Building or renovating a tea room in Tokyo — where to ask

A tea room in a Tokyo house or condominium: new build, renovation of a room you have, or simply placing one. The four Kantō-based companies among our 29 listings, and one with a recorded Tokyo delivery — facts only.

The first wall you meet when planning a tea room in Tokyo is not knowing whom to ask. A local contractor may have no tea-room experience, and Kyoto's sukiya carpenters are far away. Here we set out the four Kantō-based companies among the 29 listed on CHASHITSU TOKYO, using only facts we could confirm from official sites and similar sources.

There are broadly three routes: (1) building a new structure, (2) renovating a Japanese- or Western-style room you already have, and (3) placing a kit or drop-in tea room inside a room. The route decides which companies to approach.

[Start from design: Yujiro Onuki Architect & Associates (Nerima, Tokyo)] An architect's office specialising in tea rooms. The architect designs, and the work proceeds under a direct contract with a sukiya carpenter. It suits those whose idea of the room is not yet fixed and who want to think it through with a designer.

[Design and construction together: Tsubaki Architectural Design Institute (Tokyo)] More than thirty years of work, designing and building tea rooms, and able to handle overseas projects.

[Authentic sukiya in Kantō: Uchida Komuten (Kanagawa)] A builder in the Kantō region that brings in craftsmen from Kyoto to construct authentic tea rooms — a candidate if you want earthen walls and proper sukiya detailing.

[Just place one: Senshin-an (Tokyo)] Small kit tea rooms that can be set up indoors. Its official site lists "Tea room Zero" at ¥250,000, purchasable online as it stands — the smallest way to begin for those in rentals or condominiums who cannot alter the building.

[Asking a company outside Tokyo] A company need not be based in Tokyo to deliver there. Hida Forest (Gero, Gifu) records an order for a unit tea room from Suginami, Tokyo. The kit maker Millième (Kyoto) publishes its prices: ¥4,180,000 for a four-and-a-half-mat room and ¥3,300,000 for a two-mat room (both including tax, delivery extra). Ask the company directly whether it can deliver to Tokyo and what delivery costs.

[What to check in a condominium] Whether renovating or placing a room, check the building's management rules first: whether a hearth may be cut into the floor, whether heavy items may be installed, and whether work hours are restricted. Estimates taken without knowing this tend to be redone.

Once you have chosen between new build, renovation and drop-in, the shortlist narrows to three or four companies. Our company list can be filtered by region and type — start by comparing the Kantō companies with the kit and drop-in makers.