Blue Moon Cafe — Restaurant in Hiroshima

Update at the bottom: Ignore the bad reviews. This place is totally worth 5 stars...BUT also ignore the people praising the American food and American flavors. This place sucks at American food... Stick with me a second. The Americano feel is 10/10. It's freaking nuts here. I've been a dozen American style restraints in Japan. This one takes the cake. Wall to wall Americano stuff.

The food: the food is very Japanese fusion style (but this isn't bad if you check your expectations at the door). They have rice burgers. And omrice. Or I had karage fried chicken tacos. The chicken was very Japanese style, fried with the skin. Amazing!!! The regular chicken quesadillas were good but not great. Skip the chips and salsa..but the buffalo wings! Huge serving. But weird fusion style with an Asian chilly sauce coating. Onion rings are great and decent size serving too (we got a lot!!! I was expecting tiny Japanese serving sizes for these prices. We ended up having to take food home). That my next point, the prices and and sizes of everything were spot on except for the chips and salsa (but I've been served smaller and more expensive before). I got a Dr. Pepper. Usually a tiny thimble of a cup of soda at most of these places. Not here. He actually brought me the full can along with a glass of ice.

Everything may not be a 10/10 but the menu is massive! 100+ cocktails too at 500 yen each, not the 1000-1500 most bars serve.

Cash only. Doggy bag was 50 yen, but better than throwing away our food or being told "no". Which is not uncommon.

Bonus: my favorite bad review of this place "the Tex Mex was bad but maybe becuase I'm Mexican" Hate to break it to you, Tex Mex is about as American food as you can get. It's barely Mexican at all..Mexican food and Tex Mex are VERY different. And this place is Japanese fusion Tex Mex. Not much Mexican in that at all. So... Don't read too much into that review. They also complained becuase their kids couldn't watch cartoons.

So be prepared for big servings, not authentic American food, but tasty fusion weird dishes that won't break the bank. And your kids might not be able to see the cartoons from every angle.

I'm coming back! This week.

Update: as promised I came back. (Added more photos) I really wanted to try more food. We tried their burgers. Of course they pretty typical Japanese style burgers that you need a burger bag to eat, but for the price we loved these burgers. The patties were juicy in a good way. These didn't seem like your typical hamburger meat you get from the super market that is 40% fat. I can't remember how long it's been since I've been to a burger joint in Japan with burgers this big for this cheap. Nice big servings of ketchup too. I didn't have to ask for more or ration out the mouse size serving so many places love to give. Words of warning, if you get egg on your burger, it comes VERY runny. Be sure to asked well done if you don't want a runny egg.

I got a coke float... You can thank me. I taught him how to make it actual American style, no ice!!! He, like ever other Japanese person, has no clue that ice cream soda floats are not supposed to have ice in them. So order with "no ice" (kori nuki kudasai). Also: Cream soda is melon cream soda not...

Being wanting to go for a long time, finally made with all the family last night. The food was disappointing to all kids and adults alike. The amount of food for the price is amazing, yes. But the touch, the know-how is just not there. Everyone knows all kinds of meats become more tasteful with some braising, the Millard effect, however the hamburger meat is not braised, what a waste of flavor. The TexMex food is horrible. Perhaps is because I'm Mexican, but yack! Wrong flavor combinations and not Hot AT ALL. All in all the food is just Japanese food from a family restaurant with better quality and amount, but poor cooking and favoring as such family restaurants. The service is great, friendly. The atmosphere is great, and would give it a 5 if not for 3 big demerits: the floor is moisty and the stinks of it and the toilet even worse, smells like an unkempt fish aquarium, the memorabilia is amazing but dust covered and dirty, yack, being a restaurant it is unforgivable! And 3rd the TVs are poorly located, not all kids can watch the cartoon and not adults can watch...

This is an ideal place for when you're craving some lip-smacking American food.. But that is just not what I wanted to share. Being a Hindu on foreign soil is not easy since my faith does not permit me to consume beef and pork. I called for Wild Chiken Rice and asked the server if it contained beef/pork (on Google translate 😅). He said "No, but same oil for deep frying chicken and beef". On mentioning I'm a Hindu he said "I make different for you. I sauté chicken different oil for you". I was so touched by this, never have I ever experienced this back in the States, its either eat or or starve. 10/10 for food, hospitality and the classic...