Why I travel for an hour just to eat this pizza.

A "great restaurant" surely doesn't
end right there.

Even after you get home,
you find yourself remembering it at random moments,
and it starts to weave itself into your daily life.

What I'm writing about this time
is the story of a pizza place my family
keeps going back to for some reason.

And I will share the moment that experience
overlapped with the essence of the work
I am currently learning.

Monthly "Cafe Report"

I am currently enrolled in the Miraist Studio Master Plan hosted by Sayaka Yamaguchi, where I am studying a wide range of topics every day, such as the current state of the world, ways of thinking as a sole proprietor, and how to go about designing my own work.

You can find Sayaka-san's Note here

Within that program, there is a challenge I have been continuing once a month by setting my own theme.

That is the "Cafe Report."

Driven by a vague future
desire to "try opening a cafe overseas,"I want to learn about running a business, and as a photographer, I want to cherish and record what I feel through my photos.

With that in mind, I have been continuing this
as a personal project.

The first one is here

The second one is here

The location this time is a pizza place with an ocean view

And the location for this third installment is aplace where you can eat pizza
while looking at the ocean.

The reason I found out about this place
was a comment my husband made a few years ago.

My husband, who is from the Kansai region:
"You know, Aichi Prefecture doesn't really have any appealing restaurants that make you want to go visit."

Me:
"What!? That's rude!!!"

Husband:
"But there is one place that, for a change, I actually wanted to go to."

Thinking to myself how rude he was being with every word (lol),
I let him show me the website.

It was an open-air shop located right in front of the sea,
built with wooden floors like a deck.

I want to go there!!!

Thinking that, I visited it right away that weekend a few years ago.

Since then, it has become a place I visit several times a year.

I visited for the first time in a while the other day,
so I would like to write about this shop again.

Why I go even if it takes an hour

Even though I have been there many times,

"It's delicious, and I just like the vibe"

is all I really thought.

But this time, I wanted to try to put that into words
a little more properly.

This cafe is located more than an hour
away from my house.

Even so, I go to the trouble of driving there
just to eat this pizza.

For a few years now, my eldest and second sons
have suffered from severe car sickness, and they don't want to go anywhere
more than 10 minutes away from home (lol).

"Let's try going to such-and-such shop next time!"

Even when I say that, the next thing

they say back is, "How many minutes does it take to get there?" (lol).

They are like that, but for some reason, when I say let's go here,

"Okay!"

they agree so easily that it's their favorite
place.

The atmosphere of this shop

First of all, the atmosphere of this place.

The moment you arrive, the ocean spreads out before your eyes.

And the breeze is so cool and comfortable, it
instantly makes you feel like you're on vacation.

It's not a formal atmosphere, so
you can easily bring children along.

But, the mood is instantly extraordinary.

I naturally feel like, 'I'd be happy to pay just for this space.'

It's easy to think that.

You can eat inside, but
most customers choose the open-air seats outside.

I think the time spent eating while feeling the sea and the wind is the true value of this shop.

Why the pizza is delicious

And next, the taste itself.

Everything you eat is

'Mmm, one more slice!'

so delicious it makes you groan.

But why is it so delicious?

I looked it up for the first time, and the secret seems to be in the

flour
cheese
oil
and pizza oven

.

The wheat, grown on their own farm without pesticides or chemical fertilizers,
is milled only after an order is placed.

It is said to be so fresh that its aroma and sweetness spread the moment you bite into it.

The cheese is also handmade nearby,
made without additives,
with careful attention to the blend of lactic acid bacteria, the production method,
and the aging process, each one crafted with care.

From the time the milk arrives, becomes cheese,
and is served as pizza in the shop,
the fastest ones take only two days.

I was surprised by this speed as well.

And then, the oil.

They roast rapeseed in a traditional wood-fired stove,
and press it using one of only a few oil presses in the country.

No chemicals are used at all, and it is neither deodorized nor bleached.

It is said to be 100% pure domestic rapeseed oil.

Just hearing about the dedication to these three ingredients

makes me want to try each one
even as a standalone ingredient before cooking (laughs).

No wonder my picky children
eat it silently and intently
until the very last second before the pizza is gone as they do.

The words they say the moment it is gone
are, of course, 'Seconds, please!!!'

And finally, they bake them in a stone oven for a minute and a half.

By putting these carefully selected ingredients into the stone oven,
all the ingredients come together as one.

I would actually like to try every variety, but
since I always order two of the children's perennial favorite,
the 'Margherita,'
I haven't been able to try many new flavors.

But everything I have eaten so far
has been truly delicious.

This pizza shop has come to my home

And there is more to this story.

My husband seemed so moved by the taste of the pizza that,

a few days later, he actually started setting up a
small pizza oven on our wooden deck (lol).

He started making pizza from scratch, including the dough.

Of course, we don't have an ocean view from our house,

and the only view in the yard is a trampoline (lol).

Even so, when I see the children
happily eating the homemade pizza,

I feel like the time spent at that pizza shop
is starting to seep into our daily lives as well.

Great shops find their way into your daily life.

That's when I suddenly thought.

Perhaps a great shop is not something that
ends right there on the spot,
but one that has the power to enter our daily lives
and keep that sense of wonder alive.

Providing an experience that leaves a lasting impression.

And then, becoming a part of that person's daily life.

I felt that this somehow overlapped with
what I am currently learning in the Master Plan.

Ever since I learned about the Master Plan
on the YouTube channel of the organizer, Sayaka Yamaguchi,

It has become a part of my daily life.

In the morning, I watch Sayaka-san's YouTube videos,

read her note articles,

and think about it from the perspective of "What would I do in that situation?"

I consider it from that viewpoint.

Sayaka-san's philosophy enters my daily life,

I remember it at unexpected moments,

and I find myself wanting to return to this note space again.

I think that is truly amazing.

The sea on the way home

This time, I went to this
pizza place with a fresh mindset, and it was a great learning experience.

Finally, playing for a bit at the nearby beach before heading home is
my usual routine.

The sight of my daughter running with all her might, looking a bit bow-legged.

My sons throwing stones into the sea, competing to see
whose goes further.

As I think about how peaceful it is and look back,

there is one clearly suspicious middle-aged man (my husband),
snoring away while napping in a tent.

Setting aside the sight of the middle-aged man napping (lol),

I think that kind of time is also a value
that cannot be bought with money.

If I were to open a shop someday,

a good shop surely doesn't end just at that location.

A place that finds its way into my daily life,

and gives me moments that I find myself remembering
when I least expect it.

If I were to open a shop someday,

would I be able to make it a place that creates such moments?

Is there a shop that stays in your memory?

If you'd like, please let me know in the comments,
it would be a great encouragement to me.