Torisei — Restaurant in Kawagoe

🍜 My order: Eel Set Half an eel 3058¥ Food 4/5 The eel was very soft and tasty, though the sauce/marinade was a tad bland. The rice on the other hand was perfect in both texture and seasoning, blending nicely with the eel and the side dishes as well as the soup. Soup and side dishes complimented each other though they were slightly overshadowing the eels taste. The food arrived very speedily after ordering, only about 20 minutes of waiting and was beautifully presented.

Drinks - No drinks ordered but I was offered free cold tea.

Atmosphere 3/5 I absolutely loved the quiet traditional Japanese background music in combination with the stunning garden in front of the window, right next to my table. It gave me a wonderful chance to relax and recharge energy in between the sight seeing and taking in everything Kawagoe had to offer. However, the entire experience felt more like a perfectly arranged clockwork than wanting people to feel welcome. Overall, I felt it was a very strict and ice cold place. Not in terms of temperature but in terms of people treating each other. The first thought that came to mind was, beauty alone is not enough. Whilst everything was extraordinarily beautiful (5/5) it was colder than a night in midwinter (1/5).

Cleanliness 3/5 Pristine if I were to only use one word. Toilet, table, floor, everything was impeccable. That is until the food came. The tray with my food on top was unfortunately pretty dirty. Moreover, I accidentally touched it and it was very sticky. Pretty disgusting to be honest.

Service 3/5 Fast and efficient combined with fake politeness is how I would describe it. Everything was flawless on a superficial level but I did not feel welcome from the get go. I kind of felt more like a nuisance...

I went here on Saturday and it took about 1 hour waiting in line until we got our table.

It’s kind of classic Japanese restaurant with traditional japanese menu. The staff are extremely friendly and helpful. They also have a complete English menu.

My friend and I ordered “Kamameshi set”, a japanese rice pilaf served in an iron pot. We both ordered the shellfish pilaf ones. It tasted really great and since it was served in an iron pot, the pilaf stayed warm until we finished eating.

What’s so unforgettable is the breathtaking Japanese Garden view that can be enjoyed while eating your meal.

Overall, it’s the best Japanese Restaurant with quiet...

We didn’t dine inside the restaurant. We were walking around the historical area and was drawn by a very wonderful smell that came from a bbq stand located right outside the restaurant. I believe they were setting up the kiosk as a way to draw crowds. They were selling bbq duck meat stick, similar to yakitoru but using duck instead. The aroma was so tempting that we decided to try it. Honestly, it was very delicious. But as we wasn’t that hungry, we were satisfied with that few sticks of bbq duck meat. Prices were reasonable in our opinion as well in view of the...