January 2025 Issue

In 1950, shortly after the war, the restaurant "Hakuunkaku" suddenly appeared in Ikebukuro. Inheriting the spirit of hospitality and tradition, and incorporating the spirit of "polishing up," the restaurant changed its name to "Riviera Tokyo" and continued to evolve over the past 75 years. This article traces its history with photographs.
Horie Asazo, an ambitious young businessman, came to Tokyo and set up Fukushimaya, a fuel wholesaler in Ikebukuro, which grew rapidly. However, when he was drafted and returned to Ikebukuro from the battlefield, his eyes were drawn to the black markets and barracks, and the smiles of people finding relief in food during extreme food shortages, which completely changed his outlook on his work. Anticipating a time when "lavish banquets" would be in demand, he opened Hakuunkaku, a traditional Japanese restaurant with a view of the white clouds over Mount Fuji. His foresight and drive were remarkable.
Four years after opening, the business was going smoothly, with the site being expanded by 4m² and a new building being built. However, in December of the same year, the old building was burned down in a sudden fire, and the business was hit by tragedy.
Despite the deep sadness, all the staff worked hard with the strong belief that "we cannot cause any inconvenience to our customers." We resumed business the next day in the undamaged new building, and continued to welcome customers with the same hospitality even during the New Year's and year-end party season, when reservations were fully booked.

1. Firewood and charcoal wholesaler "Fukushimaya"

2. Opening a new restaurant

3. Opening a new restaurant
Three years later, the hotel was rebuilt and expanded by 3m1500, with 32 rooms of various sizes, and a magnificent banquet hall with a waterfall and garden was opened. Regular guests included famous writers and critics such as Edogawa Ranpo, and former Minister of Finance Ogasawara Sankuro. Furthermore, Prince Takamatsu was present, which made the hotel an instant hit.
The luxurious banquet style, where guests could enjoy a bath while admiring the garden with a waterfall and then have a party, gained a good reputation. Word of Hakuunkaku, the best restaurant in the Johoku area, spread, and customers flocked to the restaurant every day from Asakusa and Nihonbashi, and the restaurant became popular as a meeting place for cultural figures, scholars, and large companies.
It wasn't just the facilities that supported the success of the reconstruction; it was the "loving hospitality" shown, including the attentiveness of the waitresses and the delicious seasonal cuisine provided by the chefs, that built a solid foundation.



4. From miraculous revival to prosperity

5. From miraculous revival to prosperity

6. Prince Takamatsu visits

7 Rapid economic growth led to increased demand for hotels as meeting places for the high class

8. Eat hot food while it's still hot: The start of a new food culture

9. "Wine Kaiseki" begins

In 1994, Asakura's vision was passed down to his son-in-law, Watanabe, chairman of the Riviera Group, and was fused with the world-renowned hospitality of the Riviera Country Club. It has been 31 years since Watanabe took over Hakuunkaku, and while undergoing major renovations every year, the hotel has always anticipated the needs of the times, including banquets, weddings, and gourmet food. The underlying principle has always been "to make our customers happy." This will remain unchanged in the present and future, and will be passed down unbroken as the hospitality of the Riviera.
The fact that we have been able to welcome our guests to this wooden building with three stories above ground and one below for 3 years is the result of the efforts of our employees who have continued to refine the facility with the "spirit of polishing" that lies within Riviera. Now, Riviera Tokyo (Ikebukuro), which began as the traditional Japanese restaurant "Hakuunkaku", will mark its 1th anniversary and embark on redevelopment with an eye to the future. We would like to express our sincere gratitude to all our customers who have supported us thus far, as well as our employees, business partners, and the local community who have supported us.

