Monks Foods — Restaurant in Tokyo

The loveliest, most wholesome experience you could imagine. My brother and I stumbled in here after visiting the Ghibli museum, looking for something refreshing and nourishing. "Monk" refers both to the healthful vegetable and seafood-forward food offered, as well as Thelonious Monk, whose jazz music effuses and calms every soul that walks through the doors of this quaint grandpa/grandpa-run eatery. Be advised, cash only! They speak limited English, but do have English menus.

The first floor is occupied by a bar, where grandpa chills, and he'll gesture you towards the second floor where there's several small tables arranged to fit in the cozy space. Grandma offered us the menus and some barley tea as soon as we ordered. Decor is homey, time-worn, with some surprising pops of character such as the Dragon Ball Z figurines in the eaves. Never say they don't have a sense of humor.

Like most others, we each got a lunch set - seafood for me, and vegetarian for my brother. They offer brown or white rice for each set. The sets come complete with several dishes of simple but carefully prepared seasonal vegetables, and my fish was perfectly fried. Miso soup with fresh bean paste rounded out the meal. Portions are perfect to feel satisfied, but not grossly stuffed. I also feasted my eyes on the dishes - the ceramics that were served on were so elegant that I wanted to take them with me.

A place where I'd come at least once a week if I lived nearby - get a homecooked meal if you're...

I came around 2pm on a rainy national holiday, just as their only other customer was leaving, so I was the only customer at the counter. The interior was cosy, and was like a place back in time, with CDs lining the shelves. Except for the music - probably one of the CDs - filling the air, it was very peaceful. The place smelt kind of musty and damp, probably enhanced by the weather, which added to the atmosphere, but wasn't a smell that I cared for. I chose the vegetable lunch set, the other two choices being fish and meat, and chose brown rice, from a choice of brown or partially polished rice. I could very much taste the true flavors of the vegetables, however, I feel that the seasonings weren't well utilised to do the vegetables full justice. But saying that, it was very healthy homecooking that centers around the natural flavors of real nutritious whole food. I got a coffee as well, but I'd skip that if I come again, as the coffee outside is better. It was all quite reasonably priced. When taking my order, the old man was curt and terse with his words, and didn't try to make conversation. Nor did he display any reaction when I thanked him each time he brought my food and drinks, quite a sharp contrast to when I entered the shop, and he was having an animated conversation with the departing customer. Payment...

We entered for an early dinner on a Saturday afternoon, and were the only customers. The space is very cozy and atmospheric. The food was very reasonably priced (how many places in Tokyo can you get a teishoku meal for 1000 yen these days anyway?) and very filling. The ingredients where nutritious whole foods. I had the fish meal, and my friend had the vegetable meal, with brown rice. There is an English language menu. The toilet upstairs is traditional which was a fun touch, haven't seen one of those in...