Tomodachiga Yatteru Cafe

Did You Know?

• The name 'Tomodachiga Yatteru Cafe' originated from a conversation where Suguru Myoen's employee asked, 'Can we go to the café that my friend runs?'
• The pre-opening store introduction video received a total of 1.5 million views on Twitter and TikTok.

History

TYC was planned as an experimental restaurant by Suguru Myoen, representative director of the advertising and planning production company Kakeru. Myoen began working as a commercial planner and copywriter at Dentsu in 2014, left in 2020, and founded Kakeru. He previously presided over the coffee speakeasy "JANAI COFFEE" and the "Yadana" exhibition. Myoen started his own business intending to do advertising work but also launched a restaurant business and special exhibitions to create things he liked. He described TYC as an experiment to see what would happen if waitstaff and customers treated each other as equals from the start, aiming for a magical experience where the more the staff treated customers in a messy way, the happier they would be. Myoen questioned Japan's "customer supremacy" culture and said the restaurant industry's reliance on online reviews leads to a demand for perfect service. He noted the positive reactions after the café opened were a pleasant discovery and stated he had no desire to destroy the culture where the customer is God, but hoped his approach could be seen as one suggestion that such service might also be acceptable. A job opening on February 20, 2023, sought experienced entertainment professionals; after a large pre-opening response in April, additional positions were advertised for baristas and bartenders. Over 300 people applied to become waitstaff.

Waitstaff

Recruitment for TYC was limited to those with acting experience, such as actors, models, SNS creators, and theater circle members, as well as those active in the entertainment industry. Employees practiced improvisation acting for about a month to comfortably play the role of a friend with strangers. TYC did not provide explicit instruction or manuals; instead, it simulated "what would happen if I went to my friend's place of work" through role-playing sessions. After business hours each day, employees gave each other feedback on how to respond to situations, developing customer service skills so that no two customers were treated the same way. Actress Karin Hashiguchi, who worked at the café, said Myoen was present at her hiring interview and asked about her motivation for acting and what kind of actress she wanted to be, not about foodservice experience. She noted that serving customers at TYC required completely different skills than ordinary cafes, particularly the need to improvise to match customers' energy, and that she was not good at improvisation in theater, so working at TYC allowed her to polish her acting skills. Singer-songwriter and rapper Sheer, a waitress, applied after seeing a job tweet from Myoen. She was initially nervous because many colleagues were actors doing artistic work, and for the first month she felt tense about the friend-like service style, but by the café's closure she felt more at ease. When entering the restaurant, staff greeted customers with phrases like "Hey, long time no see!" instead of "Hello, welcome." Myoen said the key was to serve with 80% tension, not 100% or 120%, because real friends speak in a slightly relaxed state. One rule was "never raise hands above the shoulders," and staff waved their hands below shoulder level to create a relaxed, friend-like atmosphere.

Social media

Tomodachiga Yatteru Cafe was designed to encourage customers to share their experiences on social media. Photography was allowed throughout the space, including of the staff, making it simple for anyone to post about what was happening inside. Within a few months of opening, videos of the cafe had accumulated over 30 million views and 1.5 million likes. Myoen observed that while most restaurants see similar user posts focused on signature dishes or decor, TYC offered different customer service each time, resulting in fresh, unique posts every day. This constant online buzz attracted new visitors who learned about the cafe through these posts. The cafe did not prioritize repeat business or expect the same people to return often. The layout itself supported word-of-mouth on social media: waitstaff stood on a slightly raised platform relative to customers, making it easier for visitors to capture them on video as soon as they entered.

Reception

TYC’s TikTok videos blew up fast enough to snag multiple trend awards. The café was nominated in the Gourmet Category of the TikTok H1 Trend Awards 2023, took first in the Places and Events Category of CyberAgent’s 2023 Generation Z Hit Trend Ranking, came second in the Experience Category of SHIBUYA109’s 2023 Trend Grand Prize, and placed first in the things/object category of Trepo’s Generation Z Trend Ranking for the First Half of 2023. In February 2024, Suntory released a canned alcoholic drink co-developed with TYC. The company, wanting to attract younger drinkers, reached out in June after a development team visited TYC and was impressed. The project lead was drawn to the communication style TYC’s world created. Teaming up with a single store for a product was rare for Suntory, but young employees pushed it through. The web commercial featured actor Ryota Katayose. By April 2024, strong initial sales led to a nationwide limited-time launch. Writer Sara Fukamori on Real Sound credited TYC’s appeal to its TikTok-friendly design, ease, and comfort. The café allowed photos and social media posts without asking permission, so visitors could film freely. Each experience was unique because guests decided how to play the role of the staff’s friend, making it easy to create fresh TikTok content. She also pointed out a shared understanding of mutual acting.