The counter on handover night. Terracotta tile, a brass footrail, and the street lit up beyond the glass

The person who drew the plans runs the site.

Restaurant and shop interiors in Tokyo and Kanagawa, from the first survey through to handover, under one contract. Kukakusha takes on about 14 projects a year.

Contract: Design and build
Programme: 45 to 75 days
Typical size: 65 to 130 sqm

Shops Kukakusha has built

TORO
MUGI TO KATACHI
SANJI NO TAKU
LENS TO DAIZA
RO TO HAI
KUKI NO MISE
HI TO NABE
NIMAI TOBIRA
ISHIUSU TO MIZU
SHIRAKI ICHIMAI
KAKATO
KONA TO KATA
NAWA TO TARU
NABE NO SOKO

Handed over

Area, programme and trade are printed at the same size as the photograph. If nothing here matches your unit, you will know within a minute.

Density

Toro on handover day. A terracotta tile counter running to the charcoal grill, with a brass footrail below

Toro, charcoal grill and sake

Seven paces from grill to the far seat

Food 38.4m²(11.6tsubo) Seats24 Built in62days 2025.11 Nakameguro, Tokyo

The shop floor at Mugi to Katachi. A glass screen in front of the deck oven and thick oak display tables

Mugi to Katachi, bakery

Oven heat kept out of the seating

Food 52.8m²(16.0tsubo) Seats12 Built in58days 2025.09 Kiyosumi, Tokyo

Lens to Daiza. Eighteen slim steel fixtures and three fitting mirrors set at different angles

Lens to Daiza, eyewear

Three mirrors, three angles

Retail 66.1m²(20.0tsubo) Fixtures18 Built in54days 2025.08 Motomachi, Kanagawa

Ro to Hai. Extraction ducts routed beneath the exposed steel beams above 48 grill seats

Ro to Hai, yakiniku

Extraction routed under the beams

Food 115.7m²(35.0tsubo) Seats48 Built in75days 2025.07 Gotanda, Tokyo

The window bay at Sanji no Taku. Solid timber tables with deeper tops, in afternoon light

Sanji no Taku, coffee house

Thicker tops on the window tables

Food 42.9m²(13.0tsubo) Seats20 Built in56days 2025.06 Kuramae, Tokyo

Kuki no Mise. A mortar floor laid to falls with a linear drain, and eleven galvanised stands

Kuki no Mise, florist

Floor falls to a single drain

Retail 33.0m²(10.0tsubo) Fixtures11 Built in47days 2025.05 Nishiogikubo, Tokyo

Hi to Nabe. A brushed stainless partition holding the wok range heat back from forty seats

Hi to Nabe, Chinese

Wok heat stops at the partition

Food 92.5m²(28.0tsubo) Seats40 Built in70days 2025.04 Kawasaki, Kanagawa

The seating side of Nimai Tobira. Two steel framed glass doors dividing it from the shelving

Nimai Tobira, books and coffee

Two doors between books and coffee

Mixed 71.1m²(21.5tsubo) Seats16 Built in63days 2025.03 Jimbocho, Tokyo

The milling room at Ishiusu to Mizu, seen through glass from the dining side

Ishiusu to Mizu, soba

Floor reinforced for the stone mill

Food 46.3m²(14.0tsubo) Seats18 Built in52days 2025.02 Ningyocho, Tokyo

The counter at Shiraki Ichimai. One unbroken hinoki slab for nine seats, lit from a cove above

Shiraki Ichimai, sushi

Delivery route for the slab settled first

Food 29.8m²(9.0tsubo) Seats9 Built in66days 2024.12 Hiroo, Tokyo

The counter at Kakato. A perforated steel acoustic screen between the bench and the customer side

Kakato, shoe repair

Machine noise kept off the counter

Mixed 26.4m²(8.0tsubo) Fixtures7 Built in45days 2024.11 Asakusabashi, Tokyo

Kona to Kata. The chilled case set into a stone plinth with a fine drainage channel cut along it

