Such a lovely book! I was very excited to read this book as I’d read the first one The Kamogawa Food Detectives. These stories are beautiful - moving, gentle and full of warmth. The descriptions of the food are absolutely mouthwatering and I would love to try all of the dishes.
There are lessons for all of us in these stories, around love, loss, forgiveness and each one is a little treat.

PanMac/Mantle for the e-arc in exchange for an honest review 🍜🐈

“He’s saying that an artistic lineage doesn’t always have to be passed by blood… What counts is passing on your art, in its every detail, to whoever picks up the baton.”

The follow up to The Kawagawa Food Detectives was equally as wholesome and endearing as its predecessor.

We rejoin Koishi and her father, Nagare, in their little hidden restaurant in Kyoto. Offering not only delicious food, but some special detective services to recreate beloved dishes for their customers.

We get to meet some really interesting characters, all with distinct backstories looking to experience that one dish they've been thinking about for a very long time. I loved reading about what the food meant to them and how Nagare was able to recreate it (often involving a little adventure!). I should also say that the food descriptions are phenomenal!

This was a very cosy, emotional and heartwarming read.

A lovely return to the Kamogawa diner, run by a father and daughter duo who also help to track down specific meals from people’s pasts.

This time we see an Olympic swimming hopeful who’s after some nori-ben, a company founder who’s after some ramen, and an aging music star who’s after some ten-don, just to highlight a few of the diners customers.

While each chapter follows the same formula the difference in the customers, the dishes they’re after, and their backstories, give enough variation. It’s cosy and comforting, and sure to get stomachs grumbling while also pulling at the heart strings. If you enjoyed the first book you’re bound to enjoy this next instalment too.

Thank you to the publishers, and Netgalley, for the copy to review.

Such a cute, cosy and tasty book!
I absolutely adored this story. The vibe, the food, the characters - I just loved everything about it. It is so cosy and heartwarming. The descriptions of the food made my mouth water and I wish I could sit in the Kamogawa Diner and taste those delicious meals right now!

I didn't know that this was the sequel, but that didn't really matter - you can absolutely read this book without haven't read the first book.

This was such a cosy read overall, I loved exploring the characters relationships and following peoples past and the recipes that connect / create their memories.

Just like the first book in the series, the second book, The Restaurant of List Recipes, was a delightful and cozy read. I loved how each dish was described, the story behind it and how the main characters were able to recreate the dish. I had to search for the places, dishes and ingredients while reading the book -- I enjoyed the full experience!

I hope there's a third sequel to the series!

I didn’t know this was a sequel when I read it, but I can read this just fine even though there are some information I think I should’ve known before if I read the first book.
So I would definitely recommend reading the 1st book.

Set in Kyoto, there’s a small restaurant owned by father and daughter who offer a service as ‘food detectives’.
I absolutely love the food detectives idea and the fact that food is never just something you need to live. Food can bring back lost memories and even give us closures which is what the father and daughter do for their customers who seeks their service.

While a few parts gets slightly repetitive after a while, I still thoroughly enjoy getting to know the hidden reasons behind each dishes the customer requests and how the chef will begin investigating to re-create the exact taste.

Overall, it’s a very heart-warming story and would be one of my comfort read!
I would advise to never read this book in the middle of the night cause you’ll be craving all these foods as soon as you do!
I’m really looking forward to read the next book in this series!

⚠️ 𝐓𝐖: Death of a parent, child death

This is the second book of the Kamogawa Food Detective series. I enjoyed reading the first book of the series and it was a privilege to get an invitation for the second book as well.

Cheif Nagare and his daughter Koishi runs the restaurant but their restaurant is just more than a restaurant that serves food. They specifically makes a meal and recreate that meal through their customer's memories about the meal thus recounting the story about the meal. The customers involve a swimmer with hopes of becoming an Olympic swimmer to the famous supermodel who yearns for a fried rice that she loved during her childhood.