10 The company name was changed to include "Riviera."

11 The company name was changed to include "Riviera."


12 Different types of chapels are born and gain popularity

13 Different types of chapels are born and gain popularity


14 Renovation of the main entrance of a three-story wooden building

15. Opening of "Riviera Cafe Green Style"

16 Reopening creates urban forest

17 Opening of "Saryo Riviera no Niwa"
"Hospitality" creates pioneers
From the traditional Japanese restaurant "Hakuunkaku" to "Riviera Tokyo", they have continued to provide places for gathering and have led Japan's banquet culture as pioneers. This is not because they wanted to try something new. It was all based on the courage and determination to break away from stereotypes, with a "spirit of hospitality" and repeated trial and error, while placing importance on "how can we make our customers happier" and "how can we deliver a moving experience". We would like to introduce some examples of this.
Relocation of the former noble family palace
After the war, when the restaurant "Hakuunkaku" opened, strict material controls were imposed in Japan shortly after the war, and construction permits were not granted for new buildings larger than 16 tsubo. Horie Asazo, who foresaw that lavish banquets would be in demand in the future, thought that a magnificent building like a tower would be necessary, and came up with the idea of relocating the building, so he relocated an old village headman's residence made entirely of cypress from Kami-Suwa.
From Japanese cuisine to "kaiseki cuisine"
In response to growing gourmet tastes, the restaurant has switched from serving banquet dishes as appetizers to serving hot food while it is hot and cold food while it is cold.
Proposing and popularizing a new food culture
At a time when it was common to pair Japanese cuisine with sake, he held an event called "Kaiseki with Wine," which paired wine with Japanese cuisine. It became extremely popular and was a beloved long-running event that lasted for 34 years.
Japan's first banquet hall with flooring completed
With the completion of the banquet hall, they were among the first to introduce round tables. They also introduced a system that illuminated the center of the table, and proposed corresponding presentations and floral arrangements. They became the forerunners of the later restaurant wedding boom.
Original wedding with colour and theme
Eliminating the stereotype of "white" as the wedding color, we were the first in Japan to introduce colored wallpaper in response to customer requests for a more "personal" look.
1929 |
4 |
[1] Firewood and charcoal wholesaler "Fukushimaya"The founder of what would later become Hakuunkaku, Asazo Horie, came to Tokyo from Fukushima Prefecture and opened a firewood and charcoal wholesaler called Fukushimaya in Ikebukuro 4-chome. With over 400 employees and five large fuel factories, the company grew to become one of the five largest fuel wholesalers in the Johoku region. |
1950 |
25 |
[2 & 3] New restaurant openingHe was drafted and returned to Ikebukuro, a postwar town filled with black markets and shacks. His work changed, and he realized that "food and drink is my job," and opened a traditional Japanese restaurant. After the war, building permits for buildings larger than 16 tsubo were not granted, so he searched for a building suitable for a restaurant and moved a 240-tsubo (XNUMX-tsubo) all-cypress mansion of a former nobleman from Kami-Suwa in Nagano Prefecture to the front of Rikkyo University. From the mansion, he could see the white clouds of Mt. Fuji in the direction of Rikkyo University, so he named it "Hakuunkaku." |
1954 |
29 |
Burning of the old building and business in the new buildingThe old 240m150 building, which had been relocated from Kami-Suwa, was completely burned down in a major fire. The new building, which had been completed in the same year and was built on a neighboring 200mXNUMX site, escaped the fire and was supported by a total of XNUMX employees, who continued to welcome customers without closing for a day from the following day. |
1956 |
31 |
[4/5] From miraculous revival to prosperityThe momentum that had been gained by the company's efforts to overcome the loss of the old building continued unabated as the restaurant was rebuilt. The site area was expanded to 1500m32, and XNUMX rooms of various sizes were added, restarting the restaurant as the leading restaurant in the Johoku area. Edogawa Ranpo and Minister of Finance Ogasawara were frequent customers. The restaurant was a huge success, attracting many customers from not only the Ikebukuro area, but also Asakusa and Nihonbashi. |
1957 |
32 |
