Are you both die-hard coffee people? What was your overall impression of the coffee culture in Tokyo?

Taylor: We really enjoy coffee, but believe it or not, I’m less full-on and more of a ‘casual sipper’—I’m pretty mindful of how much I drink throughout the week. I actually prefer making coffee for others during conversation, rather than having it on my own. Basically, I’m like a wine sommelier without the talent haha. But honestly, coffee has been part of our routine and my professional life for years, so it’s hard to imagine life without it!

In Tokyo, every local coffee shop has its own unique personality and I love that you can find a regular spot that feels like home. But those smaller, local coffee shops… They hit differently. There’s something about the craftsmanship, attention to detail, and atmosphere that makes you want to keep coming back.

CJ: I’m not sure about die-hard, but I would die hard without coffee. I’ve definitely gotten more into coffee and the cultural aspects surrounding it over the last few years because of Taylor, and now I probably spend more than I should on different beans and our home brewing set-up.

I love that you included what to order at each kissaten. If you could only go back for one order at one spot, which would you each pick?

CJ: I still think about the Coffee Jelly from Cafe de l’ambre in Ginza—paired with any of their black coffee options. We might have to go back to Japan soon just for that.

Taylor: I absolutely miss the combo of a smoky dark roast and that caramelized custard pudding from Hekkelun. I’ll never forget watching the owner chip away at a giant block of ice with an ice pick while preparing our drink—I like to think that his physical strength added to the flavor.

People are often protective of little hidden gems they find, but I guess you don’t feel that way if you’ve made a book to give them all away? Were there any spots that were too good to include in the book?

CJ: We actually had to cut out some of our favourite places to make the page length a bit more digestible, and there is probably a whole other set of places to find in Tokyo if we went back. The core of what we wanted to accomplish with the book was to showcase some of our favourite places, and secondarily give some ideas to people who might be travelling to Japan.

Taylor: I don’t mean to stir things up, but when travel picked back up, tourism content on social media—especially for Japan—became a bit oversaturated. I remember seeing a cafe (one featured in our book) go viral, and suddenly, hour-long lines formed. As visitors during a different time, it was disheartening to see a flood of negative reviews for such a small, neighbourhood spot—especially when we had such a great experience during our visits. Thankfully, most reviews are positive, and I hope they’re doing well, but the sudden surge of attention created unrealistic expectations for what is essentially a one-man operation by an 80- year-old. While a book like ours wouldn’t create that level of attention, we just want to be careful of the impact it can have. We’re more than happy to share our favourites to support these shops, but we want to do so in a way that’s more measured and thoughtful with all that in mind.

Was Place by Place inspired by any specific books you’d seen before?

Taylor: Now that I think about it, the first book I bought soon after moving to Japan was called プ リン本 (Pudding Book). It’s just a book about a specific type of pudding, but I was completely drawn to it, plus it’s my favourite dessert. And since Japan’s publication design is on another level, I started collecting more books for design inspiration while I was building my creative practice.

CJ: I can’t think of one in particular because there are so many, but one thing I really like about Japan is the amount of niche, creative publications they have. You can walk into any bookstore and see dozens of different magazines, photo books, and other written works that have such an amount of care and passion put into them.

How do you think those two years living in Tokyo affected you or changed you?

Living in Tokyo at all was a pretty big departure from any other city we’ve lived in before, but especially being there during Covid was a unique experience. We went to the famous Shibuya Crossing one day and there were about 50 people in the entire block. It was kind of surreal to be there during that time, and we used to walk and wander around the city since a lot of shops and things to do were closed or restricted for most of our first year in the country. Just being there during that time, going to Japanese language school, and experiencing life in Tokyo definitely changed how we wanted to pursue a new, creative way of life and take on projects like Place by Place. We hope that won’t be the last time we get to live there.

What is your fav spot in Vancouver for coffee? Is there anything that comes close to kissaten vibes?

There isn’t really anything extremely similar to a kissaten in Vancouver, or even elsewhere in North America from what we have experienced. There does seem to be a recent trend of some modern cafes incorporating some elements of traditional kissaten culture—especially jazz and some design aesthetics—but part of the charm of kissaten is that they have been around for 50+ years and had time to develop their own unique sense-of-self.

Not to say there aren’t some great coffee shops in Vancouver, considering how often we find ourselves studying, reading, or just hanging out at different places in the city. Yuán Coffee, Moving Coffee, and Modus have a special place in our hearts—each have a great selection of beans and some amazing people who work there that we’ve gotten to know over time.

Any plans to continue this as a series? Go live somewhere else for a year and make a new book perhaps?

We would love to make Place by Place an ongoing series, perhaps taking the concept and focusing on something completely different than coffee in another city or country. Or maybe we do another version with more Japanese kissaten, we can probably do ten more volumes of that if we wanted to, considering how many there are in the country.

We really enjoy the blending of subjects in a project like this—having the focus not only on the coffee or design elements, but also the people who run the kissaten. If we were to do another Place by Place, it would definitely encompass those aspects. How places such as kissaten are not only spots to get coffee or food, but also a place to establish a community and a connection to something new.

What are you working on now or next?

Since this photo book was a big milestone for us, we don’t have a particular project planned as of right now. But there will definitely be something down the road—maybe a continuation of Place by Place.

I usually like to end by asking what’s one thing you hope to accomplish in your lifetime?

CJ: Beat Harry Styles’ time in the Tokyo Marathon.

Taylor: I’m hoping to get an apprenticeship somewhere in Japan that lets me get really into a singular craft until I become mildly annoying about it. Or just find something to do with CJ that involves coffee.

Taylor Naoko on Instagram

CJ Tuff on Instagram

Available for purchase: Place by Place