From cakes to hotels and ski resorts: We went behind the scenes at Chateraise's HQ in Japan (2025)

When I was told that I would be going to Japan to find out how Chateraise makes its popular pastries, I did not expect to be plucking fruits under a flyover.

And yet, there I was at a peach orchard somewhere in the agricultural town of Ichinomiya in Yamanashi Prefecture – with cars driving past overhead as third-generation farmer Kenichi Watanabe welcomed us with a plump white peach in hand and a crash course on growing his precious fruits.

And as it turns out, it’s possible that some of these white peaches might find their way to Singapore outlets – directly air-flown by Chateraise less than 72 hours after being harvested.

Yes, if you’re eating one of their fruit-topped cakes right now, those bits of seasonal fruit could have been growing on a tree in Japan three days ago.

HOW DO YOU SAY “CHATERAISE”?

Since opening its first outlet at Jurong East in 2015, Japanese confectionery brand Chateraise has become a popular fixture inmany malls and shopping centres, with its brick-textured wallpapers and scenic photos of the Japanese countryside adorning the walls.Today, it's got around 40 outlets all around the country.

But beyond its geographic origins, not many know a lot about this maker of decadent east-meets-west desserts.

For starters, the name is apparently pronounced “sha-turh-ray-zey” and not “sha-turh-rayz”, as our hosts from their Japan HQ clarified. Or at least that’s how it sounded to my ears.

However you want to pronounce it though, Chateraise was more than just a company that makes delicious desserts.

That was made very clear during my three-day whirlwind trip to find out how they make their popular pastries, as we went to factories, hotels, forests and yes, even a farm under a flyover.

Chateraise prides itself with keeping raw ingredients fresh and costs down, which was why it works directly with farmers like Watanabe-san.

Fruits, eggs, milk and other ingredients are directly harvested and gathered and brought to any of their eight factories in Japan to be processed. Some fruits are also directly sent to stores both in Japan and overseas, where they’re sliced up and placed on cakes for decoration.

“We use contract farmers and a consistent price to allow farmers to concentrate on the quality of their product, rather than the pricing,” explained Hiroshi Saito, founder and chairman of Chateraise.

“This allows us to procure better ingredients with better conditions, mutually benefitting the farmers as they need not negotiate pricing, while their stable income is assured.”

EATING RED BEAN PASTE IN A FACTORY IN A FOREST

Yamanashi Prefecture, where I toured, is a three-hour’s drive from Tokyo’s Haneda International Airport. Surrounded by mountains in all directions and located northwest of Mount Fuji, this was where the Chateraise story began.

Founded in 1954 as “Amataro”, it began as a store selling a type of pancake filled with red bean paste in Kofu City. Red bean paste is still heavily featured in many of Chateraise’s key pastries.

Having such a central role in Chateraise's history, it was no surprise that red bean paste was among the products they made sure we got a taste of; and at the factory that produces all of its red bean paste to boot.

Tucked away at the edge of a forest at the foot of the Southern Alps was the red-roofed Chateraise Hakushu Factory. Only stacks of crate at the loading and unloading bay of the factory betrayed the buzzing activity within.

There, I was served a glistening dollop of red bean paste made from fresh red beans grown in Tokachi, Hokkaido, as part of a taste test. It was not as sweet as I had imagined it to be – the sugar did not overpower the taste of the red bean.

Next up were two types of ice cream, both also produced in the same facility as it also served as the central factory for Chateraise's ice cream production.

I was told that fresh milk used to make the dessert was farmed in the neighbouring Nagano Prefecture, which was an hour's drive away. Being close to their milk source meant that the milk was as fresh as it could be when brought in to make ice cream or pudding.

It was not just the milk. Fresh eggs and fruits from around Yamanashi Prefecture itself are delivered to factories in the vicinity daily.

MINERAL WATER FROM JAPAN'S SOUTHERN ALPS

To make their red bean paste and ice cream, Chateraise also has one unassuming but pretty important ingredient – water.

And they draw it from a well right inside the factory itself. The water, I was told, is prized for extremely low levels of dissolved minerals such as calcium and magnesium, which makes it incredibly suitable for producing confectionaries. The water is relatively “purer” than most so it has little impact on the flavour of the sweets and pastries.

To find out more about this unassuming but important ingredient, the Chateraise team took us on a trek to the Ojiragawa Gorge. It’s where the Ojira River flows, carrying pure water down from the Southern Alps mountain range.

