Introduction example: The rules for reservation cancellation fees are also a form of “trust” that connects our guests and our restaurant. For guests who agree to our cancellation policy and make a reservation, we want to respond with all our heart through our cuisine. (Japanese Cuisine Takanohane)

Moved from Tokyo to Shizuoka, realizing a plan I’d had for 10 years

— Could you tell us about the background leading up to your opening the business?

I was born and raised in Tokyo, and after graduating from a vocational school I spent about 20 years training at hotels in the city and at a Japanese restaurant in Nishi-Azabu. But from around ten years ago, I had a plan to eventually move to Shizuoka and open my own restaurant. The reasons I chose this area are that my wife is originally from Shizuoka City, and that it’s a place where both the sea and the mountains are close by, making it easy to get fresh ingredients.

It wasn’t a spur-of-the-moment decision to relocate; even 10 years ago I was prepared to open a shop in a new place. After gaining experience as an artisan and considering the timing for my family, I opened the business on September 27, 2023. My family crest is called “Maru ni Chigai Takanohane” (crossed hawk feathers in a circle), and I took part of that name for the shop’s name.

—Shizuoka City is close to a fishing port, so it has an image of being rich in seafood, but it also has an abundance of ingredients from the mountains.

Let me see… Shizuoka is famous for ingredients like sakura shrimp, fresh whitebait, and premium horse mackerel, but since the mountains are also close by, at this time of year I especially recommend mountain delicacies like wild yam and shiitake mushrooms, packed with seasonal flavor. I go out to procure ingredients every morning, and because the production areas are so close, both the fish and vegetables are incredibly fresh. It really sparks my creativity—using them is exciting. I create seasonal course menus that showcase local products and ingredients at their peak.

― And the dishes that highlight the beautifully colorful Japanese cuisine are wonderful as well.

Thank you very much. Many of the dishes are pieces I’ve been collecting since my training days, and I feel a special attachment to each one. Among them, the works from a kiln in Fukui Prefecture have a unique color and luster found nowhere else, and since the artist has a connection to Shizuoka, I asked them to create new pieces especially for my opening.

Online reservations account for 40%. Compared to other companies, the lower monthly usage fee and the ability to collect cancellation fees are attractive.

— You’ve been using the Respo reservation ledger since you first opened. What made you decide to introduce it?

Since I handle everything by myself—from daily purchasing to cooking and customer service—I had planned to systematize reservation management from the very beginning.

At the restaurant where I used to work, we used a reservation ledger system from another company, so I knew there were various options out there, but I think Autoreserve’s flat monthly fee is cheaper compared to others. I found it appealing that you only pay the monthly usage fee without any per-reservation referral charges for online bookings, and that you can collect cancellation fees when a reservation is canceled.

— Your restaurant operates on a reservation basis; could you tell me about your current reservation situation and the type of clientele you serve?

Because seating is limited and I run the restaurant by myself, we basically operate on a reservation-only basis. About 60% of our reservations are made by phone and 40% online.

We have guests who visit to celebrate anniversaries for couples or families living nearby, as well as groups of friends who simply enjoy good food. Since we’ve only been open for two and a half months, most of our customers are first-time visitors, but some people have already come back two or three times, and new guests also find us through word of mouth from those who’ve been here. We’re truly grateful for that.

— Was the “60% phone reservations, 40% online reservations” ratio in line with your initial expectations?

It seems that more older customers than we initially expected tend to make reservations by phone.

For phone reservations, the shop is out in the morning to purchase supplies, so no one is at the store, and the hours we can answer the phone are roughly from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m., before business starts. This overlaps with our prep and cooking time, so we do have to stop what we’re doing each time to take calls, but there are people who can only make reservations by phone, so I suppose it can’t be helped.

