【FOCUS IT.] Bringing together food, drink, culture, and fashion, sio chef Shusaku Toba looks to an exciting future.

Even in HOUYHNHNM.Series "TBSJChef Shusaku Toba, who started the Many of you may have seen him recently as he has appeared in various media and is involved in a wide variety of projects.

There are many reasons why Mr. Toba decided to start writing a series in HOUYHNHNM's, but the biggest reason was that I really sympathized with his idea of organically intertwining food, fashion, and culture.

Toba-san is now in a position to manage a number of restaurants, but the starting point, or rather the origin, is "sio" in Yoyogi Uehara, a full-fledged restaurant that has received a Michelin star for three consecutive years since 2020, but the atmosphere and aspect of this restaurant is different from other restaurants in a good way.

I visited the 4th anniversary party of "sio" held recently to hear exactly what the difference was.

Congratulations on the 4th anniversary of "sio"! It's different from what you call a restaurant anniversary party, isn't it?

Toba: Yes, I think it is totally different. This time, I asked Maruro (Yamashita) of "stacks" to do a lot for me. It was just great.

What made you decide to hire Maruro?

Toba: I have always thought that the street culture that Maruro-kun has is amazing. Actually, we had been talking about the idea of having a wine bar with Maruro and his friends, and we wanted this party to be a prelude to that. I wanted to have a wine bar with people who understand the culture, not just a wine bar.

I see. So you made T-shirts and CDs.

Toba: Yes. Maruro has many talents, so I am not sure what his title is. For "stacks," he made zines and invited various artists to his gallery. Anyway, I wanted to be "edited" by him. I am usually on the editing side.

left: "sio" Shusaku Toba, right: "stacks" Maruro Yamashita

Yamashita: I appreciate that. Actually, we met about 15 years ago when Mr. Toba was at another store, in the relationship of shopkeeper and customer. Recently, when Akio (Hasegawa) and his colleagues had their books published at "stacks," Mr. Toba came to our exhibition, and that's when our relationship began in earnest.

Toba: As we talked about various things, he said that he knows a lot about music, art, and graffiti, so he asked me to edit his store! So I asked him to edit my shop! Maruro-kun has what I am looking for most at the moment, and he digs it.

Are you also bright in the field of art?

Toba: No, not at all. In my opinionGraffiti times for "AH.H."was huge. I learned a lot from watching that.

Maruro-san guided us through a series of projects.

Toba: Yes. I thought that this kind of street culture would fit well with "sio". I don't think there are many one-star restaurants that would consider this kind of atmosphere to be acceptable.

Indeed. This cross-fertilization is new and pleasant, isn't it? Maruro, what do you think about this initiative?

Yamashita：The food at "sio" is very good, and I thought it was a great restaurant because of its comfortable interior and music, not to mention the hospitality of the staff. I also like to drink and eat around, and I was interested in food culture. I thought it would be a lot of fun to work with "sio" and Mr. Toba, so I was given a wonderful opportunity (laughs).

Toba: I already had them direct everything.

Yamashita：I was even allowed to set up a booth (laughs).

Toba: It's a big deal, isn't it? I've never been interested in this kind of anniversary party before, so this is the first time I'm celebrating my 4th anniversary.

Wow, that's kind of unexpected.

Toba: I've had MURO-san do music for my store in Marunouchi for a long time, but I never thought of making a CD.

Yamashita: CD design is something I often work with myself.ALWAYTHSince MURO's past mixtapes have often featured sampling of food and beverage items on the jackets, the idea this time was to sample food packages that are often used at "sio". The original idea was based on a package of pasta that we use regularly at "sio".

Toba: You are extremely careful in these areas. It's like he understands the context properly. I don't think a person who is only superficial can do this.

Toba: Many of the wine bars that are popular these days are owned by the owner, but I wanted to create a place that is not like that, but rather a place where the culture is thriving, or where the box itself is cool.

It is interesting that Mr. Toba, who has a very strong character as an individual, would say such a thing. I think it's new that you would think of making the store run even if you are not there, or creating a store that is not owned by the store owner.

