Valuing the restaurant’s flavor and regular customers while also aiming to attract new ones (Horumon Tsukikura)
Higashinada Ward in Kobe City is located in an area where you can see Mt. Rokko to the north and Rokko Island (an artificial island) to the south, and is known within the city as an educational district with many prestigious junior and senior high schools and universities. At the same time, it is also a town where sake brewing has flourished since long ago, giving it a strong sense of tradition. In one corner of this town, in a residential area not far from JR Settsu-Motoyama Station, you’ll find the horumon yakiniku restaurant “Horumon Tsukikura.”
This time, we spoke with the owner, Mr. Minamiyama, who opened the restaurant before the COVID-19 pandemic and has been running it together with his wife. We asked him about the background and user experience that led him to introduce the Respo by AutoReserve (hereafter “Respo”) reservation ledger and POS register, as well as the story leading up to the opening of the restaurant and his future outlook.
Creation date: 2025年2月27日
Update date: 2026年2月26日
Table of contents
A hormone barbecue restaurant a married couple started just as the dining-out industry was changing
— What prompted you to start this business?
We opened about two and a half years ago. My husband had been working at the yakiniku restaurant that the previous owner ran in this building, while I was an ordinary office worker in a completely different field from food service. Around two and a half years ago, that yakiniku restaurant closed down, and we took over the place as-is. That became the opportunity for us to start our own restaurant.
We opened about two and a half years ago. My husband had been working at the yakiniku restaurant that the previous owner ran in this building, while I was an ordinary office worker in a completely different field from food service. Around two and a half years ago, that yakiniku restaurant closed down, and we took over the place as-is. That became the opportunity for us to start our own restaurant.
It might seem like we’ve simply switched from a yakiniku restaurant to a horumon grill, but in reality, the ingredients we handle, our suppliers, and other behind-the-scenes aspects have changed significantly.
—Please tell us the origin of your restaurant’s name.
“The name ‘Tsukikura’ comes from the character for ‘zō’ in the word ‘horumon,’ the offal (internal organs) we serve. We took the left side, the ‘moon’ radical, and the right side, ‘kura’ (storehouse), from the character 臓 and combined them to make the name. We are a yakiniku restaurant, but the name ‘Tsukikura’ expresses our wish for people to understand that we are a yakiniku place specializing in horumon.”
“The name ‘Tsukikura’ comes from the character for ‘zō’ in the word ‘horumon,’ the offal (internal organs) we serve. We took the left side, the ‘moon’ radical, and the right side, ‘kura’ (storehouse), from the character 臓 and combined them to make the name. We are a yakiniku restaurant, but the name ‘Tsukikura’ expresses our wish for people to understand that we are a yakiniku place specializing in horumon.”
Please tell us about the thing you struggled with most, or any memorable episode, around the time before and after starting your business.
What troubled me most was that the timing of our opening coincided with the COVID-19 pandemic. Even though it has now subsided, I still feel that customers’ behavior patterns have changed compared to before and after COVID. For example, before the pandemic we saw a wide variety of customer groups throughout the day, but after COVID I feel that the diversity is no longer what it used to be. This may be true for the food and beverage industry as a whole, but since fewer people go out for drinks after work, our restaurant has had to adapt to these major changes.
Specifically, I’ve been making a constant effort to introduce new things, such as coming up with new menu items that attract customers and trying to stock types of meat we hadn’t handled before. Also, because of our location, both affluent customers and those who are not are within our target, so it was challenging to prepare a menu that covers both groups and to manage the risk of inventory loss that comes with it.
Respo, the service that supported shops preparing for new waves and new trends
— Why did you choose Respo? Please also tell us what it’s like to use Respo.The number one reason I chose Respo was its extremely low price range, something I couldn’t find anywhere else no matter how hard I looked.
I’ve been using Respo’s services since they were first launched. Starting from the telephone answering service, then the POS register, and now the Respo reservation ledger, the system has been gradually developed and has truly supported our store management. While using it, there are moments when I think of small things I’d like to see improved, but nothing that rises to the level of dissatisfaction. It’s regularly updated through upgrades, and overall I’m very satisfied.
Also, while our older and regular customers mainly make reservations by phone, I believe that for new customers and younger generations, booking via smartphone often feels more convenient. Being able to use a unique reservation ledger system that meets the needs of those groups, and still attract customers through the web even when we can’t allocate a large budget to advertising or customer acquisition systems, is something we’re truly grateful for.
"In a restaurant, good taste is a given." A passion that only a small, owner-run place with close ties to its customers can have
--- Please tell us about the passion and feelings that make you confident your shop won’t lose to any other.
Of course, as a restaurant, we put top priority on making sure customers are satisfied with both the taste and the price. On top of that, whether someone is a regular or a first-time visitor, we work hard in the hope that coming to our place will give them some kind of special feeling.
For example, when it comes to price, I’m sure there are chain restaurants that can offer food more cheaply than we do. But precisely because we’re an independent shop, we place greater importance on building a relationship of trust with each customer. In other words, the fact that we attract customers of such good quality is exactly the point where we won’t lose to other establishments.
Of course, as a restaurant, we put top priority on making sure customers are satisfied with both the taste and the price. On top of that, whether someone is a regular or a first-time visitor, we work hard in the hope that coming to our place will give them some kind of special feeling.
For example, when it comes to price, I’m sure there are chain restaurants that can offer food more cheaply than we do. But precisely because we’re an independent shop, we place greater importance on building a relationship of trust with each customer. In other words, the fact that we attract customers of such good quality is exactly the point where we won’t lose to other establishments.
— Do you have any advice for people who are about to open a restaurant or other food business?
The qualifications you’ll need will differ depending on the type of business you’re starting, so it’s hard to make a blanket statement, but for example, I think it would be useful to obtain certifications like the system Asahi Beer has for recognizing establishments that pass their quality inspections. Also, in terms of preparation before opening, even though rising prices are making dining out tough these days, I think it’s important to go to various places, eat good food, and first of all train your own palate. Along with that, it would be good to deepen your understanding of current trends and, if you’ll be handling the register, to equip yourself with knowledge about cashless payments and similar topics.
Asking not for much, unbowed by the times, the trunk becomes branches, and then leaves
— From here on, how would you like to develop your shop?
While preserving the flavors we have now, I want to humbly continue valuing each customer right in front of us. By earning the trust of our current customers in this way, I hope we can grow into a strong trunk, and from that trunk extend branches, connecting our shop to those customers’ families and friends.
Store Information
Horumon Tsukikura
Address: Yutaka Building Mansion 1F, 3-1-2 Konancho, Higashinada-ku, Kobe-shi, Hyogo Prefecture
Phone number: 078-855-6100
Store information: https://autoreserve.com/restaurants/5XRBWGhn1RvSpGKFvJx1
Phone number: 078-855-6100
Store information: https://autoreserve.com/restaurants/5XRBWGhn1RvSpGKFvJx1
