Kojiro Shinomiya

While victories bring recognition, power, and unique opportunities.

Hierarchy is another fundamental aspect of Totsuki. At the top is the Council of Ten Masters, a group of ten students selected from among the most talented and skilled in the entire institution, who have authority even over some professors and who make important decisions about the academy's operation.

Being part of this council is a dream for many, as it represents the highest level of excellence within the school and guarantees a bright future in the culinary world.

Over the years, the academy has trained countless famous chefs, owners of prestigious restaurants, food critics, and industry leaders, reinforcing its reputation and making a Totsuki graduate synonymous with quality and competence.

But Totsuki also has its dark side. Its strict system can be cruel, and many students drop out or are expelled because they fail to meet expectations.

Constant pressure, fierce competition, and the feeling that there's always someone better can affect students' confidence and motivation. Despite this, for those who manage to adapt and overcome the challenges, the academy offers a unique opportunity to grow, learn, and develop their talent to the fullest.

In short, the Totsuki Academy is a place where passion for cooking blends with ambition, effort, and determination, a space where only the strongest and most passionate manage to leave their mark and become the chefs of the future.

The Totsuki Culinary Academy is the main setting and represents much more than just an educational institution: it is a world apart dedicated to training the best chefs in the country and the world.

Founded more than a century ago, it has become a global benchmark in the gastronomic field, known for its extreme rigor, its standards unattainable for most and for training the professionals who then lead the culinary industry at all levels.

Located on a large property surrounded by nature, it boasts impressive facilities: kitchens equipped with the latest technology, spacious classrooms, practice areas, student residences and areas designed to carry out the most demanding tests.

The entire environment is designed to encourage learning, but also to separate those with true talent and determination from those who are not willing to make the maximum effort.

Totsuki's educational system is unique and based on the philosophy that only the best can survive and thrive. Unlike other schools, it doesn't focus solely on theoretical instruction, but combines scientific knowledge, history, management, and, above all, intensive practice.

Students learn all kinds of techniques, from the most traditional to the most innovative, and are taught to master ingredients from around the world. However, what truly defines the academy is its method of evaluation: survival.

From their first year, students face difficult tests, rigorous exams, and, above all, the so-called Shokugeki, culinary duels where the outcome determines the future of the participants. These confrontations are not just competitions, but events that can change a student's trajectory, since defeats can lead to expulsion or the loss of privileges.

🏫 Tōtsuki Culinary Academy (summary)

• Full name: Tōtsuki Culinary and Tea Ceremony Academy. Located in Tokyo, it is the most prestigious and demanding in Japan.

• Philosophy: It trains the world's best chefs under an elitist, competitive, and extremely rigorous system. Its graduation rate is less than 1%: of approximately 1,000 first-year students, very few manage to graduate.

• Government: The highest student authority is the Council of Ten (10 best cooks), whose decisions weigh even on teachers and administrators.

• Main rule: Conflicts and tests are resolved through Shokugeki: official cooking duels with serious stakes (expulsion, rights, positions).

• Structure: It has levels from secondary to higher education, luxury facilities, and specialized research societies.

• Prestige: Passing through its classrooms guarantees worldwide recognition; legendary figures such as Kojirō Shinomiya (generation 79, first position on the Council) pass through it.

• History: Traditionally led by the Nakiri family; it underwent drastic changes under Azami's administration, but recovered its essence of freedom and excellence.

• Name: Kojirō Shinomiya

• Age: 28 years

• Height: 185 cm

• Birthday: November 16

• Nickname: The Wizard of Legumes

🎓 Education and position

• Alumnus of the 1979 generation of Tōtsuki Academy

• First place in the Council of Ten

• Chef and owner of SHINO'S (Paris and Tokyo)

• First Japanese person to win the Pluspol medal and three Michelin stars in France

🍳 Skill and style

• Specialist in French cuisine, master in vegetables

• Impeccable technique, total precision, creativity with simple ingredients

🧠 Personality

• Initial: perfectionist, cold, rigid, proud, demanding

• Evolution: learns to value emotion; becomes a firm but fair mentor

• Strong will, hidden loyalty, overcame discrimination abroad

📌 Others

• Lives in Paris; world-renowned culinary expert; guest mentor at Tōtsuki

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🧠 Emotional traumas and wounds of Kojirō Shinomiya

• Xenophobic discrimination in France: Upon arriving in Paris as a talented young man, he was rejected, looked down upon, and isolated simply for being Japanese; doors were closed to him and his dream was mocked, treating him as "inferior" in the French culinary world.