This book is no different from the first book--in fact it is exactly like the first book except maybe this time, the customers are different. The outline and the story overall are still the same as the previous one, so there are no special changes that you can see in this second book. There were often times when I thought that some parts of the story were repetitive but nonetheless just like the previous book, I enjoyed reading this book. Having lived in Japan and spending part of my childhood there, some of the Japanese food mentioned in the book made me think about my own experiences as a kid back in Japan and how I enjoyed eating those Japanese dishes. The description of those food and meals made my mouth water and I really wanted to try those dishes!

Overall, this was no different from the first book, yet it was enjoyable to read. Worth four stars in my opinion.

Many thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC. The review is based on my honest opinion only.

Thanks to Pan Macmillan and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this. Just like the first in the series, it was cosy, uplifting and made me very hungry! An easy, wholesome read that I’d recommend to everyone.

The Restaurant of Lost Recipes by Hisashi Kashiwai is a heartwarming and nostalgic journey through the power of food and memory. Kashiwai masterfully weaves a tale that explores how food can evoke deep emotions and connect us to our past. The novel follows a unique restaurant that serves dishes no longer found in modern menus, each one carrying a story and a piece of forgotten history. Through beautifully detailed descriptions and touching character interactions, Kashiwai creates an atmosphere filled with warmth, reflection, and the bittersweet joy of rediscovery. The Restaurant of Lost Recipes is a tender and evocative read that reminds us of the irreplaceable comfort that food and memories bring to our lives.

Moderate: Death of parent and Classism
Minor: Child death

Thank you Netgalley for an eARC in exchange for an honest review!

I still think these are a little short, I would love to be shown a lot more, especially in-between and the actual detective work itself. But it's still a very cosy, very wholesome read! Quick to finish but leaves you feeling very hungry and wanting to pop to a Japanese resturant!

The characters are as varied as before, different reasons for seeking the agency and different resolutions, and the main duo while not really much development I do quite enjoy their chemistry!
And Drowsy, if this series doesn't end with them getting into the resturant I'll be upset!

I do really love how varied the food is, and especially highlighting different region's food. I can't say I know too much about all that but the bits I do know I recognise! Learning about new dishes and ingredients is so much fun!! and painful, because I know I'll never be able to eat like, any of it :')

This was a very readable and enjoyable book, and a perfect novel to curl up with as the days are getting colder. It's a feel-good story that also gently gives messages to help the characters negotiate problems in their lives.

The novel is based on a father and daughter, Nagare and Koishi, who run a restaurant hidden away on a backstreet in Kyoto. Through cooking and food, they help their customers to better understand themselves and issues they are dealing with - often by taking people back to their pasts through dishes.

Their 'detective agency' promises that they will recreate dishes that customers want to try again from their pasts. But each customer who shows up at the restaurant has a reason for wanting to return to their dish - and these reasons point to other things going on in their lives.

I haven't read the first book in this series. But I was impressed by how strong the two main characters are. The book is relatively short and we plunge right into the first 'case' with the first customer, but simply through dialogue and behaviour we get a sense of Nagare and Koishi very quickly. Not every author can achieve this.

Their relationship is lovely - obviously based on mutual respect and care, with the usual teasing you would expect from a parent thrown in. It's clear that Nagare's partner - Koishi's mother - has passed away, but they talk about her all the time and treat her as if she is still with them - speaking to her, including her in numbers when they prepare food and so on.

Both are possibly lonely, and there are references to both of them maybe needing to find someone. It's good how hints at who Koishi could possibly develop a relationship with are done very briefly and subtly however - it's left to the reader to wonder about how serious or likely any of it is. The ending is with Nagare and his late partner, and is quite moving.

At times the novel felt a little bit over the top in terms of its 'messages' that are being delivered to the customers - maybe even a little cringeworthy. But that's really not a big criticism, because it is still nice to read and interesting to see how the different customers respond.

I would now like to read the first of the series and would recommend this one. It's so easy to read and the descriptions of the food - even if you have no clue what the dishes are - will make your mouth water!