On the other hand, quite a few of the customers who make reservations by phone say they called because they don’t know how to book online. So for those who are interested in online reservations, I feel there’s room to increase the share of online bookings by guiding them through the steps up to completing a reservation. I’d be happy if online reservations increased a bit more. Right now, we have a link on our website to AutoReserve’s booking site, and we also let customers know they can send us a message via Instagram DM.

Agreeing to the cancellation policy is a matter of “trust” exchanged between the customer and the shop

― How do you feel about the policy for reservation cancellation fees?

I had often heard fellow professionals say that reservation cancellations can be a serious blow to a restaurant, so the fact that Autoreserve allows us to collect cancellation fees was a key factor in our decision to implement it.

Collecting cancellation fees isn’t just about making up for lost revenue; to me, it can also be described as a form of mutual “trust” between the customer and the restaurant. Customers make a reservation only after agreeing to the cancellation policy. It’s never a casual decision—they reserve with the readiness to pay that fee if necessary, and in that I feel their “trust” in the restaurant. From the restaurant’s side, there is a sense of “trust” that the customer will come unless something unforeseen happens, and at the same time, a “trust” that we will provide a satisfying meal to those who went so far as to make a reservation. It feels like we are exchanging these forms of trust with each other.

— You mentioned that “a cancellation would be a major blow.” Specifically, what kind of damage would it cause?

Fortunately, our restaurant has never had a reservation canceled to the extent that we had to charge a cancellation fee. However, since we are a small establishment, any reservation cancellation would naturally affect our sales. In practical terms, the impact on revenue would be significant, but more than that, as a chef, what pains me most is having to waste the ingredients we’ve purchased and the food we’ve already prepared.

— How do you find the usability of the Respo reservation ledger?

In the past, I was very cautious about entering information while taking reservation calls, and it took a lot of time. Recently, however, I’ve been able to enter everything smoothly without keeping customers waiting. Once a phone reservation or online reservation is completed, I can check the booking status on the calendar, which is really convenient when ordering supplies.

— In what kinds of stores do you think the Respo reservation ledger can be effectively used?

I think there are advantages for small shops like ours that are run with a limited number of staff. Since opening, I’ve really felt that in regional cities like Shizuoka, there is a high proportion of older customers, and even among younger people there are those who aren’t very used to using the internet. In urban areas, however, there are many more younger customers, so I imagine the hurdle for making online reservations is lower than it is in regional cities.

The feelings behind “single-minded devotion”

— Could you tell us about your future prospects?

Having worked in restaurants in Tokyo for a long time, I often feel a gap between here and Tokyo. For example, in Tokyo, fresh ingredients of many different kinds are brought in from all over the country, so you can get almost anything. On the other hand, while regional cities are very rich as production areas for foodstuffs, the good ingredients harvested there often end up being shipped off to major cities like Tokyo. That means that if you want to choose good local ingredients, you need to secure your own distribution channels and go out and look for them yourself.

I haven’t been living in Shizuoka for very long, so there’s still a lot I don’t know, but right now I focus on choosing good ingredients and serving the best dishes I can. Day by day I’m working hard so that eventually I can create exceptional dishes that truly suit this region.

In the restaurant, we have a calligraphy piece that reads “Senshin Ichii” (Wholehearted Devotion) written by a calligrapher. I first met this calligrapher by chance at a restaurant I visited in the past to study and learn; the owner there kindly introduced us. Thanks to that connection, when I decided to open my own place, I asked that calligrapher if they would write something for me. I’m not very good with words, so I shared the image I had of how I wanted to approach my work, and through our discussion we arrived at this phrase. Just like these words express, I want to keep working with total focus, absorbed in what I do without being distracted.

Store Information

Japanese Cuisine Takanohane

Address: 1st Floor, Passage Takajō, 2-10-8 Takajō, Aoi Ward, Shizuoka City, Shizuoka Prefecture
Phone number: 050-5538-3514
Store details:https://autoreserve.com/restaurants/dCfXhJoNjp2GB6SqEC8n