table will enjoy.

I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
Well it definitely has not been the smoothest. One of the struggles we’ve had is being a new company. There are lots of different catering companies and it is rough to get clientele and book consistently. Although luckily we have had a good amount of events already but we still need some more exposure. That is why this is right up our alley and can definitely help us get our name out there.

As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I am a Private Hibachi Chef, i specialize in Japanese style Teppan cooking. Hibachi chefs are known to provide delicious quality food cooked to perfection with different styles and techniques the Japanese culture uses to create these amazing flavor combinations. Not only do we have skill in our culinary field but we also cook in front of the guest and entertain them with humorous jokes and tricks. We also train with fire to implement fire tricks into our shows.

I feel that it sets us apart from other catering companies because we provide more than just food. The bring the whole set up and provide a entertaining show.

Is there anyone you’d like to thank or give credit to?
Yes, my friend and investor Gustavo. I wouldn’t have gotten this far if it wasn’t for him. I met him 3-4 years ago when I cooked for him and his family. Gustavo was so blown away by my food and show he came up to me after and asked me why I didn’t have my own company and why I worked for someone else. I told him that I would love to do it all on my own but that it took money that I didn’t have at the moment to create a business. He then told me if he invested if I’d be interested. We exchanged information that night but never really pursued because I was very busy being constantly booked with the company I was currently working with.

After a couple of years went by I ended up leaving the company I worked for wanting to finally start my own. I got back in touch with Gustavo and thankfully he was still interested. Then two months of meetings discussing how we would start the business we finally had our first client. We were so excited for our first customer! The first event really proved to us both that we can become Hibachi Royale.

Pricing:

• $85 per person tier 1 protein package can choose 1 from Filet mignon Lobster tali and or salmon. They also have a a choice of one tier 2 proteins including NY Steak , Shrimp and Chicken.
• $80 tier 2 protein package
• Prices may very depending on set up as well. Guest can also provide their own set up if needed and we can price for just chef

Contact Info:

• Instagram: Hibachi Royale
• Other: TikTok Hibachi Royale

Image Credits
Hibachi Royale content