A small restaurant whose building design and menu are being supervised by famous scriptwriter So Kuramoto -- creator of numerous masterpieces including the hit TV drama "Kita no Kuni Kara" (From the northern country) -- is set to add to the charms of Furano, Hokkaido, a city becoming popular among foreign visitors for powder-snow skiing.
Called Le Gaulois Furano, the restaurant is set to open within the grounds of the New Furano Prince Hotel on May 28.
Its soft, curved appearance will be in harmony with the surrounding nature, while its wood interior will give it a warm feeling inside. Visitors can eat course meals that use ingredients mainly produced in Hokkaido. Chef Kenichi Otsuka, 57, visits agricultural producers directly to select the ingredients.
Kuramoto's famous drama "Kita no Kuni Kara" depicts a family that moves to Furano from Tokyo. Their lifestyle of valuing their relationships with each other in a place far from city life struck a chord with viewers, and even now many people visit its filming locations around Furano.
Within the grounds of the hotel, there is also a coffee shop used in shooting another of Kuramoto's dramas, "Yasashii Jikan" (Gentle time), and an English-style garden from "Kaze no Garden" (Garden of wind). Visitors can enjoy the atmosphere of these dramas and Kuramoto's perspective on the world, which focuses on living with the forest.
"I hope the restaurant will produce an entirely new taste of so-called Nouvelle-Italian-Furano style in this area," Kuramoto commented.
Prince Hotels, Inc. aims to attract not only Japanese visitors but also foreign tourists. The number of foreigners visiting Furano Ski Resort is expected to increase by 24.7 percent in fiscal 2017 compared with the previous year.
Prince Hotels has recently made efforts to attract more foreign visitors through nine overseas offices in places such as Sydney, Singapore and Shanghai.
"I feel it would be effective if visitors from abroad could be totally immersed in Kuramoto's world. We want people to spend time that way in Furano," Seibu Holdings Inc. President Takashi Goto said.
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