People with tattoos are generally frowned upon in Japan. Older people in particular tend to look upon them with suspicion and distrust. That hasn’t stopped one 25-year-old woman from sticking to her own style even as she runs her family’s kaisendon (sashimi rice bowl) restaurant in Tochigi Prefecture.
It’s made her an online sensation. It’s also earned her a fair share of slander, which she and her family easily laugh off as the business lays the groundwork to welcome inbound tourists.
Developing her own style
In an interview with Tōyō Keizai, Tochonika – whose name comes from a pronunciation of her real name, Tsukagoshi Tōko – describes herself as a loner who couldn’t read the room growing up. She reports going to clubs when she was in middle school (though she insists, never smoking or drinking while underage).
Over time, she developed a style that she felt suited her. However, that created even more distance with her classmates. She started getting tattoos at 18 but kept them covered at school. However, some students caught sight of them and tried to rat her out to a teacher. The teacher, who supported Tochonika, laughed it off and wished her the best of luck after graduation.
Taking over for her grandfather
Besides being a fashion iconoclast, however, Tochonika also belongs to a family that owns a shinise, a long-running store. Started 80 years ago as a shop that sold seafood and vegetables, Maguro Kaichi in Ashikaga, Tochigi Prefecture evolved into a kaisendon restaurant.
At age 21, Tochonika began working at Kaichi – over her mother’s objections. Her mom was worried that the work allowed for little rest. It was also the middle of the COVID-19 crisis, and the outlook for restaurants was uncertain. But Tochonika loved the work and told her mother not to worry.
Tragedy struck in 2023 when Tochonika’s grandfather had a heart attack, followed by a stroke. Now in a wheelchair and unable to talk, he couldn’t keep the store running. That job fell to Tochonika and her dad.
“My granddad grinned as he watched me slice sashimi,” Tochonika told Tōyō. “He couldn’t say it, but I think it brought him joy.”
In January 2025, Tochonika decided to start posting to TikTok and Instagram. She became a sensation, racking up 169K followers in short order. As she was now the face of the store, it was natural for Tochonika, at age 25, to become the fourth proprietress, or okami (女将), of Maguro Kaichi.
Preparing to welcome tourists while laughing at detractors
Tochonika’s fame has led to some interesting experiences. For example, she related how she made contact with a South Korean tattoo artist via her TikTok, who ended up giving her a new tattoo while they picnicked in Tokyo’s Yoyogi Park.
Beyond that, it’s business as usual for Kaichi. Tochonika says she’s working to capitalize on the business’s newfound fame. Her own success has been a huge boon for the shop; Kaichi’s own Instagram account has almost 140K followers. To build out the business, Tochonika’s father, Masahiro, says they’re preparing English menus to better cater to inbound tourists.
Of course, thanks to her appearance, she deals with her fair share of detractors. She says when she started working at Kaichi, some customers, particularly older men, were unsettled by her presence. In Japan, tattoos are still somewhat shunned due to their historic association with crime and the perception that they’re “unclean.” Some grumble that kaisendon made by a proprietress with tattoos “has to taste nasty.”
Indeed, even the Yahoo! News comments on Tōyō Keizai’s article are littered with people (I’m guessing mostly men) who can’t help but express their aversion to Tochonika’s appearance. One comment with over 10,000 likes bemoans how the commenter isn’t “comfortable” with tattoos. (Sounds like a personal problem.)
Tochonika says she gets regular hate comments on her social media posts. She shares them with her family, and everyone has a good laugh at the poster’s expense. They don’t seem to faze her.
“I’d rather make friends with people who get me than try to be liked by millions,” she said.
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Sources
「タトゥーが入ってる女将の店なんて不味そう」「この恥が！」《ギャル女将》トチョニカペペさん(25)が、中傷されても“創業80年の店”を継いだワケ. Tōyō Keizai
