Service Award CYCLE by Mauro Colagreco Rie Yasui : ‘Unlocking the Hearts of Customers’

As a university student in the United States, Rie visited Spain and was enthralled by the beauty of Barcelona, where she started her career at a local hotel.
Later, she began a long career in service under the tutelage of Carme Ruscalleda , chef of Sant Pau, which has since sadly closed its doors.
In 2023, when CYCLE opened in Tokyo as a restaurant themed on circular gastronomy,
Rie returned to Japan. Rie speaks five languages: Spanish, French, English and Catalan, in addition to her native Japanese.
Today, as every day, she greets guests with warmth and enthusiasm.

Located close to the Imperial Palace, CYCLE lies in the heart of the Japanese capital, yet the cycles of nature and the turning of the seasons are a constant presence. When we visited, the staff were tending the restaurant’s on-site herb garden.
At the entrance, a pair of olive trees stand symmetrically, symbolizing the south of France. The dining room immediately captivates with its high ceiling, soaring windows, and huge slabs of driftwood displayed as objet d'arts.
‘We’re right in the middle of Tokyo, but some people forget for a moment where they are', observes Rie.

Powers of observation are the key to people’s hearts

‘What’s important is to be observant’, says Rie, looking straight ahead. She pays close attention to the initial communication, whether taking phone reservations or receiving guests. She observes each guest carefully to discern what the key to their heart might be, and acts on her intuitions immediately.
In this way she serves each guest in the way that suits them best. ‘In service, you have to be adaptable, like a chameleon.’, she says with a smile.

Some guests, Rie explains, are interested in cooking techniques, or in vineyards. Others prefer to engage in light banter. Thus, even if the dishes served are the same, the conversation between her and the guests varies from table to table.

Rie regards her proficiency in five languages as a valuable communication tool. However, she doesn’t fixate on speaking English or Spanish just because a guest is a foreign national.
She is aware, for example, that some non-Japanese guests enjoy soaking up the atmosphere of Japan, while others are studying Japanese, so for them she may add some Japanese to her explanations. Guests may not understand 100% of what they hear, but they enjoy the experience nonetheless.

‘Our job involves selling a product the eye can’t see. We’re selling happiness— what job could be better?’ Rie asks rhetorically, with that unforgettable smile.

A restaurant’s value lies half in the cooking and half in service.

Rie offered us this perspective:
‘In the food service industry today, cooks and chefs have captured the spotlight while service staff and sommeliers tend to be overlooked. But for guests, service is just as important to their experience as the food. No matter how much they may enjoy the cuisine, if they don’t feel comfortable while they’re eating, they won’t come back. The reverse is true, too, of course.

‘My favourite moments are the ones when guests, as they leave, tell me, “We had a wonderful time.” Not “The food was great” or “Your service was spot on”, but simply, “We enjoyed ourselves”.
That tells me that the guests’ experience was a synergy of cuisine and service. For our team, it’s the highest praise of all.’

Mauro Colagreco, head chef of CYCLE and director of Mirazur, a restaurant that earned Three MICHELIN Stars in the MICHELIN Guide France, needs no convincing of the importance of the service element.
Long ago, when Mauro’s grandfather was a little boy, a restaurant was a magical place. One might only dine out twenty or so times in a lifetime. The whole family would gather around the table, sharing their love while learning about ingredients in season .

Today, with nuclear families becoming the norm and solo dining increasingly common, such learning opportunities are fewer in number. Colagreco believes the proper role of the modern restaurant is to provide the love, learning, and gratitude that was once normal when families gathered around the dinner table, as well as the feeling of growing up within that community.
In such a vision, service naturally plays an enormous role. Colagreco trusts Rie to lead their team with this goal in mind.

It's theatre without a script. Exciting, isn't it?

A restaurant is a stage without a script. The doors open and the guests enter, signalling that the cast is assembled.
Every evening is an improv session, creating the CYCLE experience in tandem with guests of varying nationalities, backgrounds and reasons for visiting.
That’s why CYCLE has no service manual.
‘Every day I find my own words and ways of expression to communicate with guests’, explains Rie. ‘There’s no reason to have the same approach for everyone. I take a step back and keep an eye on things, then step in when someone needs my support.’

Service in Japan still tends to be by the book. Instructions in textbooks are certainly important, but they’re not much use when the unanticipated happens.
Rie’s wish is for ‘our service staff to be able to think and act on their own initiative. Contrary to what many might believe, service was originally conceived as a profession in which it's perfectly fine to express your individuality’.

In the course of our interview, Rie never once used the word sekkyaku, meaning ‘serving’ or ‘attending to guests’. Her style is to view her job as not merely serving or attending but listening attentively to the heart of each guest.

Rie transcends the relationship of customer and service staff, unlocking the doors to people’s hearts and filling them with happiness. By showing how to fulfil the proper role of the modern restaurant, Rie is lighting the way for the service professionals of the future.