[Nagoya Kamejima] "Cafe Chiroru" established in 1963 - retro and cute morning breakfast! 

About 5 minutes on foot from the subway "Nagoya" station, "Cafe Chiroru" is located beyond the Lucent Tower. It is a long-established coffee shop that has been in business since 1963 in the area around Nagoya Station where many coffee shops gather.

It is cute in a retro Showa era style and the morning service is a hot topic on SNS. You can enjoy drinks and meals that only an old-fashioned coffee shop can offer.

Store interior inspired by a snowy mountain lodge
Enchanted by the retro Showa-era furniture and atmosphere

The signboard of the shop written "COFFEE・SNACK CHIRORU" is a landmark. The show window is decorated with food samples of drinks and food along with the menu.

A small window is installed next to the entrance of the shop, and stamps, revenue stamps, and postcards can be purchased from the outside. Showa retro atmosphere is irresistible.

The bright red sofa in the shop, which is illuminated in warm light bulb color, catches your eye. The previous owner was a skier, so the interior was designed with the image of his favorite ski lodge.

At the spacious table seats, you can relax comfortably without worrying about the distance between you and your neighbors.

There was also a coffee shop specialty "game table" that tickles the hearts of retro lovers! Currently, it is said that it can not be played because the cathode ray tube has broken down. Even so, it makes me happy when I see it, and I just want to sit down at a special seat in a coffee shop.

Founded in 1963
History of "Coffee Shop Chiroru"

Founded in 1963, Cafe Tyrol is probably the coffee shop with the longest history in the Kamejima area.

For this interview, I spoke with Mr. Kato, the second-generation owner. He also provided us with some rare photos of the shop from the time of its establishment.

-Could you tell me about the history of the long-established coffee shop at Nagoya Station, which has been running for 59 years?

Mr. Kato: "At that time, the roads in this area were not yet paved and were gravel roads, not concrete. This is a picture of the establishment. The first floor of Chiroru was the shop and the second floor was the living space. Although it is cut off in the photo, the UCC (Ueshima Coffee) company was next door on the left side of the photo.

One day, the chairman of UCC asked my father, the first owner, if he could rent this space to run a coffee shop. At the time, my father was still working at another business. However, the consultation triggered my father's curiosity, and he decided that if he was going to rent the place to someone else, he would like to open his own coffee shop. He decided to open Cafe Chiroru"

Mr. Kato: "Don't worry. After that, the chairman and my father were on good terms, and even afterhe started Chiroru, they often came to visit us. My father and mother started this coffee shop together. Thanks to all of you, we were able to welcome the 59th year this year.

When he started the store, there were still very few "coffee shops" in Japan. It was around the time when I was in the upper grades of elementary school. There was a coffee shop boom, and sometimes as many as four or five coffee shops opened in the same town. Back then, there were no fashionable cafes like there are now. I think coffee shops were the standard place for date for couples."

The sepia-faded photo of the father and the chairman is said to be one of his father's favorites, saying, "This faded color is good."

-What is the origin of the name of the shop?

Mr. Kato: "It is from the Mecca for skiers, the 'Tyrol region' of Austria, where the Alps range. My father, who loved skiing enough to create a ski club, named it. Next to the shop, a relative's uncle used to run a construction company, but when it was decided to move and the house became vacant, my father also ran a ski and sporting goods store there."

Mr. Kato: “My father was also active as the Soke* of Fugen-ryu karate. Now his disciples have inherited it and continues to teach many people. He was a really active person.”

* “Soke” is the honorific title of the founder who established the school himself.

Chiroru's morning breakfast with a cute silver plate

At Chiroru, each customer is served his or her morning meal on an silver plate. The retro atmosphere is very cute and popular, and many customers come to the cafe after seeing it on the Internet.

According to Mr. Kato, from the time he could remember, this was the style of "morning breakfast", so he thought it was normal for other shops to have it on the plate.

Morning breakfast service (7:00-10:30)

When you order a drink of your choice, toast and a boiled egg are included. The freshly toasted bread is fluffy and crispy. The melted butter spreads on the surface of the toast, doubling its deliciousness.

The point of morning breakfast service is the thickness of this bread! It seems that the predecessor owner was particular about "the bread served in morning breakfast is as thick as possible". It is still firmly inherited. For an additional 50 yen, you can add Ogura or strawberry jam as a topping.

The cups with the shop's logo are custom-made by Noritake. The simple design is chic and lovely.

