One in two diners at Heianraku, a Chinese restaurant in the city of Takayama, Gifu Prefecture, is non-Japanese, drawn by the chef's reputation for trying to meet the most difficult off-menu request.
The restaurant is so popular with foreign tourists that it topped a June 21 ranking on the Japanese edition of TripAdvisor, a travel ratings website.
Operated by Hiroshi Furuta, 54, and his wife, Naoko, 51, Heianraku has about 30 customers each day — half of them non-Japanese. It usually allows up to three groups of customers at once, so that the staff can treasure conversations with each guest.
With your current subscription plan you can comment on stories. However, before writing your first comment, please create a display name in the Profile section of your subscriber account page.