{"id":7048,"date":"2025-05-23T14:09:18","date_gmt":"2025-05-24T00:09:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/chefsdetahiti.pf\/interview-with-the-chef-aki-aki\/"},"modified":"2025-07-07T13:59:14","modified_gmt":"2025-07-07T23:59:14","slug":"interview-with-the-chef-aki-aki","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chefsdetahiti.pf\/en\/interview-with-the-chef-aki-aki\/","title":{"rendered":"Interview with the Chef: Aki Aki"},"content":{"rendered":"<!--themify_builder_content-->\n<div id=\"themify_builder_content-7048\" data-postid=\"7048\" class=\"themify_builder_content themify_builder_content-7048 themify_builder tf_clear\">\n                    <div  data-lazy=\"1\" class=\"module_row themify_builder_row tb_skgy930 tb_first tf_w\">\n                        <div class=\"row_inner col_align_top tb_col_count_1 tf_box tf_rel\">\n                        <div  data-lazy=\"1\" class=\"module_column tb-column col-full tb_15yz490 first\">\n                            <div  data-lazy=\"1\" class=\"module_subrow themify_builder_sub_row tf_w col_align_top tb_col_count_2 tb_uwh4940\">\n                <div  data-lazy=\"1\" class=\"module_column sub_column col4-2 tb_z0yv449 first\">\n                    <!-- module image -->\n<div  class=\"module module-image tb_yavp409 image-top   tf_mw\" data-lazy=\"1\">\n        <div class=\"image-wrap tf_rel tf_mw\">\n            <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1080\" height=\"1350\" src=\"https:\/\/chefsdetahiti.pf\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/portaitakiaki.png\" class=\"wp-post-image wp-image-6578\" title=\"portaitakiaki\" alt=\"portaitakiaki\" srcset=\"https:\/\/chefsdetahiti.pf\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/portaitakiaki.png 1080w, https:\/\/chefsdetahiti.pf\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/portaitakiaki-240x300.png 240w, https:\/\/chefsdetahiti.pf\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/portaitakiaki-819x1024.png 819w, https:\/\/chefsdetahiti.pf\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/portaitakiaki-768x960.png 768w, https:\/\/chefsdetahiti.pf\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/portaitakiaki-144x180.png 144w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1080px) 100vw, 1080px\" \/>    \n        <\/div>\n    <!-- \/image-wrap -->\n    \n        <\/div>\n<!-- \/module image -->        <\/div>\n                    <div  data-lazy=\"1\" class=\"module_column sub_column col4-2 tb_roo0100 last\">\n                    <!-- module text -->\n<div  class=\"module module-text tb_nmlu660   \" data-lazy=\"1\">\n        <div  class=\"tb_text_wrap\">\n        \n          <blockquote>\n            \n\n            <p>\n              <em>Christophe Tetuanui is the embodiment of a new generation of daring, innovative and inspirational chefs, with an atypical background, genuine passion and a strong team spirit.<\/em>\n            <\/p>\n            \n\n          <\/blockquote>\n          \n\n          <p style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n            <span style=\"font-family: Raleway;\">\n              <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">My name is <strong>Christophe Tetuanui<\/strong>, I&#8217;m 28 and I come from Punauuia. With my best friend, <strong>Lorick Albonico<\/strong>, we opened <b>Aki Ak<\/b>i, a Japanese street food restaurant in Titioro. This project is the culmination of several years of reflection and a passion for cooking.  <\/span>\n            <\/span>\n          <\/p>\n            <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<!-- \/module text -->        <\/div>\n                    <\/div>\n                <div  data-lazy=\"1\" class=\"module_subrow themify_builder_sub_row tf_w col_align_top tb_col_count_1 tb_h1gt014\">\n                <div  data-lazy=\"1\" class=\"module_column sub_column col-full tb_kwi0055 first\">\n                    <!-- module text -->\n<div  class=\"module module-text tb_62gm401   \" data-lazy=\"1\">\n        <div  class=\"tb_text_wrap\">\n        \n          <h3>\n            <strong>A passion born of Japanese culture<\/strong>\n          <\/h3>\n          \n\n          <p>\n            <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Lorick and I have always been fans of Japanese culture &#8211; the manga, the food, the atmosphere. We were lucky enough to train in Toulouse, in a Japanese restaurant. And that&#8217;s when we said to ourselves: why not bring that back home to Tahiti?  <\/span>\n          <\/p>\n          \n\n          <p>\n            <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Ramen, okonomiyaki, takoyaki&#8230; These are dishes that used to be found only on the streets of Japan. Now they&#8217;re available right here at home. And we&#8217;re proud of that.  <\/span>\n          <\/p>\n          \n\n          <h3>\n            <strong>A journey built on sheer strength<\/strong>\n          <\/h3>\n          \n\n          <p>\n            <i>\n              <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I didn&#8217;t go to cookery school. I stopped studying after the baccalaur\u00e9at. I started working in the restaurant business when I joined Lorick in France. I learnt everything on the job, from washing dishes to becoming a manager.   <\/span>\n            <\/i>\n          <\/p>\n          \n\n          <p>\n            <i>\n              <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Over time, I&#8217;ve discovered what really motivates me: seeing customers leave with a smile on their face. For me, that&#8217;s the real joy of this job. If people are happy to come and eat with us, then we&#8217;ve won everything.  <\/span>\n            <\/i>\n          <\/p>\n          \n\n          <h3>\n            <strong>A team built on trust<\/strong>\n          <\/h3>\n          \n\n          <p>\n            <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Aki Aki is also a story of friendship. When we set up the project, we called on two of our best friends. They gave up their jobs to come with us. We work together, we help each other, we laugh. That&#8217;s our strength.    <\/span>\n          <\/p>\n          \n\n          <p>\n            <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">We&#8217;ve also kept two employees from the old restaurant, with whom we&#8217;ve found a great bond. We work a lot, that&#8217;s for sure. But because we love what we do and get on well together, we don&#8217;t feel like we&#8217;re &#8216;working&#8217;. And that makes all the difference.   <\/span>\n          <\/p>\n          \n\n          <h3>\n            <strong>A message to young people<\/strong>\n          <\/h3>\n          \n\n          <p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">To all those who hesitate or doubt<\/span><\/i>:<b><i> believe in your dreams.<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n          \n\n          <p>\n            <i>\n              <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The hardest thing is taking the first step. You have to go for it, not be afraid to take the plunge. If you really want to, anything is possible. You just have to give yourself the means and believe in it.   <\/span>\n            <\/i>\n          <\/p>\n          \n\n          <p style=\"text-align: center;\">\n            <em style=\"font-family: Raleway;\">\n              <b>Thank you Chefs de Tahiti!<\/b>\n            <\/em>\n          <\/p>\n            <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<!-- \/module text -->        <\/div>\n                    <\/div>\n                <\/div>\n                        <\/div>\n        <\/div>\n        <\/div>\n<!--\/themify_builder_content-->\n<p><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Chefs de Tahiti went to meet Christophe Tetuanui, chef of the brand new Japanese street food restaurant Aki Aki. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":6578,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[94],"tags":[],"restaurant":[],"chef":[],"class_list":["post-7048","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-chefs","has-post-title","has-post-date","has-post-category","has-post-tag","has-post-comment","has-post-author",""],"aioseo_notices":[],"builder_content":"<img src=\"https:\/\/chefsdetahiti.pf\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/portaitakiaki.png\" title=\"portaitakiaki\" alt=\"portaitakiaki\" srcset=\"https:\/\/chefsdetahiti.pf\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/portaitakiaki.png 1080w, https:\/\/chefsdetahiti.pf\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/portaitakiaki-240x300.png 240w, https:\/\/chefsdetahiti.pf\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/portaitakiaki-819x1024.png 819w, https:\/\/chefsdetahiti.pf\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/portaitakiaki-768x960.png 768w, https:\/\/chefsdetahiti.pf\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/portaitakiaki-144x180.png 144w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1080px) 100vw, 1080px\" \/>\n<blockquote> \n <p> <em>Christophe Tetuanui is the embodiment of a new generation of daring, innovative and inspirational chefs, with an atypical background, genuine passion and a strong team spirit.<\/em> <\/p> \n <\/blockquote> \n <p style=\"text-align: justify;\"> My name is <strong>Christophe Tetuanui<\/strong>, I'm 28 and I come from Punauuia. With my best friend, <strong>Lorick Albonico<\/strong>, we opened <b>Aki Ak<\/b>i, a Japanese street food restaurant in Titioro. This project is the culmination of several years of reflection and a passion for cooking. <\/p>\n<h3> <strong>A passion born of Japanese culture<\/strong> <\/h3> \n <p> Lorick and I have always been fans of Japanese culture - the manga, the food, the atmosphere. We were lucky enough to train in Toulouse, in a Japanese restaurant. And that's when we said to ourselves: why not bring that back home to Tahiti? <\/p> \n <p> Ramen, okonomiyaki, takoyaki... These are dishes that used to be found only on the streets of Japan. Now they're available right here at home. And we're proud of that. <\/p> \n <h3> <strong>A journey built on sheer strength<\/strong> <\/h3> \n <p> <i> I didn't go to cookery school. I stopped studying after the baccalaur\u00e9at. I started working in the restaurant business when I joined Lorick in France. I learnt everything on the job, from washing dishes to becoming a manager. <\/i> <\/p> \n <p> <i> Over time, I've discovered what really motivates me: seeing customers leave with a smile on their face. For me, that's the real joy of this job. If people are happy to come and eat with us, then we've won everything. <\/i> <\/p> \n <h3> <strong>A team built on trust<\/strong> <\/h3> \n <p> Aki Aki is also a story of friendship. When we set up the project, we called on two of our best friends. They gave up their jobs to come with us. We work together, we help each other, we laugh. That's our strength. <\/p> \n <p> We've also kept two employees from the old restaurant, with whom we've found a great bond. We work a lot, that's for sure. But because we love what we do and get on well together, we don't feel like we're 'working'. And that makes all the difference. <\/p> \n <h3> <strong>A message to young people<\/strong> <\/h3> \n <p><i>To all those who hesitate or doubt<\/i>:<b><i> believe in your dreams.<\/i><\/b><\/p> \n <p> <i> The hardest thing is taking the first step. You have to go for it, not be afraid to take the plunge. If you really want to, anything is possible. You just have to give yourself the means and believe in it. <\/i> <\/p> \n <p style=\"text-align: center;\"> <em style=\"font-family: Raleway;\"> <b>Thank you Chefs de Tahiti!<\/b> <\/em> <\/p>","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/chefsdetahiti.pf\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7048","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/chefsdetahiti.pf\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/chefsdetahiti.pf\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chefsdetahiti.pf\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chefsdetahiti.pf\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7048"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/chefsdetahiti.pf\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7048\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7049,"href":"https:\/\/chefsdetahiti.pf\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7048\/revisions\/7049"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chefsdetahiti.pf\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6578"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/chefsdetahiti.pf\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7048"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chefsdetahiti.pf\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7048"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chefsdetahiti.pf\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7048"},{"taxonomy":"restaurant","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chefsdetahiti.pf\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/restaurant?post=7048"},{"taxonomy":"chef","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chefsdetahiti.pf\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/chef?post=7048"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}