Nick-San has been a labor of love, and the sea, by co-owners Ángel Carbajal and Masayuki Niikura, for the past three decades.
Carbajal, originally from Michoacán, México, and Niikura, a chef from Tokyo, Japan since the 1970’s, got together and opened Nick-San in 1994 – the first Mexican-Japanese fusion restaurant in Los Cabos.
According to Destino Magazine, the idea to merge these two cuisines “emerged from the scarcity of ingredients in the region 30 years ago…the infusion of Mexican elements like cilantro, avocado, chilies, onions, garlic, and mango shaped the legacy of Nick-San.”
Carbajal’s first love was fishing, and Niikura was also attracted to all the fish in Los Cabos. So he would visit every year in the 1980’s. After becoming friends, Niikura convinced Carbajal to open a restaurant together, because he told him they could do something so unique using their specialized skills and resources. Thirty years later, it has proven true.
Here’s our conversation with Chef Carbajal:
Describe a typical day for you? And what is your favorite aspect of your role at Nick-San?
I start my day at 6 am with a cup of coffee. Some days I go fishing, others I play golf. I go to the gym, and I have breakfast with my mother two days of each week if I´m not traveling.
Every day I go to the restaurants – either in downtown San Lucas or in Palmilla – sometimes to both locations. I try to be present to greet our regular customers, and have lunch with my family almost every day of the week.
I love being in the kitchen preparing something new. I always try dishes with my brothers, Eddy and George, before serving them in the restaurant so that I can give regular and new customers a great experience.
Which is your favorite culinary creation, and why?
My Tuna Tostada & Lobster roll, because I created these with the part of the protein that was not used before. I did not know that these would become very popular. Now we only use lobster tail and tuna loin.
Which dishes would you say is the most popular among guests?
#1 Tuna tostada
#2 Lobster roll
#3 Sushi tuna cake
# 4 Sashimi Hamachi curry
# 5 Shrimp and scallops Gyoza (homemade)
Are you having a special celebration for the 30th anniversary of the restaurant? In what ways have you seen the restaurant evolve over 3 decades?
Unfortunately, it would be very difficult to have one big party, because we have so many regular customers and their places of residence so varied. However, we have done several activities with different clients during the year.
Throughout the past 30 years, I’ve seen great changes in our tourist destinations, population growth, magnificent resorts, many restaurants with excellent gastronomic proposals. This has helped me to seek and generate the necessary changes to continue being a place that remains among the favorites of locals and visitors.
Any exciting plans for Nick-San in near the future?
We do have some exciting plans like cooking in a clay oven. We will make it public when the project will be accomplished 100 percent.
This article was created in partnership with FIPROTUR Los Cabos under the private trust. See the website disclaimer here. For more information, visit https://fiproturloscabos.com.
