Cerulean Tower Tokyu Hotel (Shibuya-ku, Tokyo; General Manager Shinichi Yoshioka) is holding "The 5th Ho-no-kuni Toyohashi & Higashi-Mikawa History and Food Culture Lunch Seminar" on Sunday, October 25, at Japanese Cuisine Sakuragaoka (2F), in collaboration with Yamasa Chikuwa Co., Ltd. (Toyohashi, Aichi Prefecture; Representative Director and Seventh-Generation President Motohide Sato). After a lecture and demonstration by Yamasa Chikuwa's seventh-generation president, Mr. Sato, followed by a chikuwa-grilling experience, guests spend a relaxed afternoon of autumn flavors built around Yamasa Chikuwa's products, carefully chosen Higashi-Mikawa ingredients, and sake.
Yamasa Chikuwa has pursued authentic flavor from Toyohashi for close to 200 years, while Japanese Cuisine Sakuragaoka sends out Japanese culture and the beauty of the four seasons from Shibuya through food. This collaboration between the two now reaches its fifth year.
The seminar has previously introduced the appeal of Toyohashi and Higashi-Mikawa through Yamasa Chikuwa's history, the food culture surrounding chikuwa, and the region's abundant ingredients.
Theme: "Land" and "People" — Toyohashi Hyakunojin on the Character of Higashi-Mikawa
This fifth edition turns its focus back to the land of Toyohashi itself, taking as its theme the ingredients that land nurtures and the people who work with it. Joining the seminar is Toyohashi Hyakunojin (豊橋百儂人), a local agricultural group that certifies outstanding Toyohashi farmers as "Nojin" (儂人). Three of its members take part on the day: tea farmer Katsuya Suzuki, corn farmer Wataru Hikosaka, and napa cabbage farmer Yukimori Nakajima. Each will speak about Toyohashi's land and climate, the appeal of the ingredients each season brings, and the thoughts they carry into their daily work in the fields.
The seminar also includes a special lecture by Yamasa Chikuwa's seventh-generation president, Motohide Sato, featuring the chikuwa-grilling experience that returns every year to popular acclaim, along with the roughly 200-year history of Yamasa Chikuwa since its founding in 1827, and a look at Higashi-Mikawa's food culture as seen through chikuwa.
This Day Only: A Special Course Built Around a Chikuwa-Grilling Experience and Rice the Hotel's Own Staff Harvested
The craft Yamasa Chikuwa has preserved, the ingredients Toyohashi Hyakunojin's farmers grow each day, and the land of Toyohashi that gives rise to both — the seminar weaves these three threads into a single story of food culture, served as a one-day-only menu at Japanese Cuisine Sakuragaoka.
The day's menu also features rice that hotel staff planted and harvested themselves at Yotsuya's Senmaida (四谷の千枚田) in Shinshiro City, a terraced rice field recognized as one of Japan's 100 Best Rice Terraces (日本の棚田百選).
A day to unravel Higashi-Mikawa's food culture through the land, people, ingredients, and inherited craft of Toyohashi. From Shibuya's Sakuragaoka, enjoy flavors of Toyohashi and Higashi-Mikawa found nowhere else.
The 5th Ho-no-kuni Toyohashi & Higashi-Mikawa History and Food Culture Lunch Seminar — Overview
- Date & Time: Sunday, October 25, 2026 — reception from 12:00 PM, event begins 12:30 PM
- Venue: Japanese Cuisine Sakuragaoka (2F)
- Price: ¥8,800 per person (service charge and tax included); advance reservation and advance payment required
- Program: Lecture by Motohide Sato; chikuwa-grilling experience; Japanese course menu; two kinds of sake (non-alcoholic option available)
- Lineup:
- Motohide Sato, Representative Director and Seventh-Generation President, Yamasa Chikuwa Co., Ltd.
- Toyohashi Hyakunojin members Katsuya Suzuki, Wataru Hikosaka, and Yukimori Nakajima
- Nobuhiko Fukuda, Honorary Executive Chef, Cerulean Tower Tokyu Hotel
- Takashi Tsuruta, Head Chef, Japanese Cuisine Sakuragaoka
- Cooperation: Yamasa Chikuwa Co., Ltd.; Toyohashi Hyakunojin Secretariat; Anything Co., Ltd. (有限会社エニシング)
- Reservations & Inquiries: Book online at https://www.tokyuhotels.co.jp/cerulean-h/145788/index.html, or call 03-3476-3420 (Japanese Cuisine Sakuragaoka, 11:30 AM to 10:00 PM)
By law, alcohol cannot be served to guests who will be driving or to guests under 20. Guests with food allergies should inform hotel staff in advance. Menu content may change depending on ingredient availability. Seating is limited and reservations close once the event is full. Seat requests cannot be accommodated. All photos are for illustration purposes.
