hether you call it fate, luck, or karma, Donna Lanzetta and Ryunosuke “Jesse” Matsuoka were
destined to share their passion for feeding the world in a healthy and ecologically sensitive way. Their current shared adventure is the establishment of Manna, a sustainable seafood farm in Hampton Bays, designed to counter the drastic dwindling of our worldwide stock of fish in a clean, organic environment. For Donna, whose father owned a fruit farm in upstate New York, a mother whose favorite meals to prepare were centered around fish, and a family butcher business, her early experience was a recipe for her current success. Donna’s passion for sustainable seafood production and concern for the world’s declining fish stocks motivated her to establish the Manna Ocean Foundation as a platform to share her ideas, and Manna Fish Farms as the place to implement them. Many of Jesse’s fondest, earliest memories are also of his childhood years spent in Japan with his mother, Artist Lynn Matsuoka. When dinner conversation became too long, Jesse recalls heading for the kitchen, to learn the menu, the ingredients, their origin, etc. Lynn particularly remembers Jesse’s ninth birthday, when he emerged from the kitchen in full chef uniform, and prepared dessert for the guests. It was decades later that fate
Manna at Lobster Inn located at 5 Inlet Rd West, Southampton, NY 11968. 631-728-5555
stepped in for both Donna and Jesse when Southampton Town Supervisor Jay Schneiderman brokered a deal, with the help of the Community Preservation Fund (CPF), for the sale of the Lobster Inn not originally planned for conversion to town homes, but to become the new home to Manna at Lobster Inn Restaurant, with Jesse Matsuoka of Sen and K Pasa Restaurants of Sag Harbor at the
Ryunosuke “Jesse” Matsuoka, President, Manna Seafood Blockchain. Photo by ©Robin Lee
Donna Lanzetta, Vice-President, Manna Seafood Blockchain
58 • AFLOAT USA Hamptons May/June 2022
AFLOAT USA Hamptons May/June 2022 • 59
Made with FlippingBook flipbook maker