Retro coffee shop "like a secret base" A one-of-a-kind healing space provided by a haiku poet-owner.
Streets magazine Editors
February 7, 2024
This article has been automatically translated from the Japanese version.
The retro space that "looks like a secret base
There is a long, narrow door that seems to appear out of nowhere between two stores. Opening the door, you will find a long, narrow staircase that leads up to a soft orange light. This is "Junshocha Soshiai" in Chuo-cho, Oita City. It is a space with a Showa-era retro atmosphere, loved by customers for its "secret base-like" atmosphere.
Junshocha Soshiko-Ashi" in Galleria Takemachi shopping street, with a sign placed on the street on business days.
I used to love coffee shops. One day, I suddenly decided to do it! and opened the store five years ago. This place used to be a general store and had a 20-year history. I fell in love with the atmosphere at first sight, and even though this was the only place I saw, I decided to move in. The landlord was surprised. The owner, Mr. Soshiko-Awai, told us such an energetic episode. In fact, he has been active as a haiku poet for more than 10 years. He is known in the local media as a "famous haiku teacher" and holds regular haiku classes. His desire to make a place for himself as a haiku poet also led him to open the store.
Kusakorai-san, a popular haiku teacher with a charming character.
Looking around the store, everything from the lighting to the furniture and ornaments is The Retro. There are even food samples reminiscent of an old-fashioned restaurant. The store is said to be inspired by the 1950s, and the items in the store were purchased from an antique store in order to create the perfect world view.
The restaurant is said to attract a variety of customers, including elderly people who are nostalgic for the old days, businessmen who want to take a break, families who enjoy the exciting space, and young people attracted by the retro atmosphere.
One young man said, "It's so emo! he said. Emotional? It seems that the 2021 generation is also enjoying the Showa-era space.
Inside the store with a Showa-era atmosphere.
Nostalgic drinks and food, and word play unique to haiku poets
The drinks and food available in the restaurant are also retro. The most popular dish is the chef's Neapolitan. The orange lighting in front of the Neapolitan makes you feel as if you have stepped back in time to a different era. There are also a wide variety of cream sodas, including a strawberry-flavored one called "Hatsukoi Cream Soda," which is a very nice name. The coffee is also carefully brewed, one cup at a time, using flannel drip. Coffee shops in the olden days were known for their "deep-drip coffee," and the coffee here is said to be "the deepest coffee of any coffee shop.
A menu with a nostalgic feel. It is fun to look at the menu list.
Haiku poetry meeting and tarot reading? A unique way to enjoy "Junshocha Kusakorai"!
As mentioned above, Kusakorai is active as a haiku poet, and he also holds haiku classes and haiku gatherings in his store.
He says, "Two girls in their 20s happened to come to the store and were interested in haiku they saw in the store. They said they wanted to do haiku, and from there they got into it." Kusakorai happily told us. The haiku gatherings have become so popular that many people now attend each one.
He also sometimes shares his hobby of tarot reading with customers. I tell fortunes when I'm free, but some people wait up to two hours for me to be available...!
This is no longer just a coffee shop. It is a unique and wonderful place filled with the charms of "Soshiko-Ashi.
I want people to relax in an extraordinary space."
Soshiko-Ashi says he hopes to continue to preserve the store's world view.
I feel like people are tired nowadays," he says. I hope people can relax both mentally and physically in this place where they can experience something a little out of the ordinary."
The restaurant is always full depending on the time of day, but he recommends weekdays after lunch time, when it is most relaxing.
From the moment you open the door and climb the stairs, you will surely experience a sense of excitement. How about experiencing something extraordinary in the "secret base" that unfolds beyond the door?