Spey Cast: A Secret Self-built Cafe Stands Quietly in The Woods
- Music played from records in a handmade cafe
- Thai style curry comes recommended
- Proud of the audio equipment and the music it produces
Cafe Spey-cast, where music with great taste and books line the shelves in a chic atmosphere. The cafe, in Sashikiji, the southern region of Oshima Island, was built from the ground up by none other than Mr. Baba, the owner himself.
Music played from records in a handmade cafe
Everything is self-built, and the owner came up with his own methods to cut down on building costs. He published a book which documents his story leading up to the opening.
The owner started listening to jazz when he began frequenting a jazz cafe in his twenties, and he went through a phase where got to spend his days listening to all his favourite music. After that he got his first job as a cameraman at a TV production company.
He later became a freelance photographer, mainly doing photo shoots in the countryside. This eventually led to his decision to live in the country himself as well and he moved to Oshima island at the age of 39. He got a job supervising a plantation with a focus on raising chickens, but when he hit his 50s, he felt the urge to try something new, and that’s when he remembered his feelings of being in awe with jazz music, and he started thinking about opening a stylish jazz cafe.
From there, he began prepping for the jazz cafe bit by bit with his own hands. With a limited budget, he would turn to Yahoo Auction or use scrap wood to slowly but surely move forth with his project.
A secret hideaway that stands quietly in the woods. The chic interior led to positive reviews that has been drawing crowds.
Thai style curry comes recommended
Home roasted coffee and Thai style curry. Beans are roasted on location so customers can enjoy freshly roasted coffee.
He is also proud of his “Asian” curry that he makes based on the flavours he acquired during his travels abroad. It’s also a menu item you won't find easily elsewhere on the island. He tweaks his curry based on dishes from places like Thailand and Sri Lanka. He also tries to use as many local vegetables as possible.
Proud of the audio equipment and the music it produces
The equipment and LPs weren’t purchased for the opening of the cafe, but rather are from his personal collection that he built over the years prior to deciding on opening this cafe.
This is a cafe that combines all his prior life experiences. His belief is that coffee shops don’t last long unless the owner devotes himself to it, and it’s important that you stay open for a long time. It’s also great that when there are no customers, he can crank up the volume and listen to his favourite jazz to his heart’s content. He hopes to keep this place going for many more years to come.
*1 Mr. Baba’s methods are detailed in his book, ‘Yahoo Auction and Scrap Wood: Opening a store on a budget with your own hands’ which was published October 3, 2014. Please take a look if you are interested
Information
Access
Go to the old Sashikichi Nursery School(旧差木地保育園前) by bus and takes 5 minutes on foot from the bus stop
