I did enjoy this second book in the series. I feel that the pacing was a little bit slow but that can be a great thing in certain moods. Of course, the food descriptions were amazing. It was a quick and enjoyable read for a rainy day.

This book was just as cozy as the original but seemed to be missing an overarching story thread to pull these stories together. This second book continues to follow the food detectives as they find new dishes to recreate different memories in people’s lives. These books are so cozy and heartwarming but this one felt a little more like a collection of short stories than the first. I still really enjoyed this book and would pick up any more from this author or series as I always look forward to these stories which also leave me hungry. I would like to thank NetGalley and the publishers for a chance to read this book for an honest review.

I love this series so much! Every time I read one of Kashiwai's books, I come away with at least one recipe I want to try.

Book two of the Kamogawa Detective series which features a nondescript diner on a quiet Kyoto street with an unusual twist. In addition to serving a foodie’s dream set meal to each new guest, the father/daughter team also run a detective agency that specializes in finding recipes for beloved or meaningful dishes for their clients. This series is much like Before the Coffee Gets Cold in that each chapter is its own short episode or story, but every chapter follows the exact same formula and like that series, it’s meant to be cozy and sentimental.

While I don’t know if I’ll continue in this series, I did like this installment better than book 1! Book one was really repetitive in the language used, but there was less of that in this one and I enjoyed the individual stories more too. Unfortunately, I just don’t feel that attached to Nagare and Koishi and wish there was just something a little more to it (maybe a touch of magic realism?), but I’m glad to have read the first two installments in English.

I recommend this series if you like Before the Coffee Gets Cold and you love food! There are many, many descriptions of food in this series from the food served to guests when they first arrive to the dishes they are searching for. A familiarity with Japanese dishes might be helpful too (I lived in Japan for a long time, so the food descriptions made me miss Japanese food).

I think this is a rather long series in Japanese, so it’ll be interesting to see how many get translated.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a digital arc for review.

Absolutely loved this second iteration of stories from father-daughter detective duo. Diners happen upon the Kamogawa food detectives via their small advert in a magazine, and they come seeking a recreation of a dish that is in some way special to them, experiencing the emotions that come with trying a food that they may not have had in years. As always, the stories are predictable and the true fun comes from the food descriptions.

I love all the side stories of everyone needing a certain dish to feel better or feel more at peace at least. Some broke my heart a little bit but having them all come to the restaurant and at least have some peace there, made me feel better for them. Translation was very good, read like a native.

I love a foodie book and Hisashi Kashiwai’s Restaurant of Lost Recipes is no exception! The language about food and the complexity of human relationships is so illustrative it feels like I’m the one sitting in the Kawogama Diner, eating an elaborately crafted Japanese meal, and revisiting my past. This is a comforting, nostalgic, and quick read that provides a rich sensory experience. If you’ve ever attached a unique emotion or memory to a meal, this work will resonate with you. Also a great read for fans of Japanese cuisine. Thank you to NetGalley for the eARC.

Divided into six short stories The Restaurant of Lost Recipes is warm and hopeful.
I think we all have that one food or recipe that is home for us. It’s not a place nor a person but a feeling and this book captures just that. It highlights the way food can heal us and help us through loss, love, and more importantly life.
It is beautifully written and even more beautifully crafted each story immersing you and hitting deep.

*The Restaurant of Lost Recipes* by Hisashi Kashiwai presents a charming concept, revolving around a mystical restaurant that serves dishes long forgotten by time. The setting is inviting, and Kashiwai's writing has a warm, nostalgic quality that pulls readers into the world of culinary memories and lost traditions.

However, while the premise is unique and the descriptions of food are vivid, I found the plot to be a bit predictable and slow at times. The characters, though endearing, felt somewhat underdeveloped, and I struggled to connect with their personal journeys. There’s a lot of potential in the story, but it never quite reaches the depth that I hoped for.

Overall, it’s a sweet, comforting read, perfect for those who enjoy stories centered around food and nostalgia, but it might leave others wanting a bit more in terms of emotional depth and narrative tension.

*The Restaurant of Lost Recipes* by Hisashi Kashiwai is a heartwarming tale that combines food, nostalgia, and personal discovery. The concept of a restaurant that serves dishes tied to lost memories is intriguing, and the story beautifully explores themes of healing and second chances. The setting is inviting, and the descriptions of the food are vivid, making it easy to imagine the flavors and emotions that come with each dish.

However, while the book has moments of depth, it occasionally feels overly slow and lacking in character development. Some of the relationships could have been fleshed out more, and certain plotlines felt predictable. The pacing was uneven at times, and I found myself wishing for more excitement or tension.

Overall, *The Restaurant of Lost Recipes* is an enjoyable read but doesn’t quite reach its full potential. It’s a nice, cozy novel, but it could have used a bit more to truly stand out.

Thank you so much to netgalley and the publisher for the arc of this one in exchange for an honest review!

This book is the second installment in a series about a daughter and father team that recreate recipes for people. I don't think it is necessary for you to read the first one in order to enjoy this one.

This book is a short and cozy Japanese lit book. There are different stories about the recipes and the reasons behind why these people are looking for these recipes.

