Marukuma, a restaurant with the theme of "medicinal herbs, fermentation, and sake," opened in Muroran City on December 12, 2022. The interior of the restaurant, which is a DIY renovation of an old restaurant, is a comfortable space with warm down lights.

It all started with a part-time job on Ishigaki Island.

The owner, Kanae Fukushima, got involved in the hospitality industry when she was a student and fell in love with the fun and depth of the industry. What sealed her fate was the famous restaurant "Usagiya" she encountered on Ishigaki Island when she visited the island for a resort job. While Mr. Fukushima was working at Usagiya, a mother and daughter tourist came to the store.

The mother had been told that she had an incurable disease and had only one month to live, so the daughter planned this trip to make memories. Despite the difficult circumstances, the mother and daughter laughed together and left the restaurant looking happy, and Mr. Fukushima was struck by the importance of "eating time" in their lives.

This experience inspired him to "not just serve food, but to connect with each and every customer through food and sake.

After gaining more experience, he opened his own restaurant!

He spent two months on Ishigaki Island, but it turned out to be two years. He then returned to his hometown Muroran and worked as the manager of the popular Muroran yakitori restaurant "Isehiro" for 5 years until March 2022.

While putting into practice at "Isehiro" what he felt at "Usagiya," Mr. Fukushima also devoted himself to the study of medicinal herbs and obtained certification. He left Isehiro when his eldest daughter entered elementary school and opened "Yakuzen Gohan Iroha," the predecessor of the current restaurant, and later started operating a pop-up store of yakuzen porridge as "Marukuma.

He gained experience by renting out commercial facilities and restaurants and opening events in various locations, and steadily increased his fan base, especially among women in their 30s~40s.

Regular customers since that time say, "Of course the deliciousness of the food and the charm of medicinal herbs, but the most attractive thing is (Ms. Fukushima's) personality and smile," "She has a strong humanizing power, in a good way," and "She always works hard, so I have to work hard, too! I feel like I have to work hard too!

Finally, on December 12 (Mon.), Marukuma's actual store opened!

A friend of his helped him every day, including installing electricity and toilets, and he says apologetically, "I really can't survive without the help of the people around me." I really can't survive without the help of people around me," he says apologetically, "but I'm sure my friend just genuinely wanted to work with Mr. Fukushima to build the restaurant.