Cover Award-winning restaurant Crony is situated in a glass walled house in Tokyo, Japan (Photo: Crony)
Award-winning restaurant Crony is situated in a glass walled house in Tokyo, Japan (Photo: Crony)
1 / 1
At his Tokyo restaurant Crony, chef-owner Michihiro Haruta is quietly challenging long-held norms around labour, sustainability and ingredient-driven cooking, arguing that the future of fine dining depends as much on how restaurants treat people as on what appears on the plate
Modern French restaurant Crony has been widely cited as one of the restaurants quietly pushing Tokyo’s fine-dining scene forward, but for chef-owner Michihiro Haruta, progress was never about technique or trend alone. When the restaurant opened in December 2016, he and sommelier-owner Kazutaka Ozawa’s focus was on something more fundamental: how a restaurant treats the people who run it.
Japan’s dining culture, Haruta observes, has long prioritised the customer at the expense of those behind the scenes. “The industry revolves solely around the guest,” he says, “and does not take into mind the workers involved.” From the outset, Crony set out to challenge this imbalance by creating working conditions that allow staff to operate freely and sustainably, with the aim of long-term stability rather than short-term sacrifice. Changing what he describes as a toxic mindset was, for him, essential—not just for the restaurant, but for everyone connected to it.
In case you missed it: A food lover’s guide to Chiba, Japan
Above Sommelier-owner Kazutaka Ozawa and chef-owner Michihiro Haruta
Sommelier-owner Kazutaka Ozawa and chef-owner Michihiro Haruta
1 / 1
Haruta’s culinary identity, however, was shaped as much abroad as it was at home. Years spent learning at some of the world’s leading restaurants sharpened his understanding of what makes Japanese cooking distinctive. It was only after leaving Japan, he reflects, that he fully grasped the depth of its produce, along with the techniques and knowledge required to work with it properly. That distance reaffirmed the centrality of Japan to his cooking, anchoring Crony’s cuisine firmly in its own context rather than in global imitation.
Sustainability, at Crony, is not framed as a mission statement. Haruta is careful to say that the restaurant never set out to label itself as “sustainable”. Instead, its approach is rooted in mottainai, the Japanese philosophy of avoiding waste and treating ingredients and tools with respect. Providing humane labour conditions, he believes, is among the most meaningful sustainable acts a restaurant can make. The idea is less about messaging and more about everyday practice.
That respect extends beyond the kitchen. Crony regularly brings its staff to visit farms and producers, exposing young cooks to the wider network behind each ingredient. These trips are designed to build understanding and accountability—an awareness of how many hands are involved before a product reaches the plate, and what responsibility that carries.
Read more: 5 oldest Osaka restaurants serving locals and tourists for generations
Above Scandinavian-inspired interior at Crony
Scandinavian-inspired interior at Crony
1 / 1
“Visiting our farmers and producers and listening to their stories made us want to deliver their message to our guests by eliminating distractions on the plate,” Haruta says, shaping the restaurant’s food. The result is an ingredient-driven menu that depends not only on produce quality but also on the discipline and skill of the team executing it. High-level simplicity, he notes, is only possible when everyone involved is aligned and committed.
The front-of-house team plays a key role in translating this philosophy to guests, but Haruta hopes diners will look beyond the idea of sustainability as a momentary gesture. For him, its real meaning lies in continuity—in carrying these values into daily life long after the meal ends. Longevity, he believes, is what creates genuine change within communities.
When selecting producers, flavour and quality are only the starting point. What matters equally is the mindset behind the product—the sincerity, care, and pride that producers bring to their craft. These qualities, Haruta feels, resonate through the final dish in ways that cannot be engineered.
Don’t miss: These are the 6 best curry restaurants in Tokyo, according to Tabelog
Above Crony offers an ingredient-driven prix fixe menu
Above Haruta’s experience at award-winning establishments across the globe is reflected at Crony
Crony offers an ingredient-driven prix fixe menu
1 / 2
Crony’s philosophy is perhaps most clearly distilled in its final dessert. Tea leaves used for the welcome drink at the beginning of the meal are repurposed into the restaurant’s signature tea ice cream. It is a quiet gesture, but a deliberate one. The name Crony itself reflects Haruta’s wish for lasting relationships—with guests, producers and team members alike. Serving tea in different forms at the beginning and end of the meal is his way of framing that relationship as something ongoing, familiar and enduring.
Complacency, however, has no place in the kitchen. Haruta speaks often about the need for constant evolution—to question, refine and improve every day. Growth, he believes, depends on resisting comfort and continuing to aim higher, both individually and collectively.
In recent years, Crony has become a training ground for emerging talent. The next phase, Haruta says, is to offer these cooks new challenges beyond the restaurant’s walls. Rather than expanding Crony as a single entity, he hopes to grow a group of restaurants that can provide broader opportunities and inspiration. Next March, the team will supervise a restaurant opening in Taiwan, where one of his sous-chefs will step into the role of chef. For Haruta, it is a natural extension of the values he set out to establish from the beginning: growth built on trust, responsibility and the belief that a restaurant’s true legacy lies in its people.
Credits
Images: Crony
Dudi Aureus is the senior dining and travel editor at Tatler Singapore, covering the city’s most exciting restaurants, global travel trends, and the personalities shaping the culinary and lifestyle scenes. She also serves as co-jury chair for the Tatler Best awards in Singapore, celebrating the very best in hospitality. When she’s off duty, she can often be found at a favourite hole-in-the-wall Thai spot, savouring a perfectly balanced pad thai.
