2023.1 New Year's party at work!! It's the peak of living alone week, so it's great to go drinking as much as you want~♪ I want to go on a solo business trip, so I picked a restaurant called "Chinese Dining Kuram" based on the reviews of reviewers in Asahikawa. The criteria for choosing a restaurant are as follows: [1] It must have all-you-can-drink option because I don't want to worry about the price while drinking. [2] It should be a relatively new restaurant because one of the members has been in Asahikawa for a long time and wants to choose a place they haven't been to before. [3] The price should be affordable because I don't have much pocket money and can't afford high-end restaurants. [4] It should have private rooms or tables separated for comfortable chatting and discussions. The chosen restaurant offered a 90-minute "Premium All-You-Can-Drink" for 1800 yen (excluding tax), which we extended to 120 minutes using a Hot Pepper coupon. We had 3 beers, 2 shochu highballs, and I lost count of how many Suika Jin Soda I had. Here are the thoughts on the dishes we ate: - Hokkaido beef with green pepper strips for 900 yen (tax included): The beef and slightly crunchy green peppers were deliciously stir-fried. - Fried dumplings for 600 yen (tax included): They were average and lacked a unique flavor. - Sichuan-style Mapo Tofu for 800 yen (tax included): It had a good balance of flavors, although the spiciness was not too intense. - Hokkaido chicken Karaage for 700 yen (tax included): The crispy coating and tasty chicken made it enjoyable. - Ramen salad with homemade chili oil and sesame dressing for 850 yen (tax included): The sesame dressing overpowered the dish, and emphasizing the chili oil might make it more interesting. - Special Shumai for 650 yen (tax included): Similar to the dumplings, nothing particularly stood out about them. - Char siu and pickled mustard greens black fried rice for 800 yen (tax included): The flavorful fried rice paired well with alcohol. Overall, the Chinese dishes served as good accompaniments for drinking, but lacked a strong enough identity to stand out as a destination for Chinese cuisine enthusiasts. Despite the two-hour time limit for the all-you-can-drink, we ended up staying for four hours due to non-stop conversations. The staff were accommodating and didn't rush us out. Thank you to the restaurant for a pleasant experience.

Asahikawa Sanroku Machi "LC No. 2 Building" opened a Chinese restaurant on the first floor. It boasts a simple yet stylish atmosphere, and is affiliated with the Japanese restaurant "Wasanjo Kataoka" and has closed "27-ku" to open this place. The staff are from "27-ku" and remembered me. They offer "The Premium Malt's Aroma Ale" for 600 yen, and there is no appetizer but they provide a service charge of 500 yen which includes "mushipork". Their specialty is the "Sichuan-style Mapo Tofu" for 800 yen, available in medium or spicy, and I chose medium which was quite spicy and delicious. They also offer "Shaoxing Wine (Guye Longshan Silver Dragon)" for 600 yen, which wasn't available initially but added due to customer demand. I tried the "Pickled Mustard Mentaiko Dumplings" for 550 yen, which was recommended with vinegar and pepper, and it was flavorful with a good amount of filling. I also tried the "Super Rich Yogurt Sake" for 750 yen, made with Jersey milk yogurt, which was refreshing and paired well with spicy dishes. Lastly, I had the "Chicken Bone Chinese Tea Pickles" for 500 yen, which had a nice chicken broth aroma and was satisfying with plenty of chicken. The staff were friendly and the restaurant is open late, making it a convenient and pleasant dining experience.

Congratulations on the new opening of a Chinese restaurant called "Nikuyoshi" located diagonally across from the "27-ku" area. I found it on Hot Pepper and decided to check it out. It seems to be a relocation and renewal open from the "Washijo Katayama" series. The building itself is new and the interior of the restaurant is beautiful. They have an L-shaped counter and three raised seating tables. They offer a 90-minute all-you-can-drink option for 1800 yen (tax included), starting with a refreshing beer. They also serve a small dish of Chinese jellyfish as a service for a seating fee of 500 yen. The fried dumplings (5 pieces) for 500 yen were delicious, with a thick skin and a flavorful filling. I also tried the Sichuan-style mapo tofu for 800 yen, which was spicy and satisfying. I wished they had Shaoxing wine, but settled for wine or beer instead. The stir-fried water spinach with garlic for 850 yen was a bit overcooked, but still tasty. As a service towards the end of the all-you-can-drink session, they served almond jelly, which had a strong aroma but a pleasing texture. Overall, the food was much tastier than my previous experience at 27-ku. It seems like they have improved their skills or changed chefs. I might consider revisiting this place in the future!