孤独の女グルメ☆
During the state of emergency where alcohol cannot be consumed, I find myself gravitating towards restaurants like diners or ramen shops where I can manage without alcohol. One evening, as I left work, I caught a whiff of the delicious smell of grilled fish coming from a nearby home. I decided to have some fish for dinner and visited this place on my way home. The menu offers a variety of options including regular items, seasonal specials, and dishes exclusive to the Meiji Street branch. I chose the "Butter Soy Sauce Grilled Swordfish Set Meal" as something different. I'll save the grilled fish for another time. I ordered the smashed cucumber with plum dressing and a non-alcoholic beer while waiting for my set meal. When the set meal arrived, it looked appetizing. The portion of rice was quite generous, which made me happy. Although it said "free refills" on the menu, I probably won't need any more rice with this amount. Sometimes restaurants tend to serve smaller portions to women, but I prefer when they don't assume and just give a decent amount (laughs). The swordfish came in two small pieces. The butter soy sauce had a slightly sweet flavor. Personally, I'm not used to the taste of "butter soy sauce" so it may not have been my favorite, but it was a flavor that made the rice go down well. The side dishes of dried radish and dried tofu had a gentle flavor which was nice. The rice cooked in a clay pot was the highlight, shiny and just delicious. In the end, I found the side dishes a bit lacking and had leftover rice. I thought about adding some fried food or something, but decided against it. I wished they had included some pickles as a side dish. It would have been nice even if it was at an extra cost, but unfortunately, it was not on the menu. The male staff member serving seemed a bit lackluster. If he had more energy in his service, I think the meal would have tasted better. Perhaps due to this, the atmosphere of the restaurant was quite dark. Those who have been to other branches might not think this is the same "Nakayoshi" restaurant, right? I have visited a different branch in Ebisu before, and it had a very bright and welcoming atmosphere, completely different from this branch. Feeling somewhat unsatisfied, I left the restaurant. However, it's rare to find a place where you can easily enjoy a fish set meal, so I appreciate having such restaurants around, especially for women. Therefore, next time, I will try a different branch instead of this one.