Thirty years after the former adversaries joined hands, China and Japan aren't exactly the model of diplomatic relations. But, as Tama Miyake discovers, that hasn't stopped Tokyo trendsetters from making the Middle Kingdom all the rage.

 
Photo credit: Marta Teixeira

Friday, 7:30pm. The crowd is building at Chung King Lo as sharp-suited businessmen and leather-clad ladies fight for space by the bar and Tsingtao by the bottle. Twenty-something waiters weave through the throng, delivering handmade fortune cookies and discreetly protecting the antique furniture and ancient artifacts.

Another Chinese restaurant has opened in Tokyo, but this isn't Chinatown and this isn't your typical dim sum dining hall. This is Aoyama, the hotbed of high fashion, and the brainchild of Teruo Kurosaki, president of the Idee design company and one Tokyo's most atypical entrepreneurs. Here, the customers are fashion-forward Japanese, the waiters wear "Soul Brothers" T-shirts, and even the cocktails look chic. "The attitude is not like Chinese Chinese but more like playing with China, with old styles and contemporary styles," explains Kurosaki. "It's a happier, more youthful culture."

Opened in December and named after a gallery-lined stretch of Los Angeles Chinatown-what Kurosaki calls "the hippest place in LA"-Chung King Lo is just one symbol of the latest trend to wash across Tokyo. Tracing the steps of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon and nearing the towering presence of -BA rookie Yao Ming, everything from Chinese tea to package tours to the Great Wall are hitting it big. And as the Middle Kingdom reinvents itself more and more as a modern nation, Tokyoites are discovering a country that's not only the force of the future but is also very, very chic.

Palate pleasers
Tokyo diners have been getting a taste for this new China in places like Chung King Lo, one of a growing number of nouveau Chinese restaurants to set up shop in recent years. Unlike the ramen stalls and red-and-gold dining halls of old, these upscale restaurants in areas like Aoyama and Ginza serve fusion Chinese fare amid soft lighting, designer furniture and sleek black lacquer accents.

Niu, one such high-style Aoyama spot, was among the first to capitalize on the growing interest in modern Chinese cuisine when it opened two years ago. For founder Shigekazu Suzuki, the concept was a natural progression from Japanese cuisine. "China is probably the closest country to Japan in terms of culture," says the president of Stillfoods restaurant group. "And among all foreign cuisines, Chinese is the one most appreciated by Japanese people."

To be sure, Chinese food has always been popular in Japan. But Tokyoites, at least, seem to be appreciating it with a newfound fervor. At Kamonka, whose concept is described as "Modern Classic Mainland China," diners line up for more than an hour for a seat in the smoked glass booths accented with rosewood screens. The scene is equally hip at Hu Tong Mandarin in Marunouchi, described as "Classic Modern Chinese," where chefs preside over huge steamers in a glassed-in kitchen while couples sip California wine at private tables. And when The Sweet Dynasty, a Hong Kong dessert and dim sum chain, opened their first overseas outlet on Aoyama Dori in October, the lines snaked down the street all afternoon and into the evening.

Adding to the boom has been the explosion in Chinese teas being sold by Japanese beverage companies. Touting their health benefits and pleasing aromas, companies like Kirin, Suntory and even Coca-Cola all launched versions of Chinese green tea in the past year. Meanwhile, the Chinese teahouses that became so popular two years ago are enjoying a renaissance of sorts with young women rushing to join seminars on the art of traditional Chinese tea ceremony.

Crossing the divide
But perhaps the clearest sign of Japan's appetite for all things Chinese is the recent exodus to Shanghai, Hong Kong and Beijing. Last summer alone, an estimated 252,000 of Japanese went to mainland China, an increase of 11 percent over the year earlier and the largest increase of all foreign destinations, according to the Japan Travel Bureau, the country's largest travel agency.

Glay takes a break along Shanghai's Bund, on the banks of the Huangpu River Photo
credit: Courtesy of Japan Airlines
 

JTB also projected that more than twice as many Japanese would visit China during the 2002 -ew Year's holiday period than the previous year, with tours to watch the sunrise from the Great Wall on -ew Year's Day and romantic "Christmas in Shanghai" packages proving particularly popular.

Seiichiro Sakaguchi, general manager of international relations at JTB, attributes the boom to the media buzz surrounding the 30th anniversary of the normalization of diplomatic ties, relaxed immigration rules, the opening of a new runway at Narita, and subsequent increases in Japan-China services. But the trend also reflects China itself, with Beijing and Shanghai becoming increasingly modern and vying with Tokyo as a top Asian destination.

"If you look at places like Shanghai compared to what they were even 10 years ago, the change is quite remarkable. Central Shanghai, where there's been a lot of redevelopment, is like Omotesando-only better," says Geoffrey Tudor, spokesman for Japan Airlines and its "-ew China" campaign launched last July. "It is a new China because there's tremendous economic growth and a tremendous liveliness about the place. I mean, Tokyo seems almost quiet in comparison."

Indeed, whereas it used to be a place for elderly Japanese to make what Tudor calls a "sentimental journey," or for schoolchildren to learn about history firsthand, China is suddenly all about fun, fashion and high style. Just look at the JAL advertisements featuring the princes of Japanese pop, Glay.

"We thought they would be the right kind of image focus for young people in Japan because Glay is very popular, modern, up-to-date, a very now-y kind of band," says Tudor. Already, JAL has seen its passenger traffic to China increase almost 30 percent to 573,000 in the first half of fiscal 2002, while its overall international traffic dropped 3 percent.

Star gazing
Glay, with their shiny black suits and streaked hair, are more than the face of JAL's "New China" campaign. They're also part of a celebrity-studded exchange that's putting a new spin on an age-old relationship. On September 29, 1972, Chairman Mao Tse-tung hosted Prime Minister Kakuei Tanaka in the then Peking, where the two signed a joint declaration normalizing diplomatic relations. On September 10, 2002, Chinese President Jiang Zemin invited the Glay foursome to Beijing-and reportedly treated them to a taste of his air guitar skills.

A month later, Glay performed for a sell-out crowd of 35,000 in the Chinese capital. It was one of 250 events designed to celebrate diplomatic ties and promote the cultures of both countries. One such concert, titled "China-Japan Hand-in-Hand Striding Together into the New Century," brought together pop princess Ayumi Hamasaki and '70s singer Shinji Tanimura from Japan, and Hong Kong idol Alan Tam and diva CoCo Lee from China, among many others.

But the all-out blitz only reinforced a budding interest on both sides of the East China Sea. While J-Pop stars on the level of Glay and Hamasaki are already big names in Beijing, recent years have seen the growing power of Chinese stars in Japan. In 1999, Faye Wong, the "Asian Queen of Pop," became the first Asian singer to hold a solo concert in Tokyo's prestigious Budokan and two years later acted in her first Japanese TV drama. Last year Jay Chou was named "Best Asian Artist" at the Video Music Awards Japan. The Taiwanese rapper has also been snapped up by Panasonic to promote their line of cellular phones and has a dedicated fan base working on a "Jay Chou Japan Invitation Project."

Some in the biz say the Chinese music industry still has a long way to go to reach the level of Japan. "Those people chasing Chinese music prefer the face over the music sense," says Mari Tatsumi, a promoter for Japan's MusicMine. "The sound is original but the arrangement is too easy."

That may explain why China's most popular exports so far have been actors, particularly those who can make the leap to speaking Japanese. Singer-actress Kelly Chen is one such star riding the success of her Japanese film debut in 2001, Resisei to Jonetsu no Aida, with hot actor Yutaka Takenouchi. But topping the list of late is Chen's frequent co-star Takeshi Kaneshiro, the Chinese-born son of a Japanese father and Taiwanese mother. The 29-year-old heartthrob starred in last summer's box-office hit Returner, a Japanese sci-fi flick. He was also the top draw in the television drama "Golden Bowl," as a Tokyo office worker who finds love in a bowling alley. Co-star Hitomi Kuroki, herself a huge star in Japan, once told reporters, "I have never seen anyone as handsome as Takeshi."

Fortune telling
In a city that's famous for churning through trends, no one can tell how long the current fascination with all things Chinese can last. But one thing is certain: China is on the rise. Already it has shifted the balance of economic power in Asia, surging ahead with an annual GDP growth of eight percent while Japan slumps along. In 2001, China overtook the US for the first time as Japan's leading supplier of manufactured goods and now ranks asJapan's second-largest trading partner, according to the Japan External Trade Organization.

Even ordinary citizens can sense the coming change. A survey conducted by Kyodo News in August showed 79 percent of Japanese believe China will catch up economically within 30 years. In turn, more Japanese are realizing the value of learning Mandarin and Cantonese, with some going so far as sending their children to a Chinese school. "The desire to learn Chinese is now a worldwide trend," says Chin Tetsu San, principal of the Tokyo Chinese School, where about 15 percent of the students are Japanese. "We're working hard so that our students can flourish and become part of a global society."

With a contentious past that continues to haunt them and diplomatic disputes that seem to flare with each new administration, that global society may still be a far way off for the two Asian tigers. But back in Aoyama, the scene is decidedly less serious. Chung King Lo and its "Chinese soul food" are gaining a steady following. Plans are in the works to show contemporary Chinese films, invite Chinese designers to Tokyo and sell more Chinese antiques.

"China is growing. That's why we did the Chinese restaurant, but it's not like that. We just fool around at the same time too. That's our taste, it's more international," says Kurosaki. "We just communicate."