Kaita Restaurant in Japantown represents the transition from the former Ginza Café, now reflecting changes in the neighborhood's cultural landscape. The Obon Festival invites historical and spiritual reflection during this vibrant time. The restaurant's walls embody this history, having housed signatures from notable personalities over the years. Upon entering Kaita, the nostalgia of the past collides with new experiences, illustrating how the physical space remains sacred even when altered. Carl Hirano's retirement led to the preservation of the original walls, emphasizing the importance of memory within the changing community.
"Generations of Ginza-goers will be disoriented, but the San Jose restaurant at 215 E. Jackson St. is now called Kaita," wrote the Merc. "Six months ago, Koji Sugimoto bought the closet-size Japantown landmark, ripped out its worn walls, and installed new blue carpeting and comfortable benches."
As the Obon Festival erupted at Fifth and Jackson, I shuffled into the amazing Kaita Restaurant, only to remain stuck in what used to occupy the same space.
It's one of the most gorgeous weekends for any columnist to navigate the overlap between history and everyday life, or to fuse the spatial reconfigurations of the neighborhood with his own mental reconfigurations.
When Carl retired, he apparently saved the wall because many celebrities and regular customers signed it over the years.
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