Manchinro Co., Ltd. was founded in 1892. Their CEO, Mr. Hayashi, refuses to compromise on quality, even when it comes to frozen food. If certain quality factors such as the texture of meat and seafood, the color of vegetables and, of course, the flavor of any food, could not accurately be preserved, selling frozen products would not be considered.

Manchinro had tried to develop frozen foods even before bringing in the TOMIN, but despite all the efforts of the staff, the project wasn’t successful, leaving the team at a loss until the TOMIN was introduced.

At that same time, the restaurant industry was taking a beating due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and Manchinro was no exception. While foot traffic was falling in the restaurant, and business was unstable, Manchinro’s development of frozen gourmet products was beginning to take off. With customers able to enjoy restaurant-quality products at home when they cannot visit the restaurant, online sales have been going up and up.

At first, the TOMIN Liquid Cryo-Freezing operation was undertaken in a little nook in the kitchen. But the scale of the operation was gradually expanded, and the restaurant now features a dedicated space known as the Manchin TOMIN Shop. The first floor will be a store that carries TOMIN Liquid Cryo-Frozen foods, and the second floor will be a dedicated space for producing frozen gourmet products for sale both in the shop and online.

Manchinro has introduced TOMIN Liquid Cryo-Freezing technology not only at the Manchin TOMIN Shop but also in the restaurant itself. TOMIN’s technology, which doesn’t cause a drop in food quality, is also used as part of the preparation process for dishes served at the restaurant.

After the ingredients are cut and seasoned, they are vacuum sealed and frozen in the TOMIN. They are then thawed precisely when needed and in just the quantities required, optimizing efficiency and minimizing costs. In addition, food that has been stored for too long to be sold is sent to the staff cafeteria to reduce food waste.

Frozen food operations for the online store take place during any free time at the restaurant. By making good use of the hours when there would normally not be much to do, the company has been able to both reduce employees’ hours and increase efficiency.

Head Chef Mr. Hidaka recalls, “When I tried TOMIN Liquid Cryo-Frozen food for the first time, I was really surprised. It was the complete opposite of the results of all the testing we’d done in the past. This is what led me to focus on product development for a line of dishes frozen with TOMIN technology”.

Frozen gourmet dishes sold through Manchinro’s online store ultimately have to be heated in a household microwave. However, microwaves differ from household to household. The company has several microwaves in the kitchen that are used during product development to ensure that restaurant-quality flavor can be reproduced in any type of microwave.

During the freezing process, the right parameters for heating a dish in a household microwave were established. The products that Manchinro staff and CEO Mr. Hayashi agreed were worthy of marketing were met with great praise from restaurant regulars: “It tastes just like the food at the restaurant. It’s not like other frozen food.”

Manchinro Manager Mr. Chiba shares, “Before the COVID-19 pandemic, when I was Manager of the Manchinro Dim Sum store, I had this vague concept forming in my mind of selling frozen dim sum online. TOMIN technology sealed the deal.”

He also explains that a sense of absolute delight washed over him when he heard feedback from customers that they are truly enjoying the restaurant’s food at home.

Head Chef Mr. Hidaka shares the following: “We don’t sell products that can’t be reproduced well. One of those is dim sum, where we want to preserve the texture of the dough. But the project has just begun, and we’ve accomplished a lot that I didn’t think was possible.”

The company has received so many responses and requests from regulars and from people who enjoyed their products as gifts that they currently can’t keep up with demand.

This year, the TOMIN Liquid Cryo-Freezing space and operations will be further expanded. Manchinro is constantly trying to develop new products, so we look forward to the continued expansion of their TOMIN frozen gourmet business.