The restaurant we arrived at had a slightly aged feel to it—a simple, rectangular building with its exterior walls painted in a black-and-white monotone. There wasn’t any particularly traditional Japanese decoration, so perhaps it was a renovated space where they had moved in and updated the existing structure. Honestly, if a shop had a facade that was too grand and elaborate, it would create an intimidating atmosphere for students like us. An exterior like this was just barely within the range where we could feel comfortable stepping inside, even on our first visit.
Furthermore, a standing signboard out front clearly announced that they were serving lunch and listed the prices for several recommended items—another point in its favor for accessibility. It wasn’t uncommon to walk into a place that didn't have a menu or signboard outside, only to discover once you were inside that you had stumbled into a high-end establishment.
"Is this it? It wasn't that far from the station, after all."
"Yeah. But we were looking at all sorts of things along the way, so maybe that’s why it felt like a short walk."
"True. But there was a bus stop nearby as well, so the location is quite convenient," Hiiragi-san added.
Just as Hiiragi-san said, there was a bus stop along the main road before we turned into the side street. If one used the bus, the restaurant was only about a hundred meters away. The location was perfect.
While chatting, we began to look at the standing signboard.
"Heh, looks like they do lunch here too."
"Seems like there are three main types. An Affordable Lunch using normal ingredients, a slightly more expensive Recommended Lunch with more dishes, and a Premium Lunch that uses dungeon food."
"For this kind of shop, is one thousand yen for the Affordable Lunch considered quite reasonable?"
For the record, the Affordable Lunch was 1,000 yen, the Recommended Lunch was 1,800 yen, and the Premium Lunch was 5,000 yen. There were also several à la carte items listed, including some that featured dungeon food.
I figured a combination of the Affordable Lunch and an à la carte dungeon food dish might be a good way to test the waters. Ordering the Premium Lunch right off the bat on our first visit felt like a bit of a high hurdle.
"No point standing around out here forever. Let's head inside."
"By the way, are we okay without a reservation?"
"The internet didn't say reservations were required, so I think we'll be fine. There isn't a line out the door, so we should be okay."
"I see. Well, we'll find out once we're inside."
Despite our minor concerns, we reached for the handle and stepped into the restaurant.
The first thing that caught my eye was a short, L-shaped wooden counter. There was a small sunken hearth with an iron pot hanging from the ceiling by a pothook, and a charcoal grill surrounded by glass plates that looked like smoke shields. With the lighting dimmed slightly and a calm interior featuring wood and Japanese patterns... yeah, this was definitely a high-end place.
Just as I was wondering if we’d picked the wrong shop, a greeting echoed from within.
"Welcome."
The Master, who had been standing behind the counter attending to some earlier customers, looked up and gave us a welcoming nod.
Hearing his voice, the Landlady, wearing a kimono and a kappogi apron, appeared from the back.
"Welcome. A party of three?"
"Yes, three. We don't have a reservation, is that all right?"
"Yes, that's fine. Would a table in the back be acceptable?"
"That works for us."
While Hiiragi-san and I were flustered at having accidentally entered a fancy restaurant, Yuji was calmly exchanging words with the Landlady as if he were used to it.
For a moment, I wondered why Yuji wasn't fazed, but then it clicked. In his position, it wouldn't be strange for him to be accustomed to these kinds of places through his dojo-related associations. Come to think of it, Juzo-san had dragged him around to various high-end and long-standing shops under the guise of "practicing social composure."
"Then, right this way."
"Right. Daiki, Hiiragi-san, this way."
"Oh, right."
"Y-yes."
Led by the Landlady, we were guided to a semi-private table in the back. As we went, Yuji followed as if it were the most natural thing in the world, while Hiiragi-san and I struggled to hide our bewilderment.
I realized then that maybe I needed to get used to places like this eventually, just like Yuji. It seemed impossible for now, though.
"Please, take a seat."
"Thank you."
"I'll bring tea and the menus shortly. Excuse me."
Once she confirmed we were seated, the Landlady bowed and left the table.
Since the table seated four, Yuji and I sat side-by-side, while Hiiragi-san sat across from us.
"Man, I was nervous. Yuji, how could you stay so calm? For a second, I thought we'd walked into the wrong shop..."
"Well, I go to these kinds of places occasionally with the Old Man or my dad. Once you're used to them, they're all the same."
"It's the 'getting used to them' part that's the problem."
"Is that so? Well, maybe it is."
Yuji had a slightly puzzled expression, and seeing that, Hiiragi-san and I let out small sighs.
After a bit more small talk, the Landlady returned with tea and menus.
"Thank you for waiting. Here are the tea and menus."
"Thank you."
"Please call for me once you've decided on your order."
"Ah, we've already decided. Is the lunch menu still okay?"
"Yes, of course. Which would you like?"
Yuji opened the menu to the lunch page and placed the order while pointing.
"Three of these Premium Lunches, please."
"The Premium Lunch, certainly. That will be three orders."
The Landlady’s eyes widened momentarily in surprise, but she immediately returned to her professional expression and repeated the order for confirmation. It was only natural to be surprised when students who looked as young as us ordered the expensive Premium Lunch. The reason she regained her composure so quickly probably had to do with the fact that there was a dungeon nearby. Even if the numbers were small, young students like us probably did come by occasionally.
If you managed to get a rare drop, it wasn't unusual to make hundreds of thousands of yen in profit. Using a high-end restaurant for an after-party meal would be a common enough occurrence.
"Then, please wait a moment."
"Thank you."
Having taken the order, the Landlady collected the menus, bowed slightly, and left.
