Hiroyuki Miyasako on his Yakiniku Restaurant “Ushimiya Castle” and His “Returns to TV”
Direct hit: Miyasako drives his beloved BMWi8 to the supermarket with his cell phone in hand and pores over the goods. Is he giving his beloved wife a home-cooked meal for Valentine's Day?
After 20 minutes of “tense shopping,” Miyasako left the store after buying ingredients and daily necessities. He got into his beloved “BMWi8” and drove home in a very safe manner.
Speaking of Miyasako, the Yakiniku restaurant “Gyu Miyagi,” in which he has invested, will finally open on March 1. The popular YouTube star Hikaru (30), who was supposed to be a co-investor, withdrew from the restaurant, and there was a fuss about whether or not he would sell his car due to lack of funds. Later, I interviewed Miyasako directly after work to find out what she was up to.
–This is Friday, Mr. Miyasako. On Valentine’s Day, were you shopping for a home-cooked meal to give to your wife?
That’s my daily routine. Not only on Valentine’s Day, but whenever I’m at home, I cook. I get a lot of messages from my wife, so I check on them. If I don’t understand something, I call her and ask her.
–If I make a mistake, will lightning strike?
If I make a mistake, does lightning strike?
–Is the yakiniku restaurant going well?
Yes, it’s going well. It’s going as planned.
–We’re also looking for part-timers. Are you worried about being targeted by flaming YouTubers?
We’re interviewing full-time and part-time employees, so there are no troublesome people coming in. The store is on the fifth floor of a building, and I’m sure the staff will be able to handle any troublesome people who come in.
–A confrontation with a famous ramen restaurant The YouTube project “Ariten Restaurant” also came under fire.
“Hahahaha. I guess they want us to do the yakiniku properly first. But there were a lot of circumstances.
–Are you aiming to return to TV in the future?
For me, coming back to TV meant coming back to be next to my partner. For me, returning to TV meant returning to the side of my partner, and since that was no longer possible with the breakup, returning to TV is not my first priority.
–Have you had any offers from TV?
I’ve had a few offers. I’ve had a few offers, and there was talk of a movie. It’s just not the right time for me right now. I have a lot of things I want to focus on.”
–What you want to focus on is the yakiniku restaurant?
Well, yes. Opening is not my goal. Besides, I’m going to revive YouTube, which I’ve been absent from for over a month, so to be honest, I’m busy. I’m planning to increase the comedy content in the future. During the break, we’ve been having a lot of meetings and are working to change a lot of things.
Miyasako, who responded to the direct interview in a surprisingly friendly manner, said, “Please share this with everyone at Friday. Please share this with everyone on Friday. I’m busy right now,” he said, and left.
Will “Beef Miyagi” ever get off the ground? I asked Mr. Ryoji Narita, a management consultant specializing in restaurants.
He said, “In order to run a restaurant successfully, the ratio of rent to sales should be about 8%. The rent for “Gyugyagi” is 2.8 million yen, so the restaurant needs to generate 35 million yen in sales every month, not including the repayment of loans.
On top of that, there are two main concerns. The first is whether they can maintain the quality of a high-end restaurant. Since good taste is a given in a high-class restaurant, the most important factor for survival is skilled personnel in customer service. Miyako is recruiting part-time workers at this stage, right? And the hourly wage is a typical 1,100 yen. The fact that they are recruiting part-timers now, while they also have to provide training, gives me the impression that the future is grim.
Another concern is the impact of Corona. If a restaurant used to sell 10 million yen, it will have to improve to make a profit of 7.5 million yen. It will become unviable. If you start a business on the spur of the moment, you won’t be able to continue for long. As a celebrity, you’re bound to get customers at first, but if you’re not getting any customers after six months, it’s going to be difficult to continue.
After attracting so much attention, I hope they don’t simply pull out. ……
From the March 11, 2022 issue of FRIDAY
PHOTO： Yuri Adachi (first photo) Kojiro Yamada (second and third photos)
