“Tachinomi ura,” a standing-only bar at the gateway to Kurashiki, is about a one-minute walk from JR Kurashiki Station. It is a rare standing-only bar in Kurashiki. We spoke with its president, Akiba Yuichi, and manager, Tagawa Hidetora.
A bar born from encounters and connections
Why did you open a bar near the station?
Akiba (surname only)
We run KAG near the station, and next door was a beauty salon. I’d always thought it was a really good location, and had asked them to let me know if the space ever became available. Then they contacted us to say it was available. We had no idea what to do with it at that point, but decided to rent it.
Meeting Nagasaka Jo
Akiba
I also felt a sense of mission: if we were going to open a place near the station, we had to come up with a project that would benefit everyone and get them excited.
After we decided to open a standing bar, an acquaintance happened to introduce me to Nagasaka Jo. He’s my favorite architect.
He’s world-famous, so I thought he’d definitely turn me down, but I asked, “Would you take on this project?” He said, “Sure. Let me come see the site first.”
When it was a beauty salon, it had been nicely finished, with a second floor and proper walls. But Nagasaka said, “This isn’t interesting. Let’s strip all the walls off first, then think about what to do.”
Nagasaka is an architect who expresses “half-architecture”—how to make what is already there look beautiful. Following his view that making everything neat would actually look uncool, we haven’t put up a noren (traditional shop curtain).
It would actually be easier to tell it’s a bar if we had a noren, though.
The ura building seems to be an extension of the neighboring building. Also, the building had to be set back to make room for a road as part of the station-area redevelopment, so part of it was cut off. That’s why it ended up with a strange triangular shape.
When we removed the walls, we found earthen walls from the Taisho era (1912–1926). The ceiling is exposed too.
Tagawa (surname only)
When I first learned about Nagasaka, I was really surprised: “There are architects who present things this way.” Customers often ask, “Is it still under construction?” When we explain the building, they understand, and they also get to learn about Nagasaka.
Meeting manager Tagawa
Have you worked here since it opened?
Tagawa
I started getting involved with ura about two months before it opened in August 2023. I was working on things like developing recipes.
I’d been working in a completely different field, but through a connection, the president (Akiba) approached me. In the course of a casual conversation, he mentioned, “I’m opening a standing bar.” I was interested in food, so I thought it would be a good experience and agreed to give it a try.
I became manager in January 2024.
Before that, I was an ordinary company employee in manufacturing. I decided to pursue a career in food service and trained at a pizza restaurant. After I finished training, I happened to come to KAG for a hamburger during a break. That’s where I met President Akiba.
Akiba
When we were getting ura off the ground, we just got moving without deciding who would do what. I had a feeling I’d meet someone along the way, and then I happened to meet him and asked him to join us.
Ingredients sourced through Akiba’s connections
You use local ingredients. Did you already have connections with Uoharu and Sakamoto Keiran?
Akiba
Those were originally my connections. Uoharu is connected to me through a junior of an acquaintance, and I’ve known Sakamoto from Sakamoto Keiran for over ten years. When I decided to use ingredients from Okayama, I reached out to people I knew.
Uoharu does really excellent work. We include an introduction to the shop on our menu. We opened our bar near the station, and we hope it can help promote Uoharu, while borrowing their name also boosts our own credibility.
We also serve local sake. For example, we all visited Sankan Shuzo in Kojima, where the president gave us a lesson. We also get advice from local liquor stores.
I’m also personally very close with the president of Ichikura, which makes Okayama craft beer “OKAYAMA JIMOTO BEER 086,” so we carry it here too. With the help of local people, we do our part to promote them. We hope people will learn a little more about local beer, sake, and fish.
A place where exchange happens
Akiba
“Ura” is pronounced with the same intonation as “back,” and we chose the name because we had doubts about a uniform society. For example, children are expected to sit still during class, but that doesn’t mean a child who can’t sit still is bad. They’re not doing it on purpose; it’s part of their individuality.
ura is located on the front side of Kurashiki, but we named it ura (“back”). The point is that there’s value in the back as well as the front. It’s okay to criticize certain conventions; without that, everyone would just keep charging in the same direction.
There are many ways to live, and we choose our own. I think it’s fine to live a life of drinking to excess, rather than only working every day and saving money. True diversity means being able to accept people who are a little outside the norm. I hope that sharing what ura means here, near the station, can make the town a little better.
I’d be happy if ura could become a place on the “back” where people connect and talk about all kinds of things, regardless of age, gender, or nationality.
It’s unusual to have a standing-only style, isn’t it?
Akiba
Once you sit down, you stay there and can’t move, right? You can’t get to know people sitting far away. At a standing bar, you can move around. More than wanting to run a restaurant, my main desire is to create a place for exchange.
Tagawa
We also enjoy bringing customers together. It makes us really happy when strangers become friends. We listen to customers, find things they have in common, and get them talking. We’d be happy if people thought, “If I go to ura, I might see that person again.”
I think it’s wonderful to have a drink, feel open, and become friends with someone you’ve just met.
“Fun” memories to take away
What kinds of people come here?
Tagawa
We get a lot of local people, as well as visitors from outside the prefecture.
Some people come to kill time when they arrive early for drinks with coworkers. The location is convenient, so some people drink until just before the last train.
On weekends, we’re seeing more customers from overseas, too. The other day, some people came from Korea. They got along with everyone at the shop, and we had such a great time. I thought it would make me so happy if people who come here from across borders also leave with happy memories of this shop.
They kept saying, “Tomodachi, tomodachi” (“Friends, friends”) and raising their glasses again and again. I imagine there’s a language barrier, so it makes me happy when they say “tomodachi” in Japanese. It’s such a lovely atmosphere.
From the Writer
Through the interview, I felt that running a business in front of the station, a place that could directly shape people’s impression of Kurashiki, must bring considerable pressure.
That’s because people remember not only the establishment itself, but also the impression of the town. That may be why they place such importance on enjoyable exchange. Pleasant conversations stay with you as memories like “Let’s come again” or “That town was lovely.”
ura, with its somewhat unusual-shaped building, also has a gently curved counter. This means that wherever you stand, you can see the other customers clearly, creating an atmosphere that makes it easy to mingle. There are no chairs, so you can move around freely and choose whether to get closer to the person next to you or leave some space.
When I actually ate at ura, it was easy to talk with the person next to me, and I naturally enjoyed chatting with people I had just met.
From now on, chance encounters may happen at ura, and something miraculous might occur. I’ll enjoy Okayama’s ingredients and sake and mingle at the gateway to Kurashiki. I think I’ll drop by again sometime.
Tachinomi ura Information
| Name | Tachinomi ura |
|---|---|
| Address | 3-1-16 Achi, Kurashiki City, Okayama Prefecture |
| Contact | 080-2921-0222 |
| Parking | None |
| Hours | 6:00 p.m.–midnight: Tuesday–Friday 12:00 p.m.–midnight: Saturday 12:00 p.m.–7:00 p.m.: Sunday |
| Closed | Monday |
| Payment methods |
|
| Reservations | Not accepted |
| Seating | About 15 seats indoors and about 4 seats outdoors |
| Smoking | Entirely non-smoking (smoking area available outdoors) |
| Restroom | Western-style toilet |
| Website | Tachinomi ura |
What would you like to know about Kurashiki?
Enter a search term to find articles on this site
