{"id":1431,"date":"2012-03-07T00:00:43","date_gmt":"2012-03-06T15:00:43","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/ginzaofficial.sakura.ne.jp\/?p=1431"},"modified":"2015-06-26T18:16:48","modified_gmt":"2015-06-26T09:16:48","slug":"%e5%b2%a1%e5%89%af-%e5%be%b3%e5%ad%90x%e9%ab%98%e5%b6%8b-%e3%81%a1%e3%81%95%e5%ad%90","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ginza.jp\/en\/connective\/1431","title":{"rendered":"Noriko Okazoe\u00d7Chisako Takashima"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/p>\n

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I had no idea what to do my first 5 years after getting married.<\/h4>\n
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Takashima<\/dt>\n
I once visited the restaurant right around the time I was making my debut.
But I did not know the name of the restaurant well and thought it was Kintanaka (laughs).<\/dd>\n
Okazoe<\/dt>\n
Yes, people tend to give the restaurant name more complicated readings, like Kindenchu (laughs).<\/dd>\n
Takashima<\/dt>\n
Where did the name Kanetanaka come from?<\/dd>\n
Okazoe<\/dt>\n
There was a big restaurant called Tanakaya. Kanetanaka was the name of the shop that its head waitress, Kaneko, opened under a different name.<\/dd>\n
Takashima<\/dt>\n
I understand that Kanetanaka has opened other restaurants as well.<\/dd>\n
Okazoe<\/dt>\n
My husband\u2019s grandfather is from Mie prefecture. Okahan is a restaurant along Namiki-dori that uses Matsuzaka beef.<\/dd>\n
Takashima<\/dt>\n
I\u2019m very interested in going there. I\u2019m a big meat-eater (laughs). Do they serve lunch as well?<\/dd>\n
Okazoe<\/dt>\n
Yes, and it\u2019s very reasonably priced. In the same building there is also the counter style restaurant, Kanetanaka An, and there is Sukiya Kanetanaka in Cerulean Tower in Shibuya.<\/dd>\n
Takashima<\/dt>\n
Do you offer catering services?<\/dd>\n
Okazoe<\/dt>\n
Yes, we do. We often receive requests to cater parties for people working for foreign brands, and they are always very happy with what we offer. All these new ideas were conceived by my husband.<\/dd>\n
Takashima<\/dt>\n
He is the \u2018idea man.\u2019<\/dd>\n
Okazoe<\/dt>\n
He says that he wants to try opening up all different kinds of shops in keeping with the changing times.<\/dd>\n
Takashima<\/dt>\n
Did you learn how to work as an Okami-san (manageress) after you got married?<\/dd>\n
Okazoe<\/dt>\n
Yes. I got married without knowing anything at all about the job, so I was often bewildered.<\/dd>\n
Takashima<\/dt>\n
Did you have any difficulties?<\/dd>\n
Okazoe<\/dt>\n
It was not so much that it was difficult, but more that I just did not know what to do.
At first I just stood behind my mother-in-law and greeted guests, but all the guests were very important people, so I did not know what to say to them. There is no manual, so I just had to watch and learn. I don\u2019t think I did anything for the first 5 years.<\/dd>\n
Takashima<\/dt>\n
Then you became more and more used to it\u2026.<\/dd>\n
Okazoe<\/dt>\n
Exactly. I felt a good response running Kanetanaka An, the restaurant my husband and I opened together. I\u2019ve come to feel that it is a difficult job, but one that is very rewarding.<\/dd>\n<\/dl>\n<\/div>\n
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36-mat tea-ceremony pavilion with a view of a bamboo garden<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Sea bream sashimi, a dish served at Kanetanaka<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Geisha quarters are made up of ryotei restaurants, teahouses and geisha houses.<\/h4>\n
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Takashima<\/dt>\n
The area around this restaurant is probably not very familiar to regular people.<\/dd>\n
Okazoe<\/dt>\n
That may be true. That was the case for me before getting married.
This area is called the geisha quarters in Shimbashi and was supposedly developed in 1858, over 150 years ago.<\/dd>\n
Takashima<\/dt>\n
What are geisha quarters like?<\/dd>\n
Okazoe<\/dt>\n
Geisha quarters are made up of ryotei restaurants, teahouses and geisha houses. The restaurants would call the geisha houses to request geisha to come to entertain.<\/dd>\n
Takashima<\/dt>\n
Is the system still the same today?<\/dd>\n
Okazoe<\/dt>\n
Most of the teahouses are gone now and have given way to large ryotei restaurants. Teahouses are more laid back than ryotei restaurants. They are not places where you eat a meal, but where you have snacks and sake and can call geisha.<\/dd>\n
Takashima<\/dt>\n
Do fewer people call geisha these days?<\/dd>\n
Okazoe<\/dt>\n
You may get that impression because many patrons are companies entertaining clients, but some sophisticated patrons do ask us to bring over a geisha to sing a kouta (short songs accompanied by the shamisen, a Japanese string instrument).<\/dd>\n<\/dl>\n<\/div>\n
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<\/p>\n