Thank you NetGalley and Pan Macmillan for the ARC!

The English-translated version of Hisashi Kashiwai's 'The Restaurant of Lost Recipes' is a cosy book. After I read it, I felt like I had received a warm hug. I hadn't read the previous book but I loved the second book. It focuses on six characters who are trying to find or rediscover a delicious meal. It dives into their backstories, relaying nostalgia and fond memories of the past.

Books like this always remind me of community and past relationships/friendships. There's something so wholesome and heartbreaking about looking back to the past and reminiscing those memories. That's what this book represents.

This was a real joy to read. One of the best books or English-translated books published this year,

I liked it, but not as much as the first book in the series.

The main characters were still great and the descriptions of the various foods were mouthwatering, however the clients in this one lacked the depth of those in the first book. The resolutions weren’t as powerful and even the character development of the Kamogawa’s was lacking.

I enjoyed it, but it was disappointing when compared with The Kamogawa Food Detectives.

*** Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher ***

I cannot express how much I adored this. I was a little worried that it wouldn’t live up to the first book but the second was filled to the brim with just as much cosyness. I loved each and every little story and character, I especially loved the Christmas cake chapter. Some of the best translated fiction I’ve ever read.

I loved this book like I loved the first in the series but have the same complaint, the book is not long enough!

It tells the story of a father and daughter who run a restaurant but also run a detective agency. Their clients are trying to find not people or pets but lost recipes, be it a recipe from childhood by family members, or a restaurant that was important to them. The father investigates and then brings to client back to the restaurant where he cooks the food for them and gives them the recipe.

The book is divided into 6 chapters with a different client in each story. Each story is divided into the two, the first the client visiting and telling their story and the second, the explanation of the investigation and the tasting.

I read and loved The Kamogawa Food Detectives last year and I've been eagerly awaiting the sequel. We are back with the father-daughter pair: Nagare, the chef, and Koishi, the food detective. The style of the book follows six vignettes, different characters on their quest to rediscover a treasured meal. I thought we met a really interesting set of people and their backstories were well described.
It is wonderfully translated by Jesse Kirkwood, who has become one of my favourite translators. I love the humour between father and daugher too. Poor Drowsy the cat, I do wish Nagare would slowly warm to him!
I recommend this translated fiction series to those who enjoy slice-of-life, cosy and heartwarming short books, and I will definitely continue on with this series if more are translated into English in the future.

Thank you to NetGalley, Pan Macmillan and Hisashi Kashiwai for the opportunity to read this advanced reader copy.

Review posted to Goodreads and The StoryGraph. Review to be published on Instagram, Amazon and Waterstones on release day.

The follow on title to the Kamogawa Detectives, The Restaurant of Lost Recipes carries on from the last book in following the father-daughter duo offering a food detective service for their customers to relive forgotten memories, of people long past or those that they have lost touch with for some reason.

Like other Japanese novels in the same vein it's the kind which has short interconnected stories which makes it ideal for a commuter read or one you dip in and out of when you have a free moment in a busy schedule for a bit of cosy heart-warming vibes. I greatly recommend.

The second in the Kamogawa Food Detectives series and follows the same format as the previous book. Former detective Nagare Kamogawa and his daughter Koishi run the Kamogawa Diner in Kyoto. Its aim is for Nagare for recreate dishes for customer that remind them of important times in their lives. It is essentially a book of short stories, beautifully written and well translated making a heartwarming read.

Briefly, there are 6 separate stories, from the model who is planning to get married to a wealthy man and wants to recreate her mother ‘pink’ fried rice to help her explain her early roots. To a one hit wonder singer who wants to taste the tendon, a tempura rice bowl, that she was treated to when she had her big hit. Each story is told in two chapters, the first when they describe their food desire and their memories around it and the second two weeks later when the recreated dish is shared with the customer.

I love that Drowsy the cat appears in each story but I do