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Caffe & Miscellaneous Shop “coniglia”

Address: 47-1 Higashisakeyamachi, Miyoshi, Hiroshima 728-0023
Call: 0824-63-8717

With a qualification for nutritionist from school, Katou Masumi was involved with many restaurant businesses and finally her dream came true when she started a cafe & miscellaneous shop with her sister. What she treasures are the smiles of customers and comrades who liven up the city together. Encouraged by warm people, she keeps on sharing the attraction of Miyosi.
 

The owner, Katou Masumi, was born and grew up in Miyoshi. Since opening a cafe was her dream she got a qualification as a nutritionist by majoring in food and nutrition at San-you Women’s Junior College. “After graduation I worked for Hiroshima International Plaza as a cook, and then moved to Tokyo and worked at a coffee shop and Italian restaurant. The urban area was bright and exciting and fun, but I was always thinking about my hometown because I love Miyoshi.” says Masumi with a smile. In 2004, her sister Minori told her she was going to open a miscellaneous shop and asked her about it. “I want to do it together!” So, Masumi decided to go back to her hometown and run the shop together. In December of that same year they opened the shop and since they had a rabbit, they named the shop “coniglia” which means female rabbit in Italian, as well as a rabbit being a symbol of progress. A cafe and miscellaneous shop that offers coffee and pretty items sounds like it would become popular quickly, but at first they suffered from not being able to draw in customers. “At that time local people supported us. My parents have run a beauty salon for about 40 years in Miyoshi, and their regulars and even their daughters often visited us. Of course our parents and friends supported us a lot. We were really encouraged.” Katou says she is very thankful for people who supported her with warmth at that time, it made her decide to make her shop useful to the town.

To advertise their shop, they asked the media to insert an advertisement and shared their shop on social media. Their hard work was rewarded with customers, and now their shop has become so popular that customers have to line up outside the cafe. “We were happy, of course, but at the same time we thought we didn’t want to make this shop a place that bothers customers. We wanted to them enjoy being here without waiting outside, so we decided to expand the shop.” In 2009, they renovated their shop by separating the cafe and miscellaneous shop. The spacious room gets a lot of sunlight, and there are always seasonal flowers on each table. As customers requested, they added other dishes and sweets to the menu. “We always want to give customers warm hospitality by responding to their requests which helps decide our course of action. Our shop was made by customers.” Katou looked somewhat embarrassed. The relationship with people who run restaurants in Miyoshi is also important for her. “Thanks to them, I could join a restaurant association and a young people’s association and hear other owner’s thoughts. A lot of them including me were wanting to liven up the city together, so sometimes we develop an idea of collaboration, for example we use fresh pasta made at Egusa Store, an old noodle shop that has been making noodles for 4 generations in Miyoshi. We also use honey made by the local, Kougenji Beekeeper.”

Their attitude was given a high rating by the city their menu was published in “Foggy Town Gourmet Tour” which means it was recognized as a good food place in Miyoshi and was also recognized as a “Miyoshi City Locally Sourced Shop.” Katou says, “We didn’t aim for that, but Miyoshi really has a lot of delicious food. We use local rice, vegetables and eggs because they are fresh. Sometimes I even go to ‘Toretta’ to get them myself. In fall it’s the harvest season of pione and shine mascot, and they are delicious, too. I’d like to share the good things about Miyoshi with people who come from outside of the city.” she smiled. For lunch, they have a weekly menu that is limited to 15 items, a curry made with a brand of pork, “Miyoshi Kiriri Pork,” and seasonal desserts and drinks. “Families come here too, so we have dishes that look cute and children can enjoy, such as ‘Rabbit parfait.’ Fresh pasta and pancakes made from rice power are popular with customers who are allergic to wheat. We’d like to keep on developing new dishes that many people can enjoy.” At the end when we asked her about her favorite parts of Miyoshi, she told us, “Everyone is really nice. I grew up here so I have a lot of acquaintances, and when you need it everyone helps you and when you want to be alone they try not to interfere. Such kindness and warmth helped us a lot, so I’d like to return the favor.” Their shop “coniglia” should keep progress, just like a rabbit.