Photo courtesy of Est Japanese Cafe.
Photo courtesy of Est Japanese Cafe.
From cooking on her own to building a brand, Est Japanese Cafe founder reflects on breaking free to find her passion.
Filipino-Japanese Yuka Tsumori spent her early 20s navigating the corporate world of Japan. She would commute through packed trains, sit at her desk, and embrace the disciplined life of a “salarywoman” in Japanese culture. But Yuka couldn’t ignore a yearning for something more. “Before reaching my 30s, I started to review my career and I started to question myself,” she shares.
Before her life in Japan, the first place Yuka called home was the Philippines. She was raised by a Japanese father and a Filipino-Chinese mother in Manila, where she lived and studied until senior high school. Yuka would step in for her busy parents and cook for the family. She would often pack colorful bento boxes for lunch and bake Japanese sponge cakes for dessert. “I realized from a young age just how special and beautiful Japanese food culture was, especially when I was living outside of Japan,” Yuka says.
This interest grew as the years went by. When she moved to Japan, exploring delicacies became her passion. To escape the monotony of her corporate routine, she found comfort in discovering cafes and restaurants around the city. “Everywhere I went, everything I tasted was incredible. Even the simplest things like convenience store rice balls and sandwiches amazed me,” she recalls. Her fascination led her back into the kitchen, where she threw herself into self-study and grew her first business selling Grand Castella sponge cakes.
When the pandemic hit, Yuka found herself back in the Philippines. With limited movement, travel bans, and businesses closing, like many others, she felt isolated. Yuka realized that warmth was what people needed. She thought back to her time in Japan and remembered the serenity she experienced in cafes. “There are very few places in the Philippines where you could truly experience Japan,” she realized, “I wanted to offer hope and a sense of beauty.”
A walk through SM Aura’s Sky Garden sparked an idea. It was an open air rooftop space with lush greenery in the middle of BGC’s modern skyline. This reminded Yuka of Omotesando, her go-to district in Tokyo, where towering buildings and a rush of people are met with relaxing, plant-filled cafes. “The cafes in Omotesando are calm, beautifully designed, and filled with intention. There’s a sense of quiet sophistication that I find uniquely Japanese. That atmosphere really stayed with me,” Yuka says. With Omotesando in her heart, she then established Est Japanese Cafe.
Est is French for “East,” a fitting name for a space that brings Japan, the east of Asia, to Manila. The name also comes with a mission. “Every superior word ends with Est: best, greatest, finest. I hope to offer not just the highest quality food, but also the highest quality moments,” Yuka explains.
Yuka partnered with Chef Fujinaga Toshimi. “Meeting Chef Fuji made me feel that if I built something with him, it would be authentic,” she shares. Chef Fuji was also once a salaryman in Japan before entering the culinary scene. He was later assigned to the Philippines to manage high-end restaurants, where he met Yuka. Together, they set out to create a menu that aimed to serve authentic Japanese food tailored to the local palate.
Opening a cafe during the pandemic was a risk. “It wasn’t easy in the beginning,” Yuka admits. At first, the cafe attracted Japanese customers longing for familiarity. “They told me Est was like a taste of Japan, maybe even better. That gave me the confidence to keep going,” Yuka says. Eventually, Filipinos discovered it, and many became regulars.
Est’s selections go from reimagined Japanese “konbini” staples to elevated offerings. They offer savory sandwiches comforting to the Filipino taste, such as Sukiyaki, Katsu, and Teriyaki. For dessert, they serve simple yet flavorful roll cakes made to be more refined, like their Hokkaido Cream Roll Cake. Est also infuses Filipino ingredients, as seen in their Uni Pasta with fresh sea urchin caught in Philippine waters. To bring the flavors of the East throughout the year, they also celebrate the seasons with seasonal drinks, teishoku meals, and afternoon tea sets. For Spring, Est offers Hanami-themed afternoon tea, made with cherry blossoms and mochi ingredients sourced directly from Japan.
With an experience that’s refined and made accessible in price, Yuka shares that Est has drawn different crowds, from solo diners to families. Even pets are welcome, as Yuka herself is a fur parent to two toy poodles. She made sure to include pet-friendly dishes, complete with house made pet cookies and stew.
Three years after the founding of Est, Yuka decided it was time for them to expand. “We often had to turn guests away simply because we didn’t have enough seats,” she explains, “We realized that in order to grow, we have to enhance our offerings as well.”
This September, the cafe will transition to Est Japanese Dining and Kissaten. The space itself will grow twice in size to accommodate larger groups in an upgraded dining atmosphere. Their offerings will be expanded to include an expanded dinner menu, Japanese-style cocktails, Japanese craft beer and gin, and a private hidden room with an exclusive tasting course for up to eight guests.
The expansion reflects Est’s deeper vision. “We want to be a place where people experience not just Japanese cuisines, but also the spirit of omotenashi: thoughtful, wholehearted hospitality,” Yuka says. Just as she once found comfort in cafes, she hopes Est can offer the same. “I hope Est becomes a place that naturally fits into people’s daily lives, a space they return to for comfort, inspiration, or a special moment.”
