All reviews of category "Western"

The Kika restaurant located in Wānaka is known for its innovative dishes. This time, I chose the "Just Feed Me" set, allowing the chef to select seasonal specialties paired with craft beer for a diverse tasting experience. The set includes three appetizers, one main course, two sides, and a dessert, with each dish showcasing the freshness of the ingredients and clever pairings.

I highly recommend adding beer or wine pairings; I opted for beer this time, and from appetizers to dessert, each dish was paired with locally brewed beer, enhancing the overall flavor.

The restaurant has an elegant and relaxed atmosphere, with professional and friendly staff providing detailed dish introductions and pairing suggestions. It is advisable to book in advance to secure a table.

"The scenery here is really beautiful, I must find time to bring my family over to take a look!" by me, who just finished my licensing exam and came out for a walk with friends to clear my mind.

<About the meals 🥣>

Detailed introduction is in the pictures, you can scroll down to take a look～

<About the staff 👨‍🍳>

The staff are very friendly and willing to help with any questions, and the quality of service is also very good. However, it seems that the staff allocation is a bit insufficient; during busy times, it can feel like they are a bit overwhelmed.

<About the environment 🐾>

The color scheme of the environment is blue and white, which makes people feel very relaxed, and the atmosphere is well created. You can chat comfortably inside the store.

Sitting by the window, you can also see the sea; the scenery is picturesque. Even without talking, you can enjoy it well. Just sitting for a few minutes can give you a feeling of peace and tranquility.

To be precise, it should be categorized as a composite café, but currently, there is no such option.

For family gatherings, we like to try different restaurants, and we've almost eaten at all the nearby places—only this one is left, so we chose to dine here this time.

As soon as we stepped into this restaurant, we felt that it was very clean, bright, and comfortable. However, after looking at the menu, we found the prices to be on the higher side...

This time, four of us ordered four dishes, and with an additional service fee, the total came to $2070.

Forest cheese vegetable baked rice: $388
This dish does not come with a drink, and the flavor is ordinary; it's not unpleasant to eat.

Secret charcoal grilled meat rice: $468
There are quite a few drink options included, the garlic bread is very tasty, but the corn chowder is more Chinese-style and actually doesn’t look very appealing; it also feels like this chowder does not go well with garlic bread. The flavor of the dish is acceptable, but the meat is somewhat tough.

Secret pickled cabbage fish (hot pot): $528
I've eaten a lot of pickled cabbage fish, whether as a single dish or in hot pot, and the flavors are quite similar, so it doesn’t feel very authentic. For the hot pot's side dishes, since it's pickled cabbage fish hot pot, there are only fish and vegetable platters, and there are very few drink options for hot pot.

Must-order golden pumpkin hot pot: $498
You can really taste the fresh sweetness of the pumpkin, and the broth is very tasty; this should be the most worthwhile dish from this dining experience. However, there’s very little meat served as the main dish, which makes it seem not worth the price.

Included drinks:
Seasonal fruit vinegar *3
It doesn’t taste very sour, and the concentration should not be high.

I originally wanted to order chamomile grapefruit tea, but it was out of stock, which was a bit of a disappointment.

Overall, the dishes are not unpleasant, but I don’t think it’s necessary to spend this much to eat here; you could choose higher-quality restaurants.

The itinerary happened to include a stop at Nakameguro Station, so my family found a popular Western-style restaurant near the station known for its hamburger steak. Otherwise, we had eaten instant noodles and convenience store food too many times in the past few days in Japan…

After getting off at Nakameguro Station on the Hibiya Line and exiting, we followed the navigation straight ahead and arrived at the restaurant, which is right at the end of the road and quite noticeable. I felt that the appearance and interior decor had a nice mix of Japanese and Western styles.

My family had made a reservation for 17:30, and after entering the place, there weren’t many people for quite some time?! It was only after 18:00 that more customers gradually started coming in. The restaurant is small but looks to have quite a few seats, although it seems that they don’t accept reservations during lunch hours; you can check this online.

🌻 Creamy Omelette Hamburger Steak Rice ¥2000
(とろとろ玉子のオムリバーグ)

What a wonderful omelette hamburger steak rice 🫨🫨🫨
When it was served, it was in a complete omelette shape, and they gave you a knife and sauce for you to do it yourself. I think I cut it pretty well, but I’m not great at pouring the sauce… (plus I forgot to take a photo before cutting it; there’s only the “remains” left QQ)

The hamburger steak is thick and substantial, with a relatively sweet sauce that’s perfectly seasoned, not too salty. The tomato fried rice underneath paired with the omelette makes it just perfect… it was so tasty that I ate super fast.

