Interview with owner Naoki Kimura
After operating out of a shared kitchen, 774 opened its own shop in a renovated traditional house.
We asked owner Naokimu about the move and his future plans.
What led him to open a brick-and-mortar shop
The food service industry is facing difficult conditions due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Why choose this time to go independent?
Kimura (honorific omitted)
I wanted to go independent by the time I turned 30.
I had been aiming to go independent since I was 16 or 17.
The pandemic affected the food service industry, and I knew it would be tough because my income would simply go down, but personally, it didn't affect my decision.
What led me to open a brick-and-mortar shop was that the timing was right for this property.
The property is really important to me.
I had been interested in this area of the shop (Funagura-cho, Kurashiki City) for a while.
This property wasn't listed with a real estate agency.
When I happened to mention to a customer during the shared-kitchen days, “I've been interested in that property,” they said, “Oh, that's mine. Want to take a look?” So I went to see it.
That was in 2020, right in the thick of the pandemic.
I made up my mind as soon as I saw it.
“This is it! I want to give it a try.”
That's what led me to go independent.
What carried over from the shared-kitchen days and new ideas that emerged
Did you get new equipment?
Kimura
I got a full set of cooking equipment.
I've used my own plates since the shared-kitchen days, and I still use them.
The wok is also mine from the shared-kitchen days.
I used the wok today, too.
For curries like keema curry, which are cooked down to evaporate the moisture, an iron pan works well.
The menu changes once a week.
I enjoy coming up with recipes.
Sometimes I get stuck thinking, “Isn't this just the same as the previous menu?”
Are you serving curry now because it was popular when you were operating out of a shared kitchen?
Kimura
That's right.
But I also started evening service, not just lunch curry.
Actually, it's not that I've always wanted to run a curry shop.
Originally, I wanted to run a set-meal restaurant.
When I was operating out of a shared kitchen, I started with curry because it was something I could manage efficiently on my own.
When you do it alone for a long time, you get more and more efficient.
Then you have some breathing room, and you want to try something different.
I think, “Maybe I'll try this now,” and once I get used to it, I might make one dish for lunch and be able to serve it efficiently.
So it doesn't have to be just curry.
Curry is just popular right now, and that could fade quickly. For me, sticking to curry alone forever would be emotionally difficult, too.
It would be meaningless unless I did something more fundamental and made this a shop rooted in Kurashiki.
Anyone can open a shop just because they want to, but you have to give it real meaning by thinking about what you can do for the town.
Lately, I've been thinking about what I can do for the town's future.
I don't have much influence yet, so the reality is that I can't do anything right now.
What he wants to do for Kurashiki
Do you have a vision for the town's future?
Kimura
I want to raise the level of food culture in Kurashiki.
I sometimes talk with friends in the food service industry about how we should spend money properly to eat delicious food and think more about the planet when we eat.
A lot of food is easy to eat and some things are available cheaply.
That's what we're consuming now, isn't it?
Instead, I want to value things that Japanese people have cherished for a long time, like respecting life when we eat and having ichiju-issai (one soup and one dish).
I need to study a lot and improve myself, and I hope the people around me can improve together with me.
If Kurashiki's food culture itself improves, I think everyone will be happier.
I hope 774 can be one choice that helps people find happiness.
I think that connects to the meaning of my work.
But I only started thinking this way after going independent.
Before going independent, I just wanted to run my own shop.
I had a goal and a dream: to make opening my own shop a reality.
I thought I'd be happy once I achieved my goal.
But even after achieving my goal of opening a shop, I wasn't happy at all.
Problems kept coming up, and I realized how powerless I was.
As I thought things over, I came to this way of thinking.
My thinking changed as I interacted with customers every day.
When I saw myself not as Kimura working out of a shared kitchen, but as Kimura running 774, I realized I couldn't go on like this.
Do you feel differently compared with when you were operating out of a shared kitchen?
It's completely different—the atmosphere and the feeling.
When you're in a shared kitchen, you're literally renting space.
That gives you a bit of an escape route. You can say, “Well, I'm still just renting space.”
But once you have your own shop, you can't say that even a little bit.
If you do, you've already lost, and customers will stop coming.
The sense of responsibility is completely different.
It's more fun since I went independent.
Some things are tough, but I interact directly with customers every day, and it's rewarding to hear their reactions. It motivates me to keep going.
That also means I work longer hours, though.
I do prep work even on my days off.
Future plans
Tell us about the new evening menu.
Kimura
We use a lot of locally sourced ingredients, and our wine is natural wine.
I recommend the game dishes.
I serve game partly for the planet, but also because I want people to know that meat from animals considered pests can be delicious, too.
Apparently, wild boar and deer have become so numerous that they can't all be culled.
Rather than culling these animals and throwing them away, I want them to enter proper distribution channels and have the meat reach shops.
And I'd be happy if I could tell even one person that game is delicious.
People don't know about our evening service yet, so first I want them to know about it.
The evening menu is completely different from the lunch menu, so I hope you'll come by.
From the Writer
774 Curry has retained its popularity from the shared-kitchen days, while constantly changing and evolving.
The shop goes beyond curry, putting effort into sweets and meat dishes as well.
Now that he has achieved his former goal of opening his own shop, he is setting out to realize a new dream.
We look forward to seeing how Naokimu and 774 continue to evolve.
Curry and Coffee Shop 774 Information
| Name | Curry and Coffee Shop 774 |
|---|---|
| Address | 1226 Funagura-cho, Kurashiki City, Okayama Prefecture |
| Contact | 070-8583-0774 |
| Parking | None |
| Hours | 11:00 a.m.–6:00 p.m.; also open 5:30 p.m.–10:00 p.m. on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays |
| Closed | Irregular holidays |
| Payment methods |
|
| Reservations | Accepted Reservations accepted by phone or Instagram DM |
| Seating | 12 seats: two 4-person tables and two 2-person tables |
| Smoking | Entirely non-smoking |
| Restroom | Western-style toilet |
| Website | Official Instagram |
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