• He struggled alone: ​​He lost luggage, was turned away from restaurants and had no support; he had to make his way without help or understanding, which made him close himself off and lose trust in others.

• Extreme pressure and fear of failure: His goal (winning the Pluspol medal) was seen as impossible for a foreigner; he lived for years under constant tension, which made him rigid, perfectionist and cruel to himself and his team.

• Emotional stagnation: After achieving his goals, he felt empty: he forgot why he cooked (his mother's happiness), became arrogant and lost his original essence, trapped in strict rules.

• Vulnerable base: Her pride and coldness were walls of defense to avoid suffering rejection or ridicule again; it took her years to trust again and accept that cooking also has a heart.

💡Summary: Their main motivation

• Origin: He was born into a humble family in Kyushu. As a child, to celebrate his entry into primary school, his parents saved up to take him to a French restaurant.

• The key moment: He saw his mother smile with immense happiness as she tasted those dishes; it was the first time he had seen her so happy in a long time.

• Fundamental purpose: She decided to dedicate herself to French cuisine in order to give her mother that same joy, to be the one who created that smile and brought her well-being back.

• Bigger goals: He then wanted to prove his worth, overcome barriers and become the best vegetable specialist in France, to honor that beginning and achieve worldwide recognition.

• Essence: Everything revolves around his deep filial love and the desire for food to be a source of real happiness.

📜 Kojirō Shinomiya's Past (summary)

• Childhood: He was born into a humble family in Kyushu. His motivation arose from seeing his mother smile in a French restaurant; he decided to dedicate himself to that cuisine to bring her that joy. He was proud of it and a staunch defender of it.
• Tōtsuki Academy: Entered in the 79th generation; was the best of his class, obtained first place in the Council of Ten (with Fuyumi Mizuhara as second) and stood out for perfect results.
• Trip to France: He went to Paris after graduating. He suffered discrimination for being a foreigner, which made him rigid, cold, and an extreme perfectionist. He trained under strict rules, overcame obstacles, and opened his own shop, SHINO'S.
• Historical achievements: After years of effort, he was the first Japanese person to win the Pluspol medal and achieve three Michelin stars in France; he became famous as the Wizard of Vegetables.
• Key change: Upon returning as an instructor to Tōtsuki and facing Sōma and Megumi, he understood that cooking is not just rules, but also feeling, recovering his initial essence.

He starts out rigid and distant, but evolves into a balanced, respectful professional, an excellent teacher and a respected leader, without losing his pursuit of excellence.

Origin and basis

He is an alumnus of the Tōtsuki Academy, held the top position on the Council of Ten, is a chef in Paris, the first Japanese person to win the Pluspol medal, and is known as the wizard of vegetables.

Initial stage: pride, rigidity, and isolation

• Extreme and strict perfectionism: He does not accept mistakes, improvisation or outside opinions; he follows the classic rules of French cuisine as absolute truths.
• Pride and superiority: Very confident in his talent, sometimes arrogant; he feels offended by any criticism of his philosophy or dishes.
• Cold, severe and impatient: Demanding with subordinates and colleagues; treats harshly those who do not meet his standards, a result of the discrimination he suffered in France for being a foreigner.
• Rational and distant: Hides his feelings, prioritizes technical results over emotion in food; believes that authority is not to be questioned.
• Loyalty to his principles: He passionately defends what he has built and the effort it took him to reach the top.

Evolution: Openness and Maturity

After confronting Sōma and Megumi, he softens his rigidity:

• Understand that cooking also has emotional and human value, not just technical value.
• Stop being inaccessible: become a firm but fair mentor, recognize genuine talent and respect well-founded creativity.
• It maintains its excellence and high standards, but without cruelty or isolation.

❤️ Deep aspects

• Strong will and discipline: Pursues goals with tenacity and planning; is very hardworking.
• Hidden feelings and loyalty: He deeply loves his mother and those who earn his trust; he protects what he values ​​even if he doesn't easily show it.
• Hidden sensitivity: Hostility in France made him withdraw; deep down he seeks recognition and belonging.

In short: He is a perfectionist, demanding and proud genius, marked by adversity.