Kona to Kata, patisserie

Condensation drains away from the case

Retail 39.7m²(12.0tsubo) Fixtures9 Built in50days 2024.10 Kita Kamakura, Kanagawa

Nawa to Taru. Seating set out between six existing columns, each wrapped in hemp rope

Nawa to Taru, izakaya

54 seats between six columns

Food 105.8m²(32.0tsubo) Seats54 Built in73days 2024.09 Shimbashi, Tokyo

The counter at Nabe no Soko. A stainless canopy sitting directly over the open kitchen

Nabe no Soko, curry

Extraction sited to push the smell out

Food 35.7m²(10.8tsubo) Seats14 Built in48days 2024.08 Shimokitazawa, Tokyo

Tsuchi to Yu. Fourteen deep shelving bays with the steel brackets left visible, each washed with light

Tsuchi to Yu, ceramics

Shelf loads fixed before the drawings

Retail 56.2m²(17.0tsubo) Fixtures14 Built in55days 2024.07 Yanaka, Tokyo

Dounabe. An acoustic panelled wall screening the pass, with green leather banquettes along it

Dounabe, bistro

Kitchen noise stops at the panel

Food 82.6m²(25.0tsubo) Seats34 Built in68days 2024.06 Ebisu, Tokyo

The roasting room at Entotsu to Mame. A straight stainless flue taken to the outside wall

Entotsu to Mame, coffee roastery

Shortest flue run to the outside wall

Mixed 48.0m²(14.5tsubo) Seats10 Built in59days 2024.05 Hayama, Kanagawa

Yuge to Hachi. A single straight counter for thirteen, under a canopy covering the whole kitchen ceiling

Yuge to Hachi, ramen

Steam caught at the ceiling

Food 31.4m²(9.5tsubo) Seats13 Built in46days 2024.04 Koenji, Tokyo

Kome to Shiru. A single service aisle running from the pass to the far wall, tables either side

Kome to Shiru, set meals

One straight service aisle

Food 74.4m²(22.5tsubo) Seats32 Built in64days 2024.03 Omori, Tokyo

Taru to Sen. Twelve heavy steel bays in rows, the reinforced strip of floor left as a change of finish

Taru to Sen, wine and spirits

Floor reinforced under the heavy bays

Retail 43.0m²(13.0tsubo) Fixtures12 Built in51days 2024.02 Monzen Nakacho, Tokyo

The counter at Abura no Oto. Fifteen seats facing the fryer under a close fitting hood

Abura no Oto, tempura

Frying smell kept off the floor above

Food 36.4m²(11.0tsubo) Seats15 Built in57days 2024.01 Yushima, Tokyo

Sara to Teppan. A raised ceiling void above the teppan station drawing the heat away from the tables

Sara to Teppan, western grill

Teppan heat drawn up into the void

Food 88.4m²(26.7tsubo) Seats36 Built in69days 2023.12 Kannai, Kanagawa

Ha to Kan. Ten shelving bays set well apart, facing a wall of matte metal canisters

Ha to Kan, tea merchant

Shelves split to stop scent transfer

Retail 40.5m²(12.3tsubo) Fixtures10 Built in49days 2023.11 Nihonbashi, Tokyo

Ichigodai. One waist height counter along the wall, with eleven standing places set out on it

Ichigodai, standing bar

Eleven standing places in 23 sqm

Food 23.1m²(7.0tsubo) Standing11 Built in45days 2023.10 Akabane, Tokyo

Where design and build overlap

This one chart is the whole company. Demolition starts before the working drawings are finished, and for six days the two run together. Some dimensions are only fixed once a wall comes down.

