Tsukiji Sushiiwa Tsukijiten Sushi Resutaurant by Hiroaki Iwasa is a highly esteemed winner of the very prestigious 2024 A' Design Award in Interior Space and Exhibition Design Competition Category.
IronInterior· 2024
Tsukiji Sushiiwa Tsukijiten Sushi Resutaurant
Client: Tsukiji Sushiiwa Tsukijiten
A' Design Award Winner in Interior Category
Verified Award Winner
Verify Award Status for #154888The Design
About Tsukiji Sushiiwa Tsukijiten Sushi Resutaurant
Tsukiji Sushiiwa Tsukijiten was design in Tsukiji Tokyo, neighbor of former central fish market. Since sushi is now a days known as a world wide cuisine, The goal of this project was to design a sophisticated space which can be passed on to the future, a place where people can enjoy chef's traditional skills and sushi etiquette of Edomae sushi. The essence of Edomae sushi is to maximize the potential of fresh seafood through minimal hand work by the chef. Therefore focused on designing the sushi counter, so that the fresh seafood and chef's skills will stand out.
The Recognition
About the A' Design Award
Tsukiji Sushiiwa Tsukijiten Sushi Resutaurant is an Iron A' Design Award winner, a prestigious recognition granted to good designs that meet the professional and industrial requirements expected from well-designed creations. Iron winners demonstrate great skill, high specialization, expert understanding, and creative capacity of their creators. Tsukiji Sushiiwa Tsukijiten Sushi Resutaurant is expected to be a highly regarded, admired, and cherished creation that is practical and innovative. This Iron A' Design Award-winning design integrates industry best practices and has competent technical characteristics linked with know-how and talent. Tsukiji Sushiiwa Tsukijiten Sushi Resutaurant is respected for its thoroughness and is designed to provide quality of life improvements that help make the world a better place.
Interviews
Design Interview
What is the main principle, idea and inspiration behind your design?
The principle of my work is to honestly face the situation the project is facing.
It is essential for making appropriate judgments about the situation, such as what is necessary for the client's situation, what is necessary for the environment, and what should be done now within the time axis.
What has been your main focus in designing this work? Especially what did you want to achieve?
What I paid particular attention to was the methods and materials that maximized the effect with minimal processing. This is the same method used to serve sushi in the restaurant, and is meant to make the sushi and chef stand out.
What are your future plans for this award winning design?
I think we should continue to spread the word as a base for sushi culture.
Grand Interview
Your innovative approach to the sushi counter design at Tsukiji Sushiiwa Tsukijiten Sushi Restaurant, particularly the adjusted floor height for shared viewing perspectives between chef and customers, represents a profound understanding of traditional sushi culture - could you elaborate on how this spatial design decision enhances the dining experience and preserves Edomae sushi traditions?
Edomae sushi was originally eaten standing at street corner stalls, but as time went on, restaurants began to pursue more sophisticated equipment and customer comfort. However, in order to pass on the tradition, the essence remains the same: serving customers with high-quality sushi and making them happy.Therefore, the project's challenge was to create a more sophisticated and high-level design that would make seafood more attractive, make adjustments that would make it easier for the chef and staff to provide hospitality, and create a space where customers could spend their time comfortably.Among the challenges, adjusting the height of the viewpoints of customers, chefs, and staff was an important issue. This is because Japanese hospitality is based on respect and communication tailored to the guest.Therefore, when a customer is seated in a tatami room, the staff also sit at eye level and provide hospitality.In order to embody this philosophy at the sushi counter seats, I solved the problems with the chef's floor, such as waterproofing and drainage pipes, and then adjusted the floor level on the customer's side.The project was designed to naturally inherit traditional ideas and customs, rather than embellishing or making a statement.
The integration of highly transparent, frameless glass showcases at Tsukiji Sushiiwa Tsukijiten Sushi Restaurant creates an unobtrusive yet functional display solution - what inspired this specific design choice, and how does it contribute to the restaurant's goal of highlighting the chef's craftsmanship and fresh ingredients?
