One Piece Cafe Creator Talks Opening The Straw Hat Restaurant

Andy Nguyen has helped create America's first One Piece Cafe and we here at ComicBook talked with him about its creation.

By Evan Valentine

Japan has its fair share of locations that honor the Straw Hat Pirates, and North America is starting to play catch up as an official One Piece Cafe will open in Las Vegas this weekend. Tailoring its menu and aesthetic to reflect the Grand Line, Toei Animation teamed up with restauranteur Andy Nguyen to help create the first One Piece Cafe of its kind in North America. Before the restaurant swung open its doors, we had the opportunity to chat with Andy about how this anime cafe came to be.

Nguyen is an old hat not just when it comes to opening up restaurants, but establishments that specifically are tailored to pop culture icons. "I first got my start working in the apparel business, then got into the restaurant business where I've been for ten years. I've done collaborations for restaurants and cafes for Sanrio's Hello Kitty, Adult Swim's Rick And Morty, Sega's Sonic The Hedgehog, and curated the first Naruto ramen shop in America." When it came to creating a One Piece Cafe, Andy knew how big of a task this was considering fans' passing for the series, "We did a deep dive into items that would work, knowing we'd be walking a fine line."

One Piece Cafe Was Created Faster Than You Might Think

Of the many items that are a part of the One Piece Cafe's menu, Andy notes that he's most proud of the "Meat Bone" that was created in the restaurant, "I'm really most proud of the Meat Bone because we somehow figured out a way to create it. We take a meatball and wrap it around a bone, crafting it to make sure it lives up to Luffy's favorite food." When asked how quickly the Cafe took to make, Nguyen shared that work began last December, showing how quickly it came into being. 

Of course, Nguyen would team up with Toei Animation on this project, stating that the animation company had a lot of input when it came to opening up this One Piece Cafe, "We would take everything we did, whether its the restaurant design, foods, or drinks and send it to Toei for approval. Sometimes we'd have to go back to the drawing board, but we're confident we tweaked it to perfection. Opening up a One Piece Cafe is intimidating considering how popular the series is." 

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When asked if there is another anime cafe that he'd love to bring to North America, Nguyen wasted no time stating that he'd love to tackle another shonen series, "Well I'm a big fan of Shonen Jump's Big Three. I've already scratched off One Piece and Naruto, so I think Dragon Ball would be the next one I'd want to do." 

The One Piece Cafe officially opens on May 11th at 5600 Spring Mountain Rd Suite A, Las Vegas, NV. 

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