Clean, Craveable, Convenient.
M Cafe blends Japanese macrobiotic principles with California’s vibrant culinary landscape to create thoughtfully crafted food that’s as delicious as it is nourishing — directly from our kitchen to your table.
Our commitment to quality begins with thoughtful sourcing. We partner directly with local farmers to bring you the freshest seasonal vegetables, harvested at peak ripeness and delivered to our kitchen with minimal transit time. Our chefs transform these ingredients daily, incorporating uncommon superfoods like azuki beans and umeboshi alongside traditionally crafted organic tofu that delivers unmatched texture and flavor.
For our menu’s fish selections, we thoughtfully choose Saba (Japanese Mackerel), a blue fish variety naturally lower in mercury, alongside other sustainably farmed and wild-caught options. These choices support both personal health and ocean ecosystems.
This careful curation of ingredients exemplifies our approach to truly chef-crafted, farm-sourced food that you can feel good about eating.
Our Ingredients
Thoughtfully Sourced, Expertly Prepared
Modern Macrobiotics
Tradition Meets Innovation
M Cafe takes a modern approach to macrobiotic cuisine - demonstrating that healthy eating, exceptional flavor and convenience can co-exist seamlessly.
At its core, traditional macrobiotics recognizes food's energetic qualities and natural cycles, seeking balance between what we eat and our environment to support overall wellbeing. Our Japanese-Californian recipes honor central traditional macrobiotic principles by featuring whole cereal grains as the foundation, complemented by seasonal vegetables, beans, sea vegetables, and occasional sustainably-sourced fish.
Our menu is also free from the following ingredients:
- refined sugars
- eggs
- dairy
- red meat
With seasonal rotations in many of our selections, each dish presents something fresh and flavorful while staying in sync with nature's rhythms and fitting easily into your day - the essence of Modern Macrobiotics.
Yuta Tsunoda, Founder
Yuta comes from a storied restaurant family with roots stretching back 390 years to the original Hijage Chaya tea house in Hayama, Japan. His career path led from the Four Seasons Beverly Hills to joining his family's restaurant business in 1993, where he eventually held the position of CEO of Chaya Restaurant Group, including Chaya and M Café. In 2005, Yuta founded M Cafe on Melrose Avenue, pioneering modern macrobiotic cuisine in Los Angeles. Today, he continues to blend his family's deep-rooted commitment to hospitality while making health-conscious, macrobiotic dining accessible and appealing to modern audiences.
Chef Yuko Kajino, Executive Corporate Chef & Procurement
Chef Kaji brings nearly two decades of culinary expertise to his role as Executive Chef of M Cafe. His journey began in Nagoya, Japan, where at age fifteen he discovered his passion for cuisine while watching a cooking show that featured “delicious-looking food” unlike anything he’d seen before.
After culinary training in Tokyo and honing his skills in various kitchens, Chef Kaji developed his distinctive approach to creating cuisine that is simple, perfectly seasoned and a little surprising. His leadership extends beyond menu development to mentoring kitchen staff, as he finds equal satisfaction in teaching people new ways and foods to cook as he does in seeing guests enjoy his creations. Today Chef Kaji brings his talent for inspired, balanced cuisine to M Cafe, where he continues to blend Japanese tradition with California freshness.
Chef Lee Gross, Director of Culinary Innovation
Chef Lee Gross has been integral to M Cafe since our opening in 2005. With classical culinary training from Johnson & Wales University and over 25 years of macrobiotic study, he brings a unique perspective on making wellness-focused cuisine accessible and crave-worthy.
After honing his skills under acclaimed chefs at prestigious restaurants including Domaine Chandon in Napa Valley, Boston Harbor Hotel, and Providence’s Al Forno, Chef Lee found his true calling in macrobiotic cuisine. His studies at the Kushi Institute deepened his understanding of food’s connection to health and environment, principles he brought to M Cafe as opening Chef de Cuisine. His innovative approach to modern macrobiotic cuisine helped establish M Cafe as a pioneer in Los Angeles’ health-conscious dining scene, where he continues to influence menu development and special projects.
Our Team
Crafting Wellness Through Food
