Ki Kan cooked for people in the Ishinomaki every day following the disaster. People were hungry, and the restaurant where he worked had food.
One year later, Ki and his wife Ryubaika opened the only restaurant in that neighborhood of Ishinomaki. Ryubaika said she hoped the restaurant would encourage people to return to the tsunami-devastated area.
“I wanted to open the restaurant here so people from other cities can have lunch,” Ryubaika said. Few people came at first, but as more people return to the area, more people visit the restaurant.
Ryubaika said their home on the hill was not damaged by the tsunami, but she was sad to lose friends and colleagues the the deadly waves.
Six years later, Ryubaika’s daughter has just started college and she herself has a graduate degree in business management. She said she is grateful to see new visitors to Ishinomaki.
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Photos and text by Parker Seibold
