Shinjuku Culinary College

Location: Nishi-Shinjuku, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo

Owner: Shinjuku Culinary College

Architect: Asahi Sagawa Research Institute

Construction: 1964

Renovation: May 2019

Seats: 38

It was founded in 1964, and since then, it has been training students who are devoted to becoming a chef in the future. Approximately 500 students come to this school to learn advanced cooking skills. Over the past few years, the school has been renovating the school building to provide the utmost learning experience that satisfies students’ needs of acquiring cooking knowledge and skills. In May 2019, the school revamped its demonstration room for Japanese cuisine cooking to create the perfect culinary learning environment. 

Japanese cuisine demonstration room portrays a cozy Japanese restaurant ambiance. 

The previous demonstration room was built focused on the importance of its function. With the new space, they focused not only on functionality, but it is also well-designed. The interior incorporates a Japanese restaurant-style, using woods for ceilings and floors and traditional Shoji and Wa-shi paper for wall decoration. One function of this room is that the lighting color and brightness are changeable according to the purpose. 

Kotobuki Seating’s product provides an optimal learning environment. 

Before the renovation, long desks with chairs were used in this room. The most extended desk has nine chairs, making it difficult to get through to the middle seats when aisle seats are occupied. Kotobuki’s new chair having only one leg solved this problem. This chair was designed for a ‘lecture theater’ and was installed in a tiered-style classroom giving a good view to the students while a professor demonstrates cooking. 

The one-legged chair can be installed quickly and is applicable on various layouts, compared to an ordinary two-legged chair. The simple design provides room around the user’s foot, allowing users to place their feet to their comfort as they sit. Desks are not installed in the new room because the new chairs have an integrated retractable writing tablet. This A3 size writing tablet gives writing stability sufficiently. It can be stowed in the armrest when not in use, allowing students to concentrate on the lecture instead of taking notes. The seats’ original mechanism suits tight spaces. 

The seat moves according to the person’s motion leading to another level of comfort. The seat moves against the backrest, so the person sitting can easily stand up and make room for anyone passing through, maximizing the space. Seat comfortability has significantly improved by using a cushion on the seat and backrest and upholstering it with a very soft synthetic leather. We use a maintenance-friendly vinyl fabric, easy to clean from dirt or stains should there be food spills during food tastings. The back panel’s fine shape provides lumbar support, and the natural wood used on the back panel adds coziness and a welcoming atmosphere together with the interior decoration.