Shisui — Restore your mind and body at your own pace! A simple one-soup, one-dish meal at a teahouse in a traditional townhouse

The busier daily life gets, the more likely breakfast is something we end up cutting corners on.

I’m not a morning person, so on days when I can’t wake up feeling refreshed, I sometimes just have a protein shake. That’s the reality.

But somewhere in my heart, I seem to crave warm rice and miso soup packed with vegetables. Sometimes I go for a simple meal of soup and rice at Shisui, a teahouse in Higashimachi, a short distance from the Bikan Historical Area.

Here’s the story behind the thoughts and care that go into Shisui’s simple meal of soup and rice.

About Shisui

Shisui is a teahouse founded on January 9, 2024, in Higashimachi, also known as Oku-Kurashiki, after passing through Honmachi Street in the Bikan Historical Area.

The interior has a nostalgic feel, making use of the building of Matonaga Shoten, a machiya townhouse over 100 years old. The simple yet striking noren (traditional shop curtain) bearing the name “Shisui” is a landmark.

The shop is run by husband and wife Kumi and Yasunori Tanaka, with Kumi mainly in charge of the simple meal of soup and rice.

Shisui’s simple meal of soup and rice

Shisui’s menu is as follows:

• Simple meal of soup and rice: ¥1,500
  Rice, miso soup, nukazuke, and a drink
• Grilled rice balls: ¥1,500
  Grilled rice balls, nukazuke, chilled tofu, and a drink
• Nekomanma: ¥1,500
  Rice, miso soup, shaved bonito flakes, and a drink
• Drinks: ¥750

This time, I had the “Simple meal of soup and rice” for ¥1,500 (tax included).

Rice, miso soup, and nukazuke are served on a single tray (shaved bonito flakes are an add-on).

It’s simple, but this nutritious breakfast lets you enjoy plenty of vegetables and grains. You can choose either white rice or brown rice.

The miso soup is made with dashi stock from freshly shaved bonito and kombu, and is filled with seasonal vegetables. They try to buy ingredients from producers who focus on pesticide-free and chemical-fertilizer-free farming, preferably using produce grown locally in Okayama Prefecture.

The pickles are nukazuke. These, too, are vegetables carefully pickled by the owner. The slightly distinctive flavor of the nukazuke goes wonderfully with rice.

The bonito flakes are shaved right in front of you just before serving. Their freshly shaved, distinctive fragrance is irresistible. They’re served with Mitsuru Shoyu, made by the owner’s friend, who repaired and carried on the previous generation’s wooden barrel.

Every dish brings out the flavor of its ingredients, so you can enjoy food that’s good for your body.

Interview with Tanaka Kumi, who serves breakfast

We interviewed Kumi Tanaka, who serves a simple breakfast of soup and rice at Shisui, a teahouse in Higashimachi housed in a machiya townhouse over 100 years old.

It’s been over six months since you opened. What kinds of customers usually come in?

Tanaka (surname only hereafter)

Since this is a place that serves Japanese-style food, I initially thought most of our customers would be tourists from overseas. But I’ve been surprised by how much Japanese customers enjoy it—more than I expected.

Older customers reminisce about life when they were young, while younger customers, who probably haven’t experienced doma earthen floors or a breakfast of soup and rice, tell us that it feels “so relaxing.”

The daily routine of stirring the rice bran to make pickles and eating freshly shaved bonito flakes is a familiar scene for Japanese people. I think there are many who would really like to bring it into their everyday lives.

But people living in the modern world often don’t have the time for that. Even if they make rice and miso soup just for themselves, they’ll have leftovers, so I imagine some people make do with ready-made food.

That’s true. When it’s just for myself, I often settle for something quick for breakfast, so it’s lovely to be served warm rice like this.

Tanaka

Thank you.

One customer once told me, “At Shisui, I’m getting my life back.”

Many overseas visitors experience a different culture and spend their time here in a fairly matter-of-fact way, thinking, “So this is what a Japanese dining table is like.” Japanese customers, though, seem to reflect on the past. I get the impression that many of them talk about their own experiences little by little as they take their time reminiscing.

Perhaps that’s also why more people have recently come to admire “a mindful way of life.”

I hope people will remember the way of life we once had here and leave thinking, “Maybe I’ll try doing that again.” Whether they actually do it or not is another matter; I’d be happy if this place could be a starting point for taking action in their daily lives.

Is there anything you keep in mind when serving customers?

Tanaka

I want every customer to fully enjoy the time they spend here, so we’re more than happy for you to stay as long as you like.

When you see other customers waiting, you might feel you should give up your seat quickly. I hope people won’t feel that kind of pressure, and will take the time they need to restore their peace of mind and well-being.

Finally, do you have a message for our readers?

Tanaka

There are no rules for how to spend your time at Shisui. Sometimes the place is quiet as customers reflect on life in Japan in the past; other days, regulars drop by and a lively chat gets going. We simply offer each customer a way to spend their time that suits whoever happens to be here at that moment.

So I hope you’ll take your time, looking around at this old-fashioned building and the tools in the shop, and find your way back to your own life.

From the Writer

Shisui is located in Higashimachi, one street back from Hon-dori in the Bikan Historical Area. Although it faces the street, it’s a quiet, comfortable place where a gentle breeze blows.

All the food has a gentle flavor, and together with the atmosphere of the shop, it’s a place that makes you feel at ease, as if you were visiting your auntie’s house. It seems the secret is that the owner carefully tunes in to how I want to spend “my time here and now.”

Before exploring the Bikan Historical Area, why not spend a relaxing, peaceful morning at Shisui?

Shisui details

Name	Shisui
Address	1-21 Higashimachi, Kurashiki City
Contact	Contact via DM on Shisui’s official Instagram account
Parking	None
Hours	10:00 a.m.–2:00 p.m.
Closed	Wednesday and Thursday
Payment methods	Cash
Reservations	Not accepted
Seating	Two tatami-room tables; doma area seats about five
Smoking	Entirely non-smoking
Restroom	No restroom
Website	Shisui’s official Instagram account

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