I had a banquet at a restaurant for the first time in a while. The banquet course at Jiyu Sakaba Ron was 5000 yen. It was a great deal as it was all-you-can-drink until closing time. Thankfully, I had a hangover the next day. The food at the banquet included spicy bamboo shoots, prosciutto, crystal salad, raw fish assortment, thick-cut bacon and pork sauté. The cost performance was really good. The beer was delicious and they also had a variety of new options. The sake, which would usually cost around 800-1000 yen per glass at a regular restaurant, was also all-you-can-drink. I was able to enjoy sipping on sake like water while eating the raw fish assortment. I will definitely have another banquet here. By the way, by registering on their official LINE account, I got a 500 yen coupon, so I only paid 4500 yen instead of 5000 yen. I would like to use it again if I have another banquet. It seems that they have a lot of reservations, so it might be a good idea to book early.

I went to a izakaya next to Kushiro and enjoyed a drink-all-you-can deal for 1 hour at 1000 yen, unlimited for 3000 yen (with sashimi). Recently, I also took advantage of a plan where you can rent out the entire restaurant for 3 hours for 3000 yen with 5 or more people. I had fun creating my own cocktail in the "Kodakara Series" using yogurt sake and passion fruit in a 1:1 ratio, which turned out to be delicious. It was so good! It's interesting to find your own favorite combination and enjoy it. The sake selection was also great, and I ended up drinking too much and had a hangover for two days (laughs).

We tried out a plan where we could reserve the entire place, and had a private party with 12 people. It cost 3000 yen per person for 3 hours of exclusive use, so we brought our own food and had a second party. We brought leftovers from the previous gathering, as well as takoyaki, onigiri, and snacks from the convenience store for the second party. There were 30 different types of sake available, including high-quality and rare ones that you can't find at typical izakayas, so we had a great time. The women enjoyed mixing yogurt sake with apple sake, mandarin sake, and even adding carbonated drinks. It's quite convenient to have a private second party, especially during this time of year. We plan to use this option again in the future. It seems like there have been many inquiries about the private reservation course since it was introduced.

I started drinking from 5:30 in the evening, planning to end at one bar, but since the first bar ended early, I decided to wander around a bit. I stumbled upon "Jiyu Sakaba Ron" - Self-serve all-you-can-drink - and thought it sounded interesting. Before entering, I noticed a huge cat on the door! The prices were 1,000 yen for 1 hour, 2,000 yen for 2 hours, and 3,000 yen for 3 hours or more (tax included). You can also bring your own drinks, and they even accept deliveries from nearby izakayas. The variety of drinks was impressive, with options like draft beer, sake, and fruit liquor. Since it's self-serve, you can adjust the strength of your drinks as you like. The place is managed by a group of izakayas, so we tried some uni from their menu. It was decent, a bit fishy, but overall enjoyable. I would definitely come back to try dishes from other restaurants next time. Overall, it was a great experience!

We did a sake tasting from the 6:00 PM opening. We also ordered a sashimi assortment for delivery halfway through, which was enjoyable. There were three of us, and it was nice that the sashimi platter came with a bonus sea urchin. We tried 10 different kinds of sake. The unlimited drink option allowed us to enjoy at our own pace. Starting from November 2019, it seems that there is an option to add 1500 yen to the izakaya banquet plan for a 2-hour all-you-can-drink self-service sake bar with a second party included banquet plan.

During our stroll, we stumbled upon a terrifying shop! We were able to enjoy local sake and it was the best value for money. Thank you for the delicious meal! (^人^)