Toba: I don't think it is an essential part of culture for people to gather around a single charismatic person. For example, Pinot Noodles, Peyoung's, or any other food, there is no shadow of a person behind it. There is no such thing as a Pinot supervised by Chef Toba that has been around for 10 years. I don't think that's what culture is all about. That's why I've been trying to increase the number of jobs that don't mention my name.

I see.

Toba: So from now on, I want to do things that are not just because I like them. That is why I want to work with people who really understand culture. Culture cannot be bought with money.

Yamashita：Yes, that is difficult. It is not something that can be nurtured overnight.

Toba: Yes, it is easy to be discovered if you are a fake. Without a foundation, culture cannot be created.

That's right. That is exactly what I am trying to keep in mind when I work in the media.

Toba: The other day at "HOUYHNHNM" from now on,A casual line of restaurants is coming, a project likeYou know, you made a I think this is really true. We have been making hamburgers and bahn mi since about two years ago, and I knew that this is what we wanted to do next.

I'm glad to hear you say that.

Toba: It's more like a relaxed look. I'm talking about something else, but when chefs make T-shirts, they often end up looking a little strange.

Hmmm. I see.

Toba: I guess it's not the same as liking culture. It's like wearing high-brand clothes. It's not that there is anything wrong with high brands.

Toba: Working with Maruro this time was a big deal for me. There is a reason or a context to the fact that I connected with Akio-san through "AH.H," and that I was able to work with Maruro-kun in this way. I think that is what culture is all about.

Yamashita：Yes, I think the reason why restaurants and the like you mentioned earlier make T-shirts and are subtle about it is because there is no context for it.

No connection, no flow.

Toba: Yes. I don't think it is about the output design. It is not about whether the print is cool or not, it is important that it is properly in context.

I see. It was a bit unexpected to have these two in the same lineup, but I see what you mean. While both of us are capable of "editing," we let each other do our part, and then a chemical reaction takes place.

Toba: I feel that from now on we need to organize teams.

Yamashita: Ah, I feel that on a daily basis myself.

Toba: Restaurants also need music and art, and I think it is very important to have a team of chefs who can curate with their own sense of taste what cannot be expressed by the conventional approach of chefs alone.

I see. That's editing, too.

Toba: If we get that wrong, it will look very strange. For example, in the casual line I mentioned earlier, for example, street does not mean skateboarding or something like that.

Yamashita: That might be easy to understand.

Toba: I know it's obvious, but I'm not talking about knowing street culture if you skateboard. It's probably about the spirit.

Toba-san, you are in charge of various stores now, but this "sio" must be the beginning, and it is good that you can try various things here.

Toba: Yes, I am convinced that after four years, having received the Michelin award, having appeared on TV, and having done many other things, I have come full circle and what I want to do now is what I did at this party.

I think it's this feeling of parallelism of various cultures centered on food.

Toba: Yes. There are many axes of evaluation, but we have to forget about them and reevaluate what we really value. It is something very fresh, but I also feel that we have wanted to do this for a long time.

New but nostalgic.

Toba: I am looking forward to seeing how it will turn out in the end. I also think that everyone tends to imitate foreign countries. If it is a restaurant, there are chefs with beards and tattoos. No, I am not talking about tattoos.

Yes. That is also context, isn't it? It's not a superficial thing.

Toba: Yes, yes. I think that imitating only those aspects is a fashion, and what I did with Maruro this time is a culture. What I did with Maruro this time is a culture. Not imitating foreign countries, but doing it in Japan. We are going to do it in our own context.

Yamashita: I believe that with Mr. Toba, we can work together while keeping a close eye on what we value, rather than investing capital in a business that is ultimately a business first and foremost. If we do this, I believe that a solid culture will take root. Of course, business is also important (laughs).

I have a feeling that something very interesting will be born, and I am very excited about it.

Toba: It is important to have fashion as part of the culture. If fashion comes first, it will not last and will go out of fashion. I think it is better to position fashion as a stance in the process of creating culture.

How was it? There was a lot of exciting discourse that skipped lightly over what "sio" is all about.

The intimate, relaxed mood created by these two artists is something that HOUYHNHNM's feels a strong affinity with. Therefore, I renewed my desire to follow up on the various projects they are working on.