From a suspension bridge, one can soak up the views of a lush forest – the stuff of picturesque posters you find at Chateraise stores. Turns out they were real and I got to breathe the fresh air there.

THE HUMAN TOUCH INSIDE FARM FACTORIES

After sampling their red bean paste, ice cream and their special water, it was time to find out exactly where their cakes and confectioneries were made.

We were brought to another place that was decidedly less romantic-looking – there was no lush greenery surrounding the Toyotomi farm factory, which seemed like a typical factory building that was painted in Chateraise’s reddish-brown colour.

Exploring the facility in full head-to-toe protective gear to keep the inside environment as sterile as possible, I saw others similarly dressed as they went about their work.

Some were monitoring automated machines that sliced, sprayed or transferred food. Others were gingerly decorating sponge cakes that passed by on conveyor belts.

I was told that Chateraise tries to automate work where possible, but the human touch was also present to keep things authentic – I saw people expertly piping whipped cream as a finishing touch on sliced cakes.

It was in factories like this where sponge cakes are shipped to places like Singapore. Once they’re made, these cakes are then blast frozen before being sent off to outlets overseas, where the finishing touches are made and the treats are decorated with more cream and air-flown fruits.

FANCY CHECKING INTO A CHATERAISE HOTEL?

To be honest, I had only anticipated visiting farms, factories and maybe some stores on this trip. Basically, seeing how Chateraise is run on home soil.

Turns out, the brand Singapore is familiar with is only one aspect of a family of businesses – that includes two wineries, 10 hotels, 20 golf clubs (two of which are in Gold Coast, Australia), and even two ski resorts.

During my stay in Yamanashi, I was exposed to a range of hotels under the Chateraise brand.

One is the Nirasaki No Mori hotel, a sprawling building built in a brutalist style of architecture. The hotel opened for business in 2022 after Chateraise took over the property from a major Japanese insurance company which previously used the location for retreats and company training events.

It boasts a view of Mount Fuji from the restaurant, and guests who stay during the summer are treated to a campfire show while they enjoy shaved ice on balmy summer nights.

Meanwhile, the Chateraise Hotel Fujinoya is a ryokan-style hotel, complete with three onsen where guests can soak in when not admiring the view of Japan's Southern Alps.

Such hotels, along with Chateraise's farms and factories are among the destinations featured in fan tours, which customers can win via promotional competitions and lucky draws.

Yes, you heard that right– fan tours.

"Rather than spending our money on advertising, we promote domestic fan tours, to encourage our customers to experience and appreciate the nature within the Yamanashi prefecture, thereby to understand the natural roots of our ingredients,” explained Chateraise’s big boss Saito.

In the past few years, Chateraise has also explored marketing to customers with a stronger purchasing power through its premium brand, Yatsudoki. (To date, two of such outlets have opened in Singapore: At Guoco Tower in Tanjong Pagar and at Millenia Walk.)

In Japan, Yatsudoki has had relative success in metropolitan areas like Tokyo. The Chateraise brand however, was initially more popular in the more suburban and rural parts of Japan – they only opened an outlet in Tokyo in 2018, which was three years after it had arrived in Singapore in 2015.

Paying homage to Chateraise founder Hiroshi Saito's family background as grape farmers, Chateraise has also entered the winery business. The wines can be found in stores and even poured from the barrel in Chateraise and Yatsudoki outlets in Japan.

WHAT’S NEXT FOR THIS JAPANESE BRAND?

As the Chateraise business grows, the company is experimenting with new ways and avenues to bring its product to the customers.

Frequent visitors of Tokyo might want to check Chateraise's one and only fully automated and unmanned store in Nishiazabu.

A staff is around during the day though, to pack and sell cakes. After-hours, sensors in the store take over tracking what's moved from the shelves. The buyer just has to proceed to the counter to check out.

As part of its innovations, Chateraise has also produced products for people with dietary restrictions. This includes cakes, ice creams and puddings that contain less sugar. The company has also produced allergen-free cakes that do not contain eggs, milk or rice flour.

The company is also looking to further expand its footprint in Southeast Asia. He cited the Philippines as a “good candidate” and Indonesia another prime place to grow, seeing as it already currently operates more than 20 outlets and one factory there. “It has proven to be quite a successful investment that we’ve seen positive returns on. Within one year, we’ve been able to break even."

As for Singapore, Saito described it as being a "storefront to the rest of Asia." And with all its popularity in back home, maybe we won’t just be fawning over its cakes but checking in to a Chateraise Hotel soon?

CNA Lifestyle was in Japan at the invitation of Chateraise.