Coffee is carefully dripped through a cotton cloth filter called a "nel" filter. Compared to paper filters, this extraction method is popular for its smooth taste and full-bodied flavor. Take your time and savor a cup of the luxurious blend of Chiroru's secret formula.

Introducing the recommended menu! !

This coffee shop's meals has never changed since its establishment. One bite of Chiroru's meal is sure to warm your heart.

Starting with the popular lunch specials of the day, and light meals recommended when you're feeling a little hungry, I'll introduce my top picks from the extensive menu!

Today's service lunch (800 yen including tax)

(Service lunch comes with coffee for an additional 300 yen.)

* Weekdays 13:00-14:30, Saturdays only 11:30-14:00

・Monday miso cutlet, pork cutlet set meal

・Tuesday Yakisoba set meal

・Wednesday Karaage set meal

・Thursday Fried shrimp set meal

・Friday Yakiniku set meal

・Saturday miso cutlet, pork cutlet set meal

Misokatsu set meal (Mondays and Saturdays)

A miso cutlet set meal popular with both men and women. It's a local dish representing Nagoya that's delicious with its crispy batter! Enjoy with plenty of slightly sweet miso sauce.

Red soup stock with chopped fried tofu and green onions is alsogood. Since it is close to Nagoya Station, it is a dish loved by office workers who visit Nagoya on business.

Please note that you can order it even on days that do not fall under the daily lunch although the price is different. (Except Tuesday and Friday)

Kishimen (600 yen including tax)

Looking at the light meal menu, I found a dish that is hard to find at coffee shops. Following on from misokatsu, “Kishimen” is characterized by its flat noodles, which can be said to be representative of Nagoya food as well!

Bonito flakes dance on top of the hot dashi soup. The moderately salty, smooth and chewy noodles are quite exquisite. It's nice to be able to casually enjoy kishimen at a coffee shop. Even though I live in Nagoya, I don't have many opportunities to eat it.

All meals can be ordered from 13:00 to 16:00.

Recommended drink

Cream soda (600 yen including tax)

Everyone from children to adults loves this place. A very refreshing cream soda with a rare bright blue color. Vanilla ice cream, which is absolutely indispensable, also floats. The smooth sweet ice cream and the soda that stimulates the throat are a perfect match. It is a standard drink in coffee shops.

The blue gradation is very beautiful.

At one time, he wondered if it would be boring to offer only blue. So he changed the color of the soda to red or green. However, one day, a former part-time staff member came to the store with her daughter and ordered a cream soda. When she saw the blue cream soda, she said, "This is the one I knew I wanted! Chiroru's cream soda has to be light blue!" Since then, he has been serving blue cream soda. It has now become common knowledge that "the blue cream soda is what you think of when you think of Cafe Chiroru."

The face of "Nagoya coffee shop"

Café Chiroru has received a lot of press coverage as a "coffee shop in Nagoya." The store's bookshelves are lined with magazines on which Chiroru has appeared.

-Are there any interviews that left an impression on you?

Mr. Kato: "Yes. ....... I was surprised when I received an interview on the spot from a writer who came to me saying, ’I'm from Tokyo. May I interview you?' It was an interview for a magazine called "The Book of Pure Coffee shops and Bread." It is a very interesting book with many articles on famous coffee shops in Tokyo and Nagoya. I highly recommend you pick up a copy and give it a read.''

-This book is signed!

Mr. Kato: "Yes. I received this from Toshiyuki Otake, a writer living in Aichi Prefecture. He had published a book about coffee shops in Nagoya and was a well-known writer, so I knew him one way or another. So when I was offered to have an interview by him, I thought, 'Oh, that Mr. Otake?!' I was really surprised and very happy.

At the time of the interview, Mr. Otake was also surprised when he found kishimen on the menu of the shop, saying, "It's rare that you can eat kishimen at a coffee shop."

Toshiyuki Otake's book "Nagoya's Coffee Shop Complete Edition", which also includes Cafe Chiroru, is a recommended book for those who like coffee shops.

Ms. Kato's soft smile was very impressive. He smiled and said he would be happy to continue to be a place where everyone can relax and take a break.

Recently, it seems that the number of young customers in their 20s and 30s is increasing. In addition to the retro boom, customers of all generations visit Cafe Chiroru today in search of delicious coffee and a quiet and relaxing oasis. There seems to be no age barrier for coffee shop lovers.