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Forge your own VG10 santoku: a 3-hour Sakai sharpening and handle workshop in Osaka

A working Sakai sharpener's factory runs a 3-hour, English-supported workshop where you grind, fit, and engrave a VG10 santoku — and walk out with the knife. ¥45,000.

· 3 min read · By Daichi
A VG10 santoku blade resting on a large rotary sharpening stone inside a Sakai-ku workshop, sparks faint, hands in apron and gloves visible at the edge of frame
◇  A VG10 santoku blade resting on a large rotary sharpening stone inside a Sakai-ku workshop, sparks faint, hands in apron and gloves visible at the edge of frame

Forge your own VG10 santoku: a 3-hour Sakai sharpening and handle workshop in Osaka

The hook

Sakai has been Japan’s blade-forging capital since the 14th century, and roughly 90% of professional Japanese chefs use Sakai-made knives. Most “knife experiences” sold to tourists are forging demonstrations — you watch a master, you don’t make. This one ends with a real VG10 santoku you sharpened, fitted, and engraved with your own hands.

What it is

A 3-hour workshop at a working sharpener’s factory in Sakai-ku, Osaka — about 30 minutes from central Osaka via Nankai Koya Line to Sakai-Higashi Station. Run by Sakai Experience Japan with a Japanese interpreter on site for the craftsman dialogue. ¥45,000 (≈ $300) per person, max 10, year-round, 7-day advance booking. The price includes the VG10 santoku you take home in a cloth roll.

Why it’s real

Two reasons it earns the slot. First, you actually grind on the large rotary stone — the rough sharpening that establishes the bevel — under a master’s hand on angle and pressure. Then you tap the tang into the wood handle yourself and laser-engrave your name or chosen kanji. Second, the unit economics quietly work: a finished VG10 santoku retails near ¥45,000 anyway. If you were going to buy a Japanese knife on this trip, the workshop is functionally free.

English-supported workshops at working Sakai factories (not tourist replicas) are scarce. This is one of the few.

Editor’s note

Bring closed-toe shoes. Glasses, apron, and gloves are provided. Confirm dates at booking — the craftsman keeps irregular holidays, and the URKT calendar is the source of truth, not third-party listings.

Where this fits

One of five picks in our 2026 list of bookable deep Japan experiences for repeat visitors.

Booking