Introduction example: Since implementation, 100% of customers who visit via online reservations have been brand-new clients. It has brought in new customers and streamlined our operations, and “so far we haven’t found any drawbacks” (Bistro Neige).

The days I spent running toward my goal of owning a shop by the age of 30

What inspired you to start your own business?

I opened the business on April 21, 2015. I think I first discovered how enjoyable cooking could be when I was in junior high school. My mother wasn’t very good at cooking, so when I tried making dishes myself, the people around me were delighted and said, “This is delicious!” That might have been the starting point for my desire to become a chef. At some point I formed a concrete goal of “having my own restaurant by the age of 30,” and I trained at foreign-owned hotels and pastry shops in Osaka, as well as Italian and French restaurants in Tokyo. I eventually opened my restaurant in a place that has personal ties for me: my mother’s hometown and the neighboring town where I grew up.

— As you step into the modern Japanese-style building, the wood-grain interior gives the place a very open feel. Could you tell me about the characteristics of your shop?

Because French restaurants tend to be seen as intimidating, we put great importance on creating a warm, homey atmosphere by ordering interiors and tables that make the most of natural wood materials. From appetizers to main dishes, bread, and desserts, we are committed to 100% additive-free, handmade dishes using vegetables sourced from local contract farmers and meat and fish from Kyushu, and we offer several course menus with varying numbers of dishes.

At lunchtime we mainly serve pasta, and at dinner we offer French cuisine. During the day the vast majority of our guests are women, but in the evening we welcome a variety of customers: couples, families with children, and groups using the restaurant for girls’ nights out. This area is a region of fields dotted with residential neighborhoods, and in addition to local residents, we also have tourists who come from places like Hirayama Onsen and Yamaga Onsen.

The deciding factors were the zero commission fee for customer referrals and the system for collecting reservation cancellation fees.

― Please tell us what led you to introduce the Respo reservation ledger.

Around 90% of our customers visit us with a reservation.

A few years ago, we introduced another company’s reservation system, and since then we’ve been receiving many more customers from different areas and with a different atmosphere than before. We’re very grateful for this, but at the same time, each booking incurs a referral fee, and there are also customers who cancel for various reasons, so it has not been without financial burden in terms of expenses.

At that time, I happened to learn about Autoreserve’s system from an article in a trade magazine I subscribe to. The user reviews were excellent, and since there were no referral fees and we could even charge cancellation fees, I was really surprised and curious about what kind of mechanism made it all possible.

―――How do you feel after introducing the Respo reservation ledger?

We introduced it in September 2023. At the moment, online reservations account for only about 10% of all bookings, but 100% of the customers who come through AutoReserve’s system are new. We use it alongside our existing reservation ledger, and every customer who books through AutoReserve is someone who isn’t registered in our existing ledger. Even as we enter our eighth year in business, it’s very gratifying that this has created an opportunity for new customers to visit us like this.

No cost burden and streamlined time and work. I can’t find anything wrong with it.

— You mentioned that it has led to acquiring new customers, but could you tell us if there are any other benefits you’ve found from introducing the Respo reservation ledger?

Yes, one major change is that the number of calls we receive during business hours has decreased. Whoever is available at the time answers the phone, but our shop is run by four people during the day, including myself, and three at night. If one person has to handle phone calls, it’s a serious blow in terms of both the time it takes and the extra work involved.

With Autoreserve’s system, whenever it suits them, customers can fill out the reservation form themselves, and a reservation ledger is created automatically. This allows the restaurant to reliably accept reservations even outside business hours. We’ve set it up so that time slots with existing reservations are blocked, which prevents double bookings in the system and eliminates input errors on the restaurant’s side.

Also, some customers who book by phone haven’t decided on their course and we sometimes spend a lot of time explaining things over the phone, but with the online system you can’t make a reservation without choosing a course. This makes it easier to arrange ingredients in advance and eliminates food waste.

It lets us handle tasks that used to be done manually much more efficiently, and since the referral fee is zero, it’s been nothing but positive for our shop—we honestly can’t find any downsides.

Rooted in the community, we will continue striving to create our ideal shop.

— Finally, could you tell us about your goals and outlook for the future?

We are currently expanding our restaurant. In addition to enlarging the existing dining area, we plan to open a new shop around 500 meters away starting in 2026, where we will produce and sell bread and sweets. At the moment, we bake bread and make sweets inside this restaurant, but our goal is to move those functions to a nearby separate location in order to expand our sales channels and increase the restaurant’s revenue.

When I opened the restaurant, I only had the building itself constructed, and then over seven years I gradually created the garden layout, did the planting, and built the exterior myself, enjoying the process as I went. It has finally started to take shape, but even now I spend my days off working on the outside of the restaurant and building an extension, so even in this eighth year, the process of “creating the restaurant” is still ongoing.

I want to keep cherishing each day’s encounters with our customers and continue running this shop here, in this place, just as we always have.

Store Information

Bistro Neige

Address: 320-1 Sugi, Yamaga City, Kumamoto Prefecture
Phone number: 0968-41-5219
Store details:https://autoreserve.com/restaurants/pzuV5ip58W82oMSY7FDK