About the Speakers
Yamasa Chikuwa Co., Ltd., Representative Director and Seventh-Generation President
Founder of "Ho, Shoku, Hito GEN-B" (豊・食・人 GEN-B)
Motohide Sato
Born in Toyohashi, Aichi Prefecture, in 1959. Graduated from the Faculty of Law at Keio University in 1982, having joined Yamasa Chikuwa while still a student. Became the company's seventh-generation president in 2005.
Sato also takes on roles outside the company, including Vice Chairman of the Toyohashi Chamber of Commerce and Industry and Chairman of the Higashi-Mikawa Wide-Area Tourism Council.
Guided by the motto "put your whole soul into every meal" (一食入魂), he lives with an appetite for good food that blurs the line between work and hobby — imagining flavors and hunting down ingredients day and night, in the food-loving spirit that Mikawa dialect calls "genbii" (げんびぃ). Until fairly recently, Yamasa Chikuwa sold only within Aichi and the three neighboring Tokai prefectures, following the principle of "never crossing the Hakone or Hiei mountains" (箱根を越えず、比叡を越えず); today the company is expanding its reach while valuing every connection with customers who share that love of good food.
Organizational roles:
- Vice Chairman, Toyohashi Chamber of Commerce and Industry
- Chairman, Ho-no-kuni Higashi-Mikawa Tourism Bureau
- Chairman, Toyohashi Tourism Convention Association
- Chairman, Toyohashi City Sports Association
- Chairman, Toyohashi Handball Association
- Branch Chief, Toyohashi Branch, Aichi Employers' Association
- Chairman, Aichi Football Association (public interest incorporated foundation)
Toyohashi Hyakunojin (豊橋百儂人)
Tea farmer (茶儂人) Katsuya Suzuki
As head of Suzuki Seicha, Suzuki grows, processes, and sells tea together with his family. He trained from age 18 at a tea research institute and at a tea wholesaler in Uji, Kyoto, drawing on that experience to grow tea organically, without pesticides or chemical fertilizers. He also takes an active interest in cross-industry collaboration and local partnerships, working with an eye on the future of agriculture as a whole.
Corn farmer (玉蜀黍儂人) Wataru Hikosaka
As head of Hokushin Ltd., Hikosaka grows corn and cabbage in Tahara City. After studying agriculture in his student days, he once worked for a major apparel company before his grandfather's illness led him back to the family business, and he now farms together with his family. He focuses on cultivation methods that make the most of photosynthesis and temperature swings, pursuing sweet, high-sugar corn while also actively contributing to the development of local agriculture.
Napa cabbage farmer (白菜儂人) Yukimori Nakajima
Nakajima grows cabbage, napa cabbage, and leaf tobacco in open fields in Toyohashi. He serves as committee chair of the Aichi JA Youth Organization Council, actively working on food and agriculture education, the promotion of farming, and building ties with the local community — showing leadership both in the fields and in local activities, with an eye on the future of the region's agriculture and its next generation.
Cerulean Tower Tokyu Hotel Honorary Executive Chef
Nobuhiko Fukuda
Fukuda became Executive Chef when Cerulean Tower Tokyu Hotel opened in 2001, and has since led and overseen the hotel's food and beverage division as its overall producer for everything related to food. His cooking, born from a rich sensibility, is aggressive and passionate, and his constant drive to challenge himself and aim higher has earned him strong support from guests. Under the theme of "cultural exchange," he has built friendships across the culinary world as well as with cultural figures, opera singers, and winemakers, and has hosted numerous dining events in collaboration with them. He is also active in food education, working to foster children's "independence around food" and the development of their five senses through food. As a driving force behind food across Tokyu Hotels nationwide, and as a leading opinion voice in Japan's food culture, he continues to be energetically active.
- 2017: Became 7th Chairman and International Vice Chairman of the Japan Escoffier Association (日本エスコフィエ協会)
- 2019: Named Executive Chef of Tokyu Hotels Co., Ltd. (now Tokyu Hotels & Resorts Co., Ltd.)