🌻 Nakameguro Limited Pudding ¥500
（中目黒限定プリン）

The pudding has a smooth texture; it’s sweeter when eaten alone, but when paired with the slightly bitter caramel and the cream on top, the taste becomes just right. Personally, I think it rivals many café puddings! Delicious!

🌻 Nostalgic Cream Soda ¥700
（昔懐かしのクリームソーダ）

I personally love this kind of Showa-era café ice cream soda, so I ordered a cup~

There are four colors to choose from, and I selected the classic green. Drinking it alone tastes like syrup and is very sweet, but adding vanilla ice cream makes it much more enjoyable, so you absolutely have to add the ice cream and drink it…

The hamburger steak meal is really delicious, and I highly recommend trying it if you have the chance! Since it’s a chain restaurant, it can be found in other regions of Japan as well, and if I encounter it again, I would definitely be willing to visit just for the hamburger steak!

The minimum spend is 300 per person, and this time we ordered:
🫶 Confit duck leg 480
🫶 Shrimp pasta with fireworks 320
🫶 Fried chicken 180
🫶 Brownie 160
Set meal (soup, European bread) 120

Overall, the meal is of moderate price.
The food quality is acceptable and up to standard.
Having lived in Guanyin for over ten years,
I must say it’s surprising to find such a delicious Western cuisine here.

The fried chicken is very crispy, tender, and juicy.
It’s well-marinated and flavorful even on its own.
The sauce seems to use Tabasco; it's creamy and slightly spicy with a hint of acidity.
It’s refreshing, I love it!

When I cut into the confit duck leg, I thought it was a bit dry and hard,
but actually, the skin is crispy, and the meat is quite tender.
The slightly acidic orange sauce goes very well with it.
(I’m usually afraid of those overly sweet orange sauces, but this one focuses more on the tanginess.)
My family thinks the duck flavor is too strong, but I think it's okay.
There’s a good amount of vegetables, which are rich and satisfying.
A little salt improves it even more.

The soup and bread from the set meal are also above average.
It's not cheap, but it beats many places in Zhongli.
As for the pasta, it's quite standard.

The brownie is the finishing touch.
The brownie has a rich bittersweet taste and is very dense, baked to a slightly crispy surface while still warm.
The sweetness of the ice cream and brownie is well-matched (not too sweet).
They complement each other without overshadowing.
I absolutely love it!

Overall, the meal has no major downsides.
However, the environment is a bit noisy (you can watch a video to get a feel).
The oil smell is somewhat strong, and my clothes picked up the scent after eating.
I’m really happy that Guanyin has such a great place!
🩵💙💜🧡💛💚

A long time ago, I sent an IG video to my friend, and then we decided to eat at this place together.🤣

<About the dishes 🥣>

We ordered quite a lot of food, so I'll introduce them one by one.

Argentinian squid: The squid was cooked quite well, not too salty or too bland. The texture was pretty tender and didn’t dry out after cooking, retaining a decent amount of moisture.

Half chicken: The meat was quite good, tender, but towards the end, it became a bit too dry. It was served with a tomato sauce, which seemed to be made directly from tomatoes; it also came with some vegetables, and the roasted onions were quite oily.

French porcini mushroom soup: After a few sips, I felt it had a familiar taste, but I couldn't recall where I had had it before. The soup was quite rich in flavor, and the creaminess was appealing.

The chef’s salted pork was on the salty side, making it great to eat with rice.🤣

Cherry duck: Eating the fatty and lean parts together was quite crunchy, and the seasoning was salt-spicy-spicy, but the spiciness wasn’t very strong, so it was quite nice.

<About the staff 👨‍🍳>

The staff doesn’t interact much with the customers. When we suddenly asked him a question, he seemed a bit flustered, so it seems he’s quite the introvert.

<About the environment 🐾>

The environment was quite comfortable. You could look at the painting of the Mona Lisa in the back, which was quite interesting.

There is a lot of outdoor space for parking.

The entrance has no obvious signs, making it hard to discover such a beautiful restaurant inside. The restaurant is hidden within a colorful and beautiful garden, featuring a Spanish-style fountain. The exterior and interior of the restaurant are perfect for taking memorable photos.