Even in Japan, it is common for sushi restaurants to have a rustic glass display case with refrigerant pipes in a stainless steel frame mounted on the counter, separating the chef from the customer. On the other hand, small privately owned sushi restaurants store seafood in old-fashioned wooden boxes with ice, making it difficult to see the ingredients, but there is no functional problem in managing seafood ingredients.However, this project also gave a high priority to the customer's perspective. Therefore, by specially designing a frameless showcase made of highly transparent glass, we were able to create an intimate sushi counter with reduced noise from the customer's view.
In designing Tsukiji Sushiiwa Tsukijiten Sushi Restaurant, you worked with specialized craftsmen for Hinoki wood, plastering, masonry, and Japanese paper - how did these collaborations with traditional artisans influence the final aesthetic and functionality of the space?
This space has become an attractive and unique space with an excellent harmony of textures created by each material and the finish of the craftsman. As a result, this sophisticated space plays an important role in guaranteeing the authenticity of the Edomae sushi that this restaurant provides.Additionally, the collaboration on this project served as a valuable opportunity to pass on the skills of these craftsmen in their respective fields.
Behind the Design
Press Kit
Credits, team members and technical details provided by the designer.
- Unique Properties
- Since sushi is now a days known as a world wide cuisine, his main goal was to design the restaurant to become the base for authentic Edomae sushi culture. The essence of Edomae sushi is to maximize the potential of fresh seafood through minimal hand work by the chef. Therefore,He focused on designingthe the sushi counter, so that the fresh seafood and chef's skills will stand out.In addition,He also designed tatami rooms that canaccommodate group gatheringdiningsas well.
- Dimensions & Packaging
- specification,
Total floor area:254.5m2,
Sushi counter: 14 seats,
Large tatami room: 18 seats,
Small tatami room: 6 seats,
Floor seating space: 18 seats,
Table space: 14 seats,
Kitchen, men's and women's toilets, storage. - Tags
- Sushi restaurant, Sushi counter, Tatami sheats, Japanese restaurant
- Production Technology
- Based on the detailed design, He utilized an excellent network of constructers. A precious wood craftsman who handles the distribution and processing of the massive Hinoki(Japanese cypress),a plasterer who has a high level of skill for each part, a mason who finishes the material uniquely,and a craftsman with the skills to handle and paste handmade Japanese paper. The project was successfully completed by gathering many highly skilled craftsmen and their extraordinary techniques.
- Design Challenge
- The challenge was to refine the immersivity of the traditional sushi and to design it in such large space.Especially at the sushi counter, He adjusted the height of the floor so that the customers and chef can share a similar view, setting each counter to suit the purpose. Furthermore, to reduce noise in the customer's view, a frameless glass showcase made of highly transparent glass was half-embedded in the counter. This restaurant was designed with such details in consideration.
- Research
- In order to design the optimal interactive environment between customers and the sushi, He conducted research and repeated prototypes to understand and refine the relationship between the customers and the chef at the sushi counter space.In particular, He researched the visibility and dimensions, such as the height gap of the viewpoint between seated customers and standing chef. Also, He thoroughly looked into the chef's behavior and also the size of glass showcases and where to place them.
- Inspiration
- The goal of this project was to design a sophisticated space which can be passed on to the future, a place where people can enjoy chef's traditional skills and sushi etiquette of Edomae sushi, one of the roots of sushi culture. In order to achieve that goal, Hiroaki Iwasa was inspired by researching the basic behavior and preparations of chef, relationships with customers, meal etiquette, modern services and backyards.
- Project Duration
- Design began in April 2006, construction began in January 2007, and was completed in May 2007 in Tsukiji Tokyo, neighbor of former central fish market.
- Operation Flow
- Customers come for chef’s skilled dishes, high-quality ingredients,and a space where they can enjoy them.Especially atthe sushi counter, instead of choosing from the menu,customers can choose fromthe seasonal seafoodin front of them, interacting with the chef to customize adish.Sushi culture is not only enjoying the conversation about sushi, but also conversing about the season, crafted wares, brewed sake, and more.This is exactly what this space is for.
- Image Credits
- Photographer: Kozo Takayama
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