- 2021: Became 6th Chairman of the Ordre du Mérite Agricole Association of Japan (フランス農事功労章協会, MOMAJ)
- 2022: Appointed Senior Managing Executive Officer of Tokyu Hotels & Resorts Co., Ltd.
- 2024: Named Honorary Chairman of the Japan Escoffier Association (continuing as International Vice Chairman)
- 2025: Became Chairman of the Japan Rice Flour Association (日本米粉協会)
- Appointed Honorary Executive Chef of Cerulean Tower Tokyu Hotel, a position he holds today
He also serves as Professional Director of La Chaîne des Rôtisseurs Japan Headquarters (日本ラ・シェーヌ・デ・ロティスール協会 日本本部) and as an Advisor to the Japan Food Culture Council (一般社団法人日本食文化会議).
Awards
- 2018: Officier of the Ordre du Mérite Agricole (農事功労章オフィシエ), from the French Republic
- 2019: "Contemporary Master Craftsman" (現代の名工) honor from the Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare
- 2021: Highest Technical Advisor commendation (卓越最高技術顧問章) from the All Japan Chefs Association (全日本司厨士協会)
- 2024: Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare commendation for contributions to the culinary profession
- 2025: Chevalier of the French National Order of Merit (国家功労勲章シュヴァリエ), from the President of France
- 2026: Commandeur, the highest rank of the Ordre du Mérite Agricole (農事功労章「コマンドゥール」), from the French government
- 2026: Medal with Yellow Ribbon, Spring 2026 (令和8年春の黄綬褒章), from the Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare
Japanese Cuisine Sakuragaoka
Sekiya "Cerulean Tower Sukiya"
Head Chef
Takashi Tsuruta
Born in Tokyo in 1972. Tsuruta discovered the joy of cooking while helping out in the family kitchen, and finding satisfaction in being told his food was delicious set him on the path to becoming a chef. After high school, he trained at noted restaurants in Shiga, Ishikawa, and other regions across Japan.
He joined The Capitol Hotel Tokyu when it opened in 2010, honing his skills further at its Japanese restaurant "Suiren." In March 2021, he became head chef of the sekiya "Cerulean Tower Sukiya" at Cerulean Tower Tokyu Hotel, and that June was also named head chef of Japanese Cuisine Sakuragaoka.
Guided by the spirit of "tradition and innovation" (温故知新), he pursues the fusion of Japanese cuisine's inherited traditions with an evolution suited to the times, putting the spirit of hospitality into every seasonal dish with the firm belief that his role is to bring joy to his guests.
About Japanese Cuisine Sakuragaoka
Japanese Cuisine Sakuragaoka offers kaiseki course meals that let guests savor seasonal dishes built around the character of each ingredient, along with a tempura menu served at a dedicated counter from a satellite kitchen. Through Japanese cuisine, the restaurant expresses the beauty of each season and the essence of Japan's culture.
- Name: Japanese Cuisine Sakuragaoka (ジャパニーズキュイジーヌ さくらがおか)
- Seats: 84 (four private rooms for 2 to 8 guests; one semi-private room for 3 to 6 guests)
- Hours: Lunch 11:30 AM to 3:00 PM (last order 2:00 PM); Dinner 5:00 PM to 10:00 PM (last order 9:00 PM)
- Official website: https://www.tokyuhotels.co.jp/cerulean-h/restaurant/sakuragaoka/index.html
About Cerulean Tower Tokyu Hotel
Opened in May 2001, Cerulean Tower Tokyu Hotel stands a five-minute walk from Shibuya Station and is one of the few luxury hotels in Shibuya able to meet a wide range of guest needs. Guest rooms with sweeping views and a Japanese sensibility set within a modern style, multipurpose banquet halls, and a wide range of restaurants and bars come together with the warm hospitality distinctive to Japanese hotels. Since 2024, the hotel has run a project called "SHIBUYA LUXURY," expressing the richness of heart that comes from encountering the changing seasons and culture of each time of year in Shibuya, a district where Japanese tradition, current trends, and entertainment intersect.
- Address: 26-1 Sakuragaoka-cho, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo
- Access: 5-minute walk from Shibuya Station
- Opening date: May 24, 2001
- Building: 40 floors above ground, 4 floors below ground
- Facilities: 388 guest rooms (capacity of 776 guests), 11 banquet halls, 11 restaurants & bars
- Official website: https://www.tokyuhotels.co.jp/cerulean-h/index.html
