Tokyo senior day cares offer cooking classes to enhance self-esteem, retain abilities

The Mainichi

22-05-2025

TOKYO -- Adult day service facilities usually look after seniors requiring care during the day to give caregiver family members a break. In Tokyo, however, are centers that specialize in cooking classes so appealing that seniors themselves want to go. This Mainichi Shimbun reporter recently visited one of the uncommon facilities to see what they're like.
Looks just like a cafe
There are four locations of "Nanairo Cooking Studio" in Tokyo, and I visited the Jiyugaoka branch.
The first thing that surprised me was its appearance -- it looks just like a cafe. According to operator Soyokaze Co., based in Tokyo's Minato Ward, people walking by often mistake it for a coffee shop and try to enter.
The clean white-themed interior also looks stylish. Unlike typical day service centers, there are no handrails inside except at the entrance. Instead, the counters and tables used in the cooking classes are set at the same height as handrails, allowing users to hold onto them and walk around safely. The design ensures safety without compromising on style.
As the class time approached, users began arriving one after another. Most were women. Some used their pre-lesson time to exercise with walking-support robots.
Participants first put on colorful bandanas and aprons in orange, yellow and other bright colors. They washed their hands and gargled, using tables for support or assistance from staff as needed.
Next, staff explained the day's menu and recipes. After some warm-up exercises to get limber, they were divided into groups of four or five and began cooking.
Having fun cooking, even in wheelchairs
The menu of the day was themed "spring anti-aging recipes," involving five dishes: fish hamburgers, garlic-sauteed chicken with edamame, mimosa salad, seafood pilaf and a soup with freshly harvested potatoes and burdock root.
Meal prep lasted for about an hour, but no one seemed tired -- most participants remained standing and were deeply engaged in their cooking.
Midori Tai, 92, was chopping "shiso" Japanese perilla leaves at an impressive speed. "My husband ran a Chinese restaurant. I only watched him, but because I watched all the time, I learned how to do it," she said.
Misako Mori, 88, who raised three boys, looked like a pro tearing leafy vegetables. "I look forward to meals now. At home, I only make a basic meal with soup and three side dishes, but here there are so many ingredients that it makes me happy," she said with a smile.
Noriko Kageyama, 85, cooked carefully while in a wheelchair. She told me, "It's great here because I can participate even while sitting. Cooking together and laughing with everyone is fun." The counter is designed to be usable with ease even for those in a wheelchair.
In the afternoon class, the food prepared is packed into bento boxes that participants can take home, allowing them to enjoy the meals themselves at dinner or share them with family members.
Nanairo Cooking Studio opened its first branch in Jiyugaoka in 2015. The initiative was led by Soyokaze project department chief Misako Kaminaga. She pointed out that traditional adult day services, though the users stay at the facility for a long time, often offer limited time for active participation, and it can be hard to have recreational activities that everyone enjoys. From her own caregiving experience, she realized many elderly people enjoy cooking, which sparked the idea for this initiative.
"Because participants see this as taking a class, it helps maintain a daily routine, and they also get the satisfaction of creating something -- a finished product in the form of a meal," Kaminaga explained.
The cooking instructors include chefs with experience in hotel restaurants. This approach also makes sure that the participants maintain their self-esteem.
Recipes with extra steps on purpose
According to Kaminaga, all the recipes taught in the class are original creations by the chefs and are intentionally made with extra steps. For example, rather than using a food processor, participants chop and dice ingredients using knives. Instead of regular bread, they make curry bread, which includes the extra step of preparing the curry filling. These additional tasks make the cooking process itself a form of rehabilitation, and help stimulate the brain.
As people age, families often discourage them from using knives or fire due to safety concerns. Many seniors also feel unsure at first if they haven't cooked in a while, but, according to Kaminaga, "Once they try it, they're all very good." She added, "We want to prioritize not taking away what they can still do."