Stage / Led by 62 days from first demolition to handover

Survey and concept

Design

We survey twice: once for the drawings, once before anything is ordered

1 to 14d

Working drawings

Design

Joinery and services drawings are ours too, not a subcontractor's

12 to 30d

Pricing and permits

Both

You see the cost breakdown before you commit

22 to 34d

Demolition and structure

Site

Some dimensions are only fixed once a wall comes down

25 to 38d

Interior works

Both

The person who drew it runs the site

34 to 54d

Joinery and lighting

Both

Light levels are metered on site before they are signed off

46 to 58d

Inspection and handover

Both

Fire and health inspections are cleared before we hand over the keys

56 to 62d

The six days design and build run together

Design
Site
Both

These are the actual dates from Toro, handed over in 62 days. Your unit and trade will move them.

Three years, broken down

A project count on its own tells you nothing. Here is the breakdown.

Projects completed in three years	41
Of those, food and drink	28
Average programme	61days
Average cost per tsubo	680,000JPY
Clients who came back	34%

A tsubo is 3.31 square metres, the unit Japanese leases are written in. Cost per tsubo is construction cost divided by area. Design fees run 8 to 12 % of construction cost and are billed separately.

The cut edge of the unglazed terracotta tile used on the counter fronts

End grain of the hinoki board used for counter tops

An aged brass bracket and screw head from the shelving

Nine people, and the work we turn down

The person who drew the plans can run the site because construction management sits inside the company. Four in design, three in construction management, and two who do both. Those two are the mechanism.

Design: 4
Construction management: 3
Both: 2

Work Kukakusha turns down

Fit outs shorter than 30 days
Drawing quality drops, and the owner pays for it later
Design only, with someone else building
Decisions made on site never come back to the drawings, and accountability disappears
Over 100 sqm on a budget under 6 million yen
The only thing left to cut is the joinery, and it gets rebuilt within two years

The studio in Sumida. Shared drawing desks, with a half built joinery mock up returned from site behind them

Company

Name: Kukakusha Inc.
Founded: April 2016
Address: 0-0-0 Kikukawa, Sumida-ku, Tokyo 000-0000, Japan
Phone: +81 3-0000-0000
Licence: Tokyo Governor Licence (Gen-7) No. 000000
Qualified staff: 3 first class registered architects, 3 second class, 5 first class construction management engineers, 2 interior finishing technicians
Area served: Tokyo and Kanagawa

Four numbers before we can price it

With these four we come back with a rough figure within three working days. You do not need drawings. A sketch of the layout is enough.

Floor area of the unit
Square metres or tsubo, either is fine
Bare shell, or an existing fit out
If you are not sure, copy the wording from the lease
Target opening date
If the date cannot move, we work backwards from it
Upper limit on budget
Construction cost only is fine

Phone: +81 3-0000-0000
Hours: Weekdays 9:00 to 18:00
Area served: Tokyo and Kanagawa

The person who drew the plans runs the site.

Shops Kukakusha has built

Handed over

Toro, charcoal grill and sake

Mugi to Katachi, bakery

Lens to Daiza, eyewear

Ro to Hai, yakiniku

Sanji no Taku, coffee house

Kuki no Mise, florist

Hi to Nabe, Chinese

Nimai Tobira, books and coffee

Ishiusu to Mizu, soba

Shiraki Ichimai, sushi

Kakato, shoe repair

Kona to Kata, patisserie

Nawa to Taru, izakaya

Nabe no Soko, curry

Tsuchi to Yu, ceramics

Dounabe, bistro

Entotsu to Mame, coffee roastery

Yuge to Hachi, ramen

Kome to Shiru, set meals

Taru to Sen, wine and spirits

Abura no Oto, tempura

Sara to Teppan, western grill

Ha to Kan, tea merchant

Ichigodai, standing bar

Where design and build overlap

Survey and concept

Working drawings

Pricing and permits

Demolition and structure

Interior works

Joinery and lighting

Inspection and handover

Three years, broken down

Nine people, and the work we turn down

Work Kukakusha turns down

Company

Four numbers before we can price it

Enquiry form