[6] Prince Takamatsu visitsThe luxurious banquet hall "Taka no Ma" was opened. The luxurious style of enjoying a bath before the banquet while admiring the waterfall garden caused a sensation. The Emperor Showa's younger brother, Prince Takamatsu, was honored to visit the hall. |
1960-79 |
54 |
[7] Rapid economic growth led to increased demand for high-class meeting venuesWith the Tokyo Olympics as a great opportunity, the restaurant gained popularity as an important meeting place for cultural figures, scholars, government agencies, and large companies, due to its convenient location and its Japanese cultural atmosphere and attentive service of the traditional Japanese restaurant. Since that time, many local people have visited the restaurant, and the restaurant has always valued its connection with the local community. |
1980 |
55 |
[8] Start a new food culture while hot food is still hotTaking advantage of the strengths of a traditional Japanese restaurant, the restaurant switched from banquet dishes with appetizers to "kaiseki cuisine," which features individual dishes. The restaurant has always pursued new food culture, and its style has been well received by gourmet-minded customers, and has also penetrated the domestic banquet and wedding industries. |
1981 |
56 |
[9] "Wine Kaiseki" startsGoing beyond the concept of pairing Japanese food with sake, the event proposed pairing each dish with wine. The event continued as a long-running event until 2015. |
1987 |
62 |
The first Western-style room, "Hourai no Ma," was completed.Anticipating the westernization of the hotel, the hotel renovated the main hall into the first banquet hall in Japan with wooden flooring. This was the start of a series of renovations to renovate each floor every August, aided by the bubble economy. |
1994 |
Heisei 6 |
Riviera Chairman Watanabe takes over managementThe management of Hakuunkaku will be taken over by his son-in-law, Noboru Watanabe, the current chairman of the Riviera Group. Asazo Horie's spirit of hospitality and his foresight in tourism through the reclamation project on the Yugawara Yoshihama coast will be passed on to the next generation. |
1995 |
Heisei 7 |
[10/11] Changed store name to include "Riviera"The resort combines the world-class hospitality of the Riviera Country Club in LA, which it acquired in 1989, with the hospitality of the traditional Japanese restaurant, Hakuun Kaku. |
1999 |
Heisei 11 |
[12/13] A new type of chapel is born and becomes popularAn antique bench that had been used for over 100 years in a church in England was relocated here. The Riviera philosophy of "refining the good old things and passing them on to the next generation" is ingrained in the hotel. In 2006, a freestanding glass-walled chapel was opened, with the sunlight pouring in and the pure white marble aisle shining. These two different types of chapels became very popular. |
2012 |
Heisei 24 |
[14] Renovation of the main entrance of a three-story wooden buildingThe three-story wooden building is sturdy and has been reinforced every summer during renovations, and even during the Great East Japan Earthquake, the only damage sustained was a few tiles falling off. For safety reasons, the entrance was renovated to keep up with the times. |
2013 |
Heisei 25 |
[15] "Riviera Cafe Green Style" opensTheir galettes, made with vegetables and herbs from their own garden, are so popular that there are often long lines on weekends. They are also known for their health-conscious gluten-free bread, which is ahead of its time, and barrier-free bread, which has been made free of all allergens. |
2016 |
Heisei 28 |
[16] Reopening creates urban forestIt was closed for three months and reopened after extensive renovations. A new garden gate was installed to emphasize the private space. The waterfall was restored, transforming the space into one that feels like a lush forest in the city. |
2017 |
Heisei 29 |
"Contributing to the international arts and culture of Toshima City" |
2018 |
Heisei 30 |
[17] Opening of "Saryo Riviera no Niwa"A Japanese restaurant based on the concept of "retro-modern Japan" where you can enjoy dishes made with carefully selected seasonal ingredients delivered directly from the source, while gazing at the lush garden that will make you forget the hustle and bustle of the city, with the sounds of a waterfall, rustling trees and chirping birds in the background. |
2025 |
|
75th anniversary since openingThe 75th anniversary of the opening marks the turning point for redevelopment. As part of the transformation to keep up with the times, we aim to create an urban development that contributes to building the future of Ikebukuro. |