Sushi Maki is a widely known restaurant chain in South Florida. The restaurant chain uses fresh ingredients to serve preservative and artificial ingredient free sushi and Japanese cuisine. The chain was founded and currently owned by accomplished Palmetto graduate Abe Ng. 

Ng graduated Miami Palmetto Senior High School in 1991. During his time there, he participated in service organizations such as key club and honor societies like Mu Alpha Theta. He was most heavily involved in speech and debate, which was a large part of his high school career and ultimately an enormous influence on his life.

“So many of our [those in speech and debate] friendships were really grounded in debate, and we traveled together,” Ng said. 

After graduating high school, Ng attended Cornell University for undergraduate school and then business school at Harvard University. Right after college, Ng moved back to Miami, and worked with Ernst and Young, a large accounting firm. He moved to California with his wife, Christina Ng, so she could finish law school at the University of Southern California. His roots, however, were still in Miami and in operating restaurants.

“I grew up in the business, my parents had and still operate canton restaurants,” Ng said.

Ng’s first restaurants were Mexican style food. However, he eventually opened Sushi Maki in 2000, which now has 18 locations, including a partnership with Whole Foods and a restaurant in a terminal in Miami International Airport . Sushi Maki has locations all over southern Florida, including Pinecrest, Palmetto Bay, Pembroke Pines, Coconut Grove, Boca Raton and universities such as the University of Miami and Florida International University. 

Ng cites Palmetto as a large source of prepping him to be where he is today. 

“I absolutely think that Palmetto really prepared me for college,” Ng said. “The platform, speech and debate really gave me a chance to meet students from all over the country, and it really gave me the vision of wanting to go away after high school.”

Along with his work with Sushi Maki, Ng is a part of the Florida Restaurant Association,  Greater Miami Convention and Visitor Bureau and the Cornell University Hospitality Entrepreneurship Advisory Board, among others. He was also recognized as a winner of Miami Herald’s 40 under 40 in 2011, and as the Ultimate CEO by the South Florida Business Journal.