Cafe Time with a Touch of Beauty – JURAKU Visit

BEAUTY&CAFE JURAKU—the name alone screamed “beauty,” so naturally, I’d dodged it for ages. But when Toru-kun made the call, resistance was futile. Off we went for a grand lunchtime adventure.

The building itself? Oh, darling, it was once a traditional Japanese restaurant—so the exterior still flaunts its aristocratic past like a kimono-clad samurai on a catwalk.

Step inside and you’re met with an open, calming layout—and if you’re lucky enough to snag a spot on the tatami floor, you’ll get a lovely garden view with your meal. The crowd was mostly women (as expected), but a few brave men dotted the scene. And for families with kids? Tatami heaven!

Toru-kun and I took a table seat and cracked open the menu—then BAM! Paralysis by choice. So. Many. Temptations.

Freshly baked an-butter French bread?
Sizzling hot garlic bread?
Juicy fried young chicken?
Piping hot demi-glace hamburger steak?
Cream pasta oozing with mentaiko?
Silky omelet rice with demi-glace sauce?
Thick-cut miso katsu plate?
Authentic gapao rice?
Spicy keema curry with seasonal vegetables?
—What is this, the final boss level of indecision?!

After an existential menu crisis, Toru-kun and I surrendered to the siren call of the miso katsu plate. Pro tip: they use Koshihikari rice from Ikeda. Yes, they went there.

Here’s the grapefruit juice from the drink set—served in a glass so round and robust it looked like it could double as a crystal ball. Future: delicious.

My wife? She chose the hamburger steak set. It arrived thick, juicy, and outrageously photogenic. Honestly, it deserved its own fan club.

The verdict? Utterly satisfying. A lunch that whispered sweet nothings to our taste buds and didn’t disappoint.

But wait—plot twist at the register! They’ve got a “10-second challenge” game. Hit the giant stopwatch and land precisely on 10 seconds? Your meal is on the house. Oh, the drama!

You get a 3-second preview, so it’s not total guesswork. But my wife’s internal metronome? Turbo mode. She slapped that button like she was trying to wake the gods.

The result? A bold 7.3 seconds. So close. So tragically heroic.

The end.

“Life is uncertain. Eat dessert first.” – Ernestine Ulmer