Waza Japan: Eastern craftsmanship

East meets West at Waza Japan, a niche Cape Town-based store that sells authentic Japanese kitchenware, homeware and hand tools.

“Our mission at WAZA is to celebrate Japanese craftsmanship. The goods we sell are carefully selected for their design, durability and practical use. WAZA is represented in Tokyo, and with our Japanese colleagues, we work directly with Japanese businesses and suppliers to source premium products that can be cherished for years and decades,” explains the owners, Hilda and Botha Kruger.

Offering a unique selection of Eastern craftsmanship to local customers, Waza Japan is especially well-known for its beautiful selection of Oriental tableware.

This includes a colourful selection of ceramic yokode kyūsu, or side-handled teapots, made in Tokoname by Isobe. The teapots have removable lids and a textured surface and are ideal for making tea from Japanese or other leaf teas with their built-in wire mesh filter for straining tea leaves when pouring.

Another unique item is the pinch teapot. Also made by Isobe, the teapot is ideal for a single serving and is traditionally used to prepare gyokuro (shade-cloth-grown leaf tea). The dainty little pot with lid is also great for serving milk with tea or coffee.

For those who love to cook Japanese food, the wooden mandolin slicer, made by Oyanagi Industrial Co., Ltd, a family-owned company established in 1926, is a must-have. It is perfect for slicing vegetables like cucumbers, burdock and even cheese or salami. The body is made from hohonoki wood and the cutting blade is stainless steel.

Other items include Tetoca Fruit Tree Wood Chopsticks, matcha whisks, wooden chopstick rests, sake tasting glasses