A year has passed since January 1, 2011, when the owner of "Coffee Shop TOP" near Hirosaki Station (in front of Hirosaki Station, TEL 090-4317-2486 ) became the third owner.

The store was founded in 1969 and has been in business for over 50 years. Founder Hajime Onuma was born in Hakodate, worked for a credit company, and moved to a branch in Hirosaki. The store has moved twice before operating at its current location. From January 1, 2022, Mr. Wakano Takahashi, who will be the third-generation owner, will run the shop alone.

Mr. Onuma passed away in 2009 (Heisei 21), but Mr. Takahashi's mother Keiko Shirato took over the restaurant. Mr. Shirato was originally one of the regular customers of the restaurant. Since Mr. Shirato took over the restaurant, regular customers have continued to come.

After that, Shirato needed to be hospitalized due to a chronic illness. Takahashi recalls, "I started helping out at the store so that my mother would stay in the hospital instead of closing the store." Mr. Shirato passed away in December 2021, and the store was temporarily closed. “When I was cleaning up after the store, I heard from regular customers that 'there will be no place to spend time,' and there was no objection from my family, so I decided to take over the store,” says Takahashi.

They reopened the restaurant, didn't change the menu, and allowed smoking inside the restaurant because there were many smokers. “There are not many places where you can smoke these days, so many customers are happy,” says Takahashi. “My mother always thought about the customers. She introduced the beer server, and there are customers who drink from noon. Because I was there,” he says.

Mr. Takahashi does not know Mr. Onuma, the founder, and says that regular customers know more about the history of the restaurant. “I wouldn’t be here if my mother didn’t tell me to open a store, and I never imagined I would open a store myself,” says Takahashi. A regular customer in her 70s said with a smile, "I've been coming here since Mr. Onuma was the owner. I'm happy that the daughter of a regular customer is now the owner and the restaurant continues."

“My goal is to keep the store running for 50 years. I want it to last 100 years,” says Takahashi. "We want to continue to be a place where you can relax and unwind," he said.

Business hours are 8:00 (April to November = 7:00) to 17:30. Closed on Tuesdays, 1st and 3rd Mondays.