At Perry’s in Washington D.C., Masako Morishita’s rule-bending meld of Japanese tradition and international nostalgia constantly evolves in service of one simple thing: happiness. That goes for the staff and the diners alike, whether they’re in the dining room or on the rooftop, whether they’re there for weekend drag brunch or Japanese breakfast. “I don’t want to serve sad food or angry food,” she says. “I want people to feel love. I make sure my staff is happy so we can deliver that joy to the guests.”
Customers at the sushi bar at Perry’s.
Credit: Food & Wine / Alex Lau
This bliss comes in the form of clams in a miso butter broth spiked with chile flakes like her dad always loved, and in a McDonald’s-inspired shrimp katsu burger she made to comfort herself when homesickness struck. It’s swirled throughout a sumptuous miso nasu Bolognese dip with burrata and buttered toast points that’s reminiscent of a sloppy Joe (if the cafeteria servers were actual angels), and an udon carbonara served with Parmesan cheese, Jidori egg yolk, crispy prosciutto, and an irrepressible grin. It’s offered by the platter at a prix-fixe drag brunch buffet, treated here with the same meticulous care that Morishita gives to the Japanese breakfast she serves in limited quantities every other Saturday.
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Morishita was born into the hospitality world, helping out after school at her family’s Morishita Standing Bar and Liquor Store. It has been a fixture for nearly 100 years in Kobe, Japan, even after the 1995 Great Hanshin earthquake reduced much of the region to rubble, killing over 6,000 people. Fire destroyed the building, which was also their home. Morishita’s family rebuilt, even as their remaining clientele moved away. Her parents begged their daughter to consider a career in business or government — something with a steady paycheck and security — but even at 15, she knew she had the power and drive to take her as far as her dreams would carry her.
The team at Perry’s.
Credit: Food & Wine / Alex Lau
Morishita moved to Washington, D.C. to take a job as an office manager at a Japanese news station. On a whim, she went to cheerleading tryouts for the NFL team now known as the Washington Commanders, and spent the next five years working a full-time office job, then practicing with the squad until 11:30. The first-ever foreign-born team captain found tremendous pleasure and comfort in sharing the flavors of home by bringing Japanese curries to potlucks — much to the delight of her teammates, who encouraged her to explore her passion for cooking. When a hamstring injury ended her athletic career, she opened her first pop-up concept, Otabe, followed by an executive chef position at Maxwell Park that allowed her to finally quit her office job.
Then Perry’s came calling. It’s been a D.C. fixture since 1984, beloved for its sushi and rooftop bar, hosts one of the longest-running drag brunches in the city. Morishita had never attended one, so when Perry’s owners asked if she’d like to come in for a meal, that’s the one she chose. And it’s why she stayed.
“It was encouraging how unapologetic the queens are. They just go full out and show what they’ve got,” she says. “It was the missing piece.” Sure, Morishita didn’t have the experience of some of her peers — just as she hadn’t when she tried out for the cheerleading team or hosted her first pop-up — but the organizational skills she’d honed as an office manager, polished by thousands of hours on the field, allowed her to shine.
“”I want people to feel love. I make sure my staff is happy so we can deliver that joy to the guests.” “
Masako Morishita
That same intent is poured into the sake club that Morishita curates alongside Perry’s sommelier, Devin Sparks. This isn’t only a way for them to introduce their clientele to the vast world of this intrinsically Japanese art form; it’s also a nod to the industry through which her parents met, fell in love, and built their foundation together. Her mom was working as a representative for a sake brewery, and her dad was passionate about wooing this woman, so he did small, beautiful things — like showing up with an umbrella during a rainstorm — until she fell for him just as hard. Being a cheerleader for joy seems to run in the family.
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