New Hanazono — Restaurant in Sapporo

i ain’t one to leave poor reviews but it was a disappointing experience. I came in alone because I was drawn to the nice retro vibes but as soon as I sat down i regretted it.

there’s a one-drink policy AND a seating fee, which I thought okay fine it’s an izakaya pretending to be a restaurant.

Little did I know that the seating fee would actually be a steal because i would sit for a pretty long time. I ordered fried rice and a side, and then my spiritual journey began.

I sat there and waited and waited and told myself to be patient and not look at the time. Maybe they left out my order, that’s okay, i’ll ask them. Oh they didn’t. Nice. Must be a hell of a fried rice they be cooking up in the back.

I waited some more. Went to the toilet. I was settling into the place, like a second home. I sat there and stared around, because i didn’t want to be an ADHD zoomer swiping on my phone. Then I began to feel impatient. I did some mental exercises and meditation to get those thoughts of my head, and just appreciate the fact that i was fortunate enough to be alive and sitting there. But still I asked the kind waitress with a bright smile for the whereabouts of my food, and she told me it would be here shortly.

Perhaps because it was short-staffed, or perhaps because they were harvesting the rice and processing it in-house, i don’t know. Vertical integration is really impressive.

I waited some more. I felt defeated. Should I just leave? No. I’ve waited for so long, I can’t give up now. Sunk cost fallacy, yes, but I’m stubborn and I never learn. I paid for the seating fee so I’m using it. I rationed my drink so that it wouldn’t be empty before the food comes, but it was a tall order. Should I take a sip now? Maybe, but not that much. I watched the liquid level in my glass.

The music in the restaurant has looped. It’s the same one from when I came in. How long have I been here? Who am I? I am someone waiting for that quick sunday dinner turned to a drawn out fine dining experience, without the dining part nor the fine part.

Then, a piece of gyoza appeared in front of me, held out between a pair of chopsticks. The two korean guys in the next table must have taken pity on me. One of them smiled and placed it on my plate. Food. I was hungry, but I was also touched by the depth of human kindness. This is the kind of meaningful connection life is about. Thank you to the two korean guys.

I poured some sauce over my gyoza, and ate it. I was so moved.

Eventually, I fell asleep on my seat, and was woken up by the waitress when my food finally came. This is it. The payout, the light at the end of the tunnel. The side dish was here, although I would have preferred it with my rice. But I was hungry and I ate it up. I waited some more. The rice came. I finished it in 5 minutes. I looked at my phone and 90 minutes has passed. Incredible. The trial was over. The wait was long, the food was mid, and the prices were too much. But what have I gained? I experienced compassion. I learnt to manage my emotions and expectations. I learnt many things that night.

But I would never go back...

To be honest, the comments are pretty harsh because some homeworks need to be done when you visit other countries, especially their culture and how they operate. Izakaya style restaurant is served with throat cutting appetizer and thats how they make money. The beer can be cheap but the foods are not. Most of the Japanese do not speak English so prepare your translator app for effective communication.

Back to the topic, the foods are average quality but it is not that bad. Gonna give lower marks because its...

冬夜想喝熱湯，但上桌的辛湯難以下嚥，一團勾芡是能吃的東西嗎？ 看到有人誤以為這家店專攻台灣菜，真的是誤會大了，這應該是中國餐館，不是台灣菜。但即便是中國餐館，店家販售的口水雞讓人皺眉，真想即時寫一張口水雞的食譜給店家，這才是好吃又美味的正確料理方式。

認真說起來，煎餃還行，除此之外一切都很糟糕。外國人的餐點費比本國人高就算了，但是多收的費用卻無法反應應有的餐點品質，讓人無法忍受。

冬の夜には温かい水を飲みたいものですが、提供された辛いスープは飲み込みにくく、とろみが加えられたものが本当に食べ物なのでしょうか？この店が台湾料理を専門としていると誤解している人を見て、大きな誤解です。これは中国のレストランであって、台湾料理ではありません。しかし、中国のレストランであっても、売られているよだれ鶏にはがっかりさせられます。その場でよだれ鶏のレシピを書きたくなるほど、これこそが美味しくて正しい料理方法です。

正直に言うと、餃子はまあまあですが、それ以外は全てひどいです。外国人の食事代が地元の人よりも高いのは仕方がないとしても、追加された料金が提供されるべき食事の品質を反映していないのは耐えられません。

On a winter night, wanting to drink hot water, but finding the spicy soup served hard to swallow, is a thickened mess really something edible? Seeing someone mistakenly thinking this restaurant specializes in Taiwanese cuisine is a huge misunderstanding; it should be identified as a Chinese restaurant, not Taiwanese. However, even for a Chinese restaurant, the saliva chicken they sell is disappointing, making one want to write down a recipe for saliva chicken on the spot to show them the right way to make this delicious dish.

Honestly, the pan-fried dumplings are okay, but everything else is terrible. It’s one thing for foreigners to be charged more than locals for their meals, but the extra charges do not reflect the quality of the food that should be provided, which is...