I ordered a steak, which was tender and juicy. It was delicious. The buffet section offers an all-you-can-eat option, and the quality is on par with the main dishes. The soup is both sweet and salty, and the sweet white fungus soup is very tasty without being overly sweet. The spaghetti is also very rich in flavor.

Overall, the price is slightly high, but it is still highly recommended.

This is a restaurant where you can enjoy delicious Western cuisine without having to enter the city of Changbin. The restaurant itself has a very comfortable environment, decorated in warm wood tones, creating a cozy feeling. Outside is a large garden with water features, home to various animals, including geese, making it feel like a small farm (but be careful, as you might step in goose droppings, which are quite large! 🤣).

The food, especially the pasta, is highly recommended. Whether in cream sauce or pesto, it tastes very fresh and natural. The noodles are cooked to the right texture, and while I find the soup a bit on the bland side, it still has a subtle creaminess to it. I was initially skeptical about the fried platter, but it was surprisingly impressive. Although it is likely frozen food, the quality is not compromised; the meat beneath the crispy coating is very substantial, and you don't just taste the outer starch. This is really quite remarkable.

Overall, I recommend this place for family or friends to try when going out together, both for the dining environment and the food itself.

This restaurant is located inside a very famous hotel. The hotel is quite large, and once you enter, you can find the restaurant by following the signs. However, the hotel staff is very helpful; shortly after you walk in, someone will come to ask which restaurant you’re looking for. In front of the restaurant, they serve afternoon tea, and you can see a group of very wealthy people enjoying their food and tea! If you’re interested, you might consider making a reservation!

Once seated, you will be attended to by very friendly staff. Since you are in England, there really aren’t any language barriers, and you can joke around with the staff and ask for their recommendations! However, we already had our meal choices in mind. Today, we ordered:

❤️ Pumpkin Soup
When the pumpkin soup arrived, they first added some wonderful chopped onions before pouring the steaming pumpkin soup over them. The pumpkin soup is very rich and somewhat resembles pumpkin puree, but it’s the pure flavor of pumpkin. The fragrant, sweet soup combined with a hint of salty onion makes for a great lunch to start this season!

❤️ Appetizer Tart
I really don’t know how to translate this into Chinese, but everyone should know what it is from the photo. It mainly consists of raw fish topped with a raw egg. Once mixed together, it’s very delicious, and it comes with some pickled beans that really bring out the sweetness of the fish. Enjoyed with the bread they provide, it truly makes for a wonderful appetizer!

❤️ Poached Cod
Cod is generally quite rich in fat, and because it is so fresh, they can poach it. Each bite feels like it wants to melt in your mouth, making you unable to stop eating it!

❤️ Grilled Trout
The grilled trout was somewhat different from what I imagined. I thought it would be tender and melt in your mouth, but in fact, it has a very firm texture. They also used smoked mussels and orange for seasoning, which gives it a smoky flavor but with a hint of citrus sweetness. It’s definitely a unique sauce, along with a special aroma and texture!

Overall, I think the experience was great. The service was good, and the food was delicious. If I had to say what was lacking, it might be that my wallet isn’t deep enough; this meal wasn’t exactly cheap. However, I think having such fresh seafood is fantastic. If you travel to England and want to enjoy a good meal, I would definitely consider coming back here to dine!

From the decorations and furnishings in the shop, it seems the owner is someone who enjoys riding motorcycles, and the restaurant may have previously catered to the style of motorcycle enthusiasts. However, it now has a more gentle atmosphere with green plants.

Regarding the food, I highly recommend their pasta series. The noodles are neither too hard nor too soft, with a certain chewiness that makes them very flavorful. The pesto sauce they make is likely made from ingredients grown in the restaurant's courtyard, so it does not have that industrial pesto taste.

Additionally, when you place an order, you can enjoy unlimited red tea and green tea drinks. I initially thought it would just be cheap, large-batch drinks, but to my surprise, the tea has a surprisingly smooth aroma and is quite well made. This impressed me even more about the restaurant, as it shows they pay attention to the little details. The black tea has a traditional flavor, slightly sweetened but not overly so; the green tea is unsweetened, allowing you to enjoy its original taste.

If you happen to be near the station and are looking to fill your stomach with Western cuisine, I recommend dining here.