january-2011

T URNING JAPANESE IN HCMC
Little
Tokyo in
Saigon
One girl from Okinawa had a dream.
The result? Her own little café nestled
among other Japanese hotspots right in
the heart of Ho Chi Minh City.
Text and photos by
Nana Chen
TWO YEARS AGO, Okinawan native Kazuyo Tomihira, a busy marketing executive in Japan, was sent to
Ho Chi Minh City to set up an offi ce for a premium architecture paint company. But while she liked her job,
she could not stop thinking about running her very own café. “When I turned 35, I told myself I’d better
do what I want or regret it for the rest of my life.” She quit her job to start Kesera Café in the alley of
Le Thanh Ton Street, which is recognized as the unoffi cial Little Tokyo of Ho Chi Minh City. These days,
you’ll fi nd Kazuyo in her café or in her favorite spots in the area, where she visits with Mr Hirayama, the
eel expert; Miki, the spa whiz; Tabo, the fl amboyant restaurateur; and Hoshi, the hotpot and ramen king.
Like her, each of them has brought a piece of Japanese culture to their adopted home in Vietnam.
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