Hiiragi-san and I gave a small internal round of applause for Yuji's practiced manner.
About ten minutes later, the food was brought out on a wooden cart. It wasn't served in courses, but as a set meal where everything arrived at once.
The Landlady lined up the dishes in front of us. Rice, soup, pickles, pre-meal vinegar, sashimi, a steamed dish, a simmered dish, a fried dish, and a grilled dish—it was quite a substantial volume.
"Thank you for waiting. Here is your Premium Lunch. It comes with dessert after the meal, so please let me know when you are almost finished."
"Got it, thank you."
"Please, enjoy your meal."
The Landlady bowed and pushed the wagon away.
Now, time to eat.
"Even so, I don't even know where to start..."
"It looks like a typical Japanese set meal... so I guess I'll start with the soup."
"If that's the case, here. This menu describes each dish briefly."
Hiiragi-san handed us each a slip of washi paper. It was an elegant design with a background of water and koi fish.
Let's see, what does it say?
"The rice and pickles are... normal, I guess?"
"The soup is orc soup... wait, is it tonjiru made with orc meat? Is it okay that it's not a light flavor? Well, it is creative cuisine."
"The sashimi is just regular fish. Well, they haven't found an ocean in the dungeon yet, so that makes sense."
"The steamed dish is kaburamoshi with mino meat inside, covered in an ankake sauce made from minotaur bone broth."
"The simmered dish is nikujaga. It uses big bear meat... I wonder what that tastes like?"
"The fried dish is bite-sized karaage made from various monster meats. It might be nice since you don't usually get to compare multiple kinds at once. But since the frying time for each meat will be different, I’ll have to research how they handled that..."
"And the grilled dish... even if it's a small amount, I can't believe they put something like this on a lunch menu. Marbled minotaur meat steak."
While comparing the actual food with the menu, we examined the Premium Lunch with a mix of admiration and disbelief. At the moment, since many of the food-type drop items from the dungeon were monster meats, it was inevitable that dishes using dungeon ingredients would be meat-focused.
In the future, if rivers or ponds are found in the dungeon, we might be able to expect seafood. Since there was a forest floor around the 40th floor, maybe vegetables and fruits will eventually enter circulation too.
"Well, I have various thoughts, but let's eat before it gets cold. It would be a waste of a feast if we let it sit."
"You're right. Let's dig in. We can share our impressions after the meal."
"Yeah, let's do it. Well then—"
Thank you for the food.
We put our hands together, said our thanks, and began the meal.
"The theory with Japanese food is to start with the lighter flavors, but these all look pretty hearty. Is it okay if I just go with whatever I like?"
"Shouldn't be a problem. That said, I'm starting with the soup... oh, this is delicious. The meat is good, but is the dashi made from orc bones too?"
"It seems so. Did they use bones that were carefully prepared, changing the water several times without letting it boil to get a clear broth? The flavor is solid, but the gaminess is suppressed. It's well-balanced with the miso so it doesn't become too heavy."
Everyone gave high praise to the first thing we tried: the orc soup. The umami from the orc meat combined with the sweetness of the vegetables felt just right, and the richness of the miso tied the whole thing together.
Honestly, just with this soup alone, I was convinced we’d found a winner. I’d love to have more of this in a large bowl.
"Next, I'll try this."
I took a bite of rice to cleanse my palate and reached for the kaburamoshi. When I put my chopsticks into the white mass covered in thick minotaur bone broth sauce, it split in half without much resistance. The stark contrast between the snow-white outer layer, the minced minotaur meat inside, and the light soy-colored sauce was incredibly appetizing.
I blew on it lightly to cool it down before taking a bite.
"Delicious. The meatiness of the mino meat coming out from the soft, mild turnip, and that umami-rich bone broth sauce... this is really something."
"This nikujaga is delicious too. Who would have thought that big bear meat could become this tender and flavorful..."
"These aren't dungeon ingredients, but the sashimi is fresh and delicious too. Since the lunch is meat-heavy, having something like this as a palate cleanser is a big help."
We each reached out for whatever we liked, savoring the dishes. Knowing what the monsters looked like in their original forms made it all the more impressive how delicious they could become.
Next, I reached for the monster meat mixed karaage.
"This is... delicious, but what kind of meat is it?"
"Let’s see. According to the menu, the meat is cut into different sizes. From smallest to largest, it's horn rabbit, hound dog, and red boar... looks like meat from the upper floors. And apparently, they were fried using dungeon-produced plant oil."
"Dungeon-produced oil... could it be that they extracted oil from that grass growing on the 30th floor?"
"If it's a plant oil from the dungeon that's in circulation, that’s probably it."
Edible oil from that grass, huh? If there are ways to utilize it like this, then even grass that looks like nothing can be valuable. The raw material respawns in a short time, and considering the weight per volume, it might be more efficient to bring in extraction equipment and take the oil back instead of the grass itself. Refining might be impossible, but extraction seems doable. Maybe I’ll try it next time I go to the dungeon.
Anyway, I wanted to see how the oil affected the flavor.
"Whoa, what is this? It's delicious, but even though it feels very light, it has a rich flavor like sesame oil."
"...You're right. How did they manage this? And even though the aroma is strong, it doesn't interfere with the taste of the meat at all."
"It's amazing. To think that this kind of oil could be obtained from that grass... I think I'll secure some for research the next time we go."
The shock of the mixed karaage made us stop eating for a moment. To us, that 30th-floor grass was just a highly regenerative, flammable, dangerous plant that blocked our vision.
I never thought it could transform like this... This is what it means to change your perspective.