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The Azuma Odori dance festival, where you can enjoy the geisha arts and a ryotei bento, will be held again this year.<\/h4>\n
\n
\n
Takashima<\/dt>\n
I read about this kind of world in books, but it is hard to imagine what it is really like (laughs).<\/dd>\n
Okazoe<\/dt>\n
Please come and see for yourself. During the 4 days from May 27th to 30th, the Azuma Odori dance festival, where you can see performances by geisha, will be held at the Shimbashi Enbujo theater next door to Shimbashi Kanetanaka. Ryotei cuisine has also been part of the festival for the past 5 years. It is an event where you can enjoy food and appreciate geisha dancing, and anyone can buy a ticket and be entertained. During these 4 days only, Shimbashi Enbujo theater becomes a ryotei restaurant, and visitors can see geisha, a sight they would not ordinarily see.<\/dd>\n
Takashima<\/dt>\n
You can eat ryotei cuisine at Shimbashi Enbujo theater?<\/dd>\n
Okazoe<\/dt>\n
Bentos are prepared by 6 different ryotei restaurants. Shokado bentos (square bento with four compartments each containing a separate dish) conceived by Teiichi Yuki, the founder of Kitcho, are provided using Kitcho\u2019s menu, and 6 different restaurants prepare the same menu.<\/dd>\n
Takashima<\/dt>\n
That sounds very interesting!<\/dd>\n
Okazoe<\/dt>\n
For example, if one dish is cooked egg, it could be an onsen tamago (egg that is soft boiled so that white is softer than the yolk) or dashimaki (omelet made with broth), with each restaurant preparing different tastes. But you cannot choose which restaurant your bento will come from.<\/dd>\n
Takashima<\/dt>\n
That is also very unique.<\/dd>\n
Okazoe<\/dt>\n
If visitors chose their bentos, we might feel bad because only Kanetanaka bentos would be left over (laughs).<\/dd>\n
Takashima<\/dt>\n
That would never happen (laughs).<\/dd>\n
Okazoe<\/dt>\n
You can\u2019t choose your bento, but you will get something different from the person next to you, so it should be fun and interesting.<\/dd>\n
Takashima<\/dt>\n
Can ordinary people come and see the festival?<\/dd>\n
Okazoe<\/dt>\n
By all means.<\/dd>\n
Takashima<\/dt>\n
I usually only take part in Western style activities, so this type of event is very interesting to me.<\/dd>\n
Okazoe<\/dt>\n
I hope that many, many people will come. The world of the geisha was built on the common destiny of ryotei cuisine and the geisha, so I do not want this world to disappear.<\/dd>\n<\/dl>\n<\/div>\n
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*Click here for more information on Azuma Odori<\/a><\/p>\n

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Azuma Odori dance festival<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Ginza is a place where people cherish their connections with each other, a place that has developed under mutual motivation.<\/h4>\n
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Takashima<\/dt>\n
It has been 24 years since you starting working in Ginza. Can you directly feel the transitions taking place here?<\/dd>\n
Okazoe<\/dt>\n
The most luxurious parts of my childhood were when I would come to Ginza with my grandmother or mother to go shopping or have lunch. Actually working here after becoming an adult, it is more the strong connections between the people in Ginza that I sense rather than the transitions.
Many long-standing shops have disappeared and some new shops are appearing. I feel that the district is gradually changing, but Ginza has always been a place that accepts new ideas. I think it is a district that has developed under the connections between all the people here. I hope Ginza continues to be a stylish place that everyone wants to visit. I want Ginza to be a place that continues to change and evolve, keeping all the good parts as it goes.
I have many intimate friends in Ginza, and we all support each other.<\/dd>\n
Takashima<\/dt>\n
It seems so big, but everyone cherishes their connections with their peers and inspires each other. That is really wonderful. It is almost like school.<\/dd>\n
Okazoe<\/dt>\n
Yes, maybe. If someone is trying hard to do something, we come out to give them our support. It motivates us to try hard as well.<\/dd>\n<\/dl>\n<\/div>\n
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The next guest will be\u2026<\/h4>\n
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Takashima<\/dt>\n
Could you tell us about the next guest?<\/dd>\n
Okazoe<\/dt>\n
It\u2019s Akira Endo, president of Hatsuko Endo Beauty Salon. This was the first Western-style beauty parlor in Japan and it has a long history continuing from the Meiji era over 100 years ago. I am sure you will hear many stories about beauty.<\/dd>\n<\/dl>\n<\/div>\n
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Chisako Takashima<\/h4>\n

Violinist. Started playing the violin at age 6. After playing abroad, she moved her home base to Japan, and gives concerts all over the country. Although her current focus is on performing music, she also appears on TV and radio programs. Thanks to her much-loved personality, she is appearing in more and more venues.<\/p>\n

Chisako Takashima\u2019s official website<\/a>\n<\/div>\n

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Noriko Okazoe<\/h4>\n

Proprietress-to-be of ryotei (Japanese-style) restaurant Kanetanaka. She is fond of Japanese traditions such as regular green tea ceremony, sencha tea ceremony (green tea made without grinding the tea leaves), calligraphy and flower arrangement. She devotes herself every day to leaving ryotei, Japanese-style cuisine that is a part of traditional Japanese culture, to the next generation.
\nHer interests are kabuki, opera and classical music concerts.<\/p>\n

Kanetanaka website<\/a>
\nOfficial Tokyo Shimbashi Union wesbite<\/a>\n<\/div>\n

Writer: Okai Mikiko\u3000Interview location: Shimbashi Kanetanaka<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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