I loved all of the food talk with this book! It was full of Japanese cuisine and made me hungry reading it. I also enjoyed how cozy it was and it was a comfort to read.

I would definitely recommend!

thank you to NetGalley for a chance to read this before publication.

I shall say what prepared me for the cold last year was this book. Filled with charm and coziness, the restaurant of lost recipes reminded me the importance of life through the foods we eat. The mystery element was certainly a pleasant surprise as I did not know how our main protagonists would “hunt down” the taste, the feeling or even the look od a dish just by how a client described them. I read through this easily and had a fun time.

I read this book months ago and thought I had already submitted a review for it, but apparently not (oops)
This was a nice, easy read, a form of pallet cleanser if you will (no pun intended)
Be sure to have snacks on hand when you are reading as you will end up getting hungry with all of the delicious food.

This was cute but incredibly slow and not enough plot to hold my attention. I did like the food mentions but something about the writing felt stilted.

“You appreciate things differently when you’re older, don’t you? Food is never just about flavor. It’s something we feel—and in different ways, depending on where are in life.”

Truer words have never been spoken!! This book and its six short stories that follow the same rhyme and rhythm in terms of form and structure, was an absolutely perfect book to begin the new year with! Like its previous book, The Kamogawa Food Detectives, in this rendition we meet new faces that come to Nagare and Koishi with a food mystery in the sense that they want a dish recreated that holds special meaning to them.

“The simplest of dishes are always the hardest to get right.”

I also found that while Nagare’s dialogue is mostly about the food he has prepared for his clients; he also manages to say things that make me highlight the passage. There’s a lot of wisdom to be found in this book if not in Nagare’s voice through the overall narration itself which is quite lovely to read.

“Every family has its own flavor too. The feeling of safety you get from being together, the way you look out for each other—all that combines to create a unique sensation.”

It’s a very quick paced book yet it’s so cozy that while it’s very easy to read in one setting you feel very fulfilled when you reach the end. There’s no plot or even character development but in this case, it fits the story’s narrative—this book is more about reconnecting to one’s memories/past/previous traumas through food association. The same way one might associate a certain smell or song to a specific moment in time; the same is done with food in this story.

If you’re looking for a quick but impactful read that might also possibly make you really hungry by the time you’re done reading, definitely pick this book up!

Thank you to NetGalley & PENGUIN GROUP Putnam for the eARC in exchange for an honest review!

I should have seen this was a sequel before reading it! I hadn’t read the first one before this. However I felt this was a wonderfully charming novel. This was such a lovely, introspective, calming book. It was emotional and centered on several characters experiencing grief, which I related to

This was a sweet followup to Komogawa Food Detectives! It didn’t quite match up in the whimsy factor, but the sweet, nostalgic tone continued through and made it an enjoyable transition out of seasonal reads.

If I could give this book and this author 10 stars, I would. What an incredible way of reaching to all of us cat lovers than to imagine a story about people in the worst moment of their lives and getting the perfect cat to help them through it.

3.75 stars rounded up

The Restaurant of Lost Recipes by Hisashi Kashiwai (translated by Jesse Kirkwood) is about a father-daughter duo who operate a restaurant/detective agency that seeks to help customers find… you guessed it: lost recipes. Each recipe is tied to a specific memory and time in their lives that is meant to inform their decisions in the present.

This book is a collection of short stories rather than a single story, which can be expected for a book about a detective agency (think Adventures of Sherlock Holmes). It is told in third person omniscient POV, which is pretty different from most books that I’ve read.

The concept and the characters are charming. The father is quite lovable and seemingly can do no wrong.

However, after the first couple stories, the plot can feel repetitive and almost formulaic. Perhaps that’s the vibe this series is meant to have, but at times I find myself wanting to skim past all the parts that I know are pretty much the same in every story, just to get to the part where the story’s unique.

Regardless, this is a cute and touching read, and lovers of Japanese culture will definitely want to pick it up because of all the unique food and location references.

Special thanks to NetGalley and G.P. Putnam's Sons for this e-ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

The Restaurant of Lost Recipes is available now.

★★★

Cute and cozy with the perfect amounts of mystery and culture.

The Restaurant of Lost Recipes has a simple plot: a father-daughter duo run a food detective business from their diner in Kyoto. People come from all over Japan to have them figure out recipes for dishes that hold some sentimental relevance.

Ultimately it’s a story about the lengths people will go for each other, traveling distances and working out near-impossible problems. It illustrates just how easy and rewarding it is to simply be kind.

I enjoyed how quick of a read this was, and how this book was structured as a series of short stories. The food descriptions won me over too (we should’ve been given a full recipe book because my mouth was watering!). I also loved how the story ended with the message of not letting the past keep you from acting or moving forward in the present. It was a natural progression of the story as a whole.

I just wish there was more interconnectedness among the short stories, or perhaps a deeper overarching plot. I also didn’t like how each story seemed to introduce us to Nagare and Koishi (the father and daughter) as if we had never met them before. It was redundant and I don’t think the reader needed to hear that same snippet of conversation between them and their clients every time.

All that to say: Big fan of the cozy vibes and deeper message, but it lost me at the lack of intricacy


Thank you NetGalley and G.P. Putnam’s Sons for the e-ARC!