Rocky Auto: A Surprise Visit
Writing and photos by Nick
Experiencing Rocky Cafe and meeting Yoshiya Watanabe
If you’re a car enthusiast visiting Japan, it’s no secret that you’ll have endless opportunities to dive into one of the richest automotive cultures in the world. While legendary spots like Daikoku Parking Area often steal the spotlight, there are some hidden gems tucked away for those willing to explore a little further. During our drive from Osaka to Mt. Fuji, we took a detour through the Aichi countryside to visit Rocky Cafe. We’d heard whispers of this place online, so we stopped in Okazaki to see it for ourselves.
Rocky Cafe is open to the public and serves as an extension of Rocky Auto, the renowned classic car restoration shop founded by Yoshiya Watanabe (more on this later). From the moment we stepped inside, we were warmly welcomed by Ikumi and her team, who were thrilled to meet visitors from Australia. The atmosphere was laid-back and inviting, and we immediately felt right at home. The food was amazing, and their coffee had us firing on all cylinders.
Attached to the cafe is a museum showcasing some of Rocky Auto’s incredible collection. Iconic models like the Fairlady Z, Toyota 2000GT, and Nissan Skyline GT-R (Hakosuka and Kenmeri) were all part of the line up. You could say they are Watanabe-san’s bread and butter.
There weren’t many visitors on the day we arrived, so we had the place mostly to ourselves. This gave us a special opportunity to appreciate these machines and the surrounding memorabilia up close. We intentionally didn’t photograph everything to preserve some of the magic for those who choose to visit in person.
As we thanked the team for their warm hospitality, we mentioned that we’d heard about the Rocky Auto workshop online. To our surprise, we were politely asked to wait at the cafe for a few more minutes, because Watanabe-san was on his way to meet us. He arrived shortly after in a stunning white Hakosuka GT-R!
We were thrilled to meet Yoshiya and didn’t expect to be invited to the Rocky Auto workshop for a private tour. Obviously we agreed in a heartbeat, and followed him back to the workshop to look behind the curtain.
Rocky Auto are primarily known for their resto-mod projects which are planned and executed in a way that respects the car’s original soul. Their Fairlady Z build, in particular, usually features a naturally aspirated RB26 engine with modern fuel injection and individual throttle bodies. They don’t shy away from rarer platforms either. The Toyota 2000GT, Hakosuka, and Kenmeri GT-R’s also get the treatment.
The outdoor area of the workshop felt as if we had just jumped out of a time machine and arrived at the local Nissan dealership; Skylines, GT-Rs, and Datsuns everywhere.
We followed Watanabe-san into the workshop and were absolutely blown away. Amongst many personal and customer cars were RB26 engines and spare interior parts that many would pay an arm and a leg for in Australia.
It’s a shame we couldn't fit this orange 240Z in our suitcase!
Around the back was a mechanic preparing to fit the dashboard and centre console in what looked to be a freshly painted 2000GT. We can't even begin to imagine how hard those parts are to come by, let alone how much they’d be worth. Yet for the team at Rocky Auto, this was a regular weekday.
Often the best parts of a trip are the things you don’t plan and this was certainly no exception. Meeting Watanabe-san and being offered the chance to privately view Rocky Auto is something we are incredibly grateful for, and was certainly the highlight of our trip. We can’t recommend Rocky Cafe enough and the charm of the Aichi countryside is something that has really stuck with us since coming home.
