Q&A: Nathan Gould of O Ya

05/24/2018

Landing a gig at Boston’s most acclaimed high-end sushi spot requires an impressive resume—and Nathan Gould certainly has one. After growing up learning old-school French cooking techniques from his mother and grandmother, the budding chef earned degrees in culinary nutrition and sports nutrition, plus spent a summer studying wine in Germany. Gould went on to run a catering company in New Jersey and to work for several years on Martha’s Vineyard at Harbor View Hotel and Beach Plum Inn before moving to Boston and channeling his varied expertise into sushi.

Favorite dish:

A dish I love to eat all seasons is the pasta—usually Rigatoni con Sugo—at Coppa.

Desert island spice:

Caraway seed!

Kitchen playlist:

We’re at the mercy of our cooks—usually ends up being hardcore, but every now and then we’ll have a Jackson 5 type of day. We have a unique team.

Favorite food destination:

Tokyo, hands down. So much food and so many amazing places to eat!

Cooking inspiration:

I’m most inspired by our ocean. I love the seasonality and migration of fish in our area and in all areas of the world. To me, it’s so location-specific. We have beautiful seasons up here, which lend a helping hand for inspiration, especially as chefs, just due to availability.

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