Pirata Group to launch new Japanese concept Honjo

Hong Kong dining concepts business Pirata Group is opening Honjo, a modern Japanese restaurant, in Sheung Wan district late next month.

As Pirata’s second Japanese concept, Honjo will be a 120-seat venue independent from its cosy street-inspired neighbour, TMK, set to launch a few days prior. Realised by interior designer Ben McCarthy of Charlie & Rose, Honjo is designed to remind diners of a modern restaurant set in the 1950s with a retro futuristic vibe, vibrant colours and intricate details from stained glass windows to hanging light fixtures.

“The interior of Honjo will be demurely and appropriately extravagant, a dream eclectic and quirky home complete with an expansive collection of New and Old World wines,” read press material put out by the firm. “It will be the imaginary backdrop of a typical Japanese person’s dream world, a communal aspiration shared by many. A short reprieve from reality, one enters a fantastical world where he or she lives lavishly in a home resembling a British manor from the 1950’s. Finding joy in traveling the world and being influenced by each vibrant culture visited, the dreamer will craft Honjo’s interior, philosophy and cuisine based on his or her fantasies.”

The restaurant celebrates the ability of Japanese cuisine to absorb inspiration and concepts from other countries, with a menu that will pay homage to a combination of Japanese people’s passion for exploring new flavours as well as their Japanese origin.

Pirata Group’s existing restaurants include The Optimist, Pici, Tokyo Lima, Meats, Chifa, Madame Ching, Chaiwala, The Loft and Hugger Mugger.