Tablesetting at Sasaki with plates imported from Shimane Japan.
Photo by: Brett Boardman
Workshop in Shimane Prefecture
Workshop in Shimane Prefecture
Yu Sasaki imported almost $25,000 worth of plates and pottery from artisan workshops in Shimane.
Photo by: Brett Boardman
Japanese ceramic vase
Japanese ceramic vase
The shipment of ceramics from Japan took over two months. Yu Sasaki aims to tell a story with every single item in the restaurant.
Photo by: Brett Boardman
Dishes served on a handmade tray
Dishes served on a handmade tray
Sasaki’s father spent six months carving 40 wooden trays made out of local black persimmon wood. Many have natural marks resembling calligraphy brushstrokes.
Photo by: Brett Boardman
Interior of Sasaki
Interior of Sasaki
The restaurant is completely fitted out in pieces imported from Japan, from the plates and hand-carved wooden cutlery to the tables.
Photo by: Brett Boardman
Harvest of tea leaves
Harvest of tea leaves
Chef Sasaki recently returned to Japan to observe the harvest of young tea leaves at a farm called Tosuien. The sencha tea served at the restaurant is custom-blended with fragrant yuzu, sakura and ginger. Sasaki’s hometown “has one of the biggest tea cultures that remain in daily life”.
Photo by: Brett Boardman
Ceramicist at work in Shimane
Ceramicist at work in Shimane
Sasaki shipped plates and pottery, which he collected from various artisan workshops in Shimane, back to Sydney. The teapots alone came from four different studios.
Photo by: Brett Boardman
Meal preparation at Sasaki
Meal preparation at Sasaki
From the plates, to the cutlery, to the tables, Sasaki is full of traditional Japanese craftsmanship.
Photo by: Brett Boardman
Light fitting at Sasaki
Light fitting at Sasaki
The light fittings throughout the restaurant were part of Sasaki’s shipment of artisan interiors from Shimane Prefecture to Sydney.
Photo by: Brett Boardman
Kaji Kobo Hiromitsu workshop
Kaji Kobo Hiromitsu workshop
The iron candleholders and coat hooks in the restaurant were forged by blacksmith Kaji Kobo Hiromitsu. The studio dates back to the 1830s and once produced samurai swords.
Photo by: Brett Boardman
Sasaki’s one-of-a-kind wooden tables
Sasaki’s one-of-a-kind wooden tables
Included in the final shipment from Japan were one-of-a-kind restaurant tables made by Sasaki’s father’s woodwork teacher.
Photo by: Brett Boardman
Takao Sasaki
Takao Sasaki
Yu Sasaki’s father, Takao, spent six months carving 300 pieces of cutlery and 40 wooden trays for the restaurant, using black persimmon wood found in Shimane Prefecture.
Photo by: Brett Boardman
Table setting at Sasaki
Table setting at Sasaki
Table setting at Sasaki with plates imported from Shimane, Japan.
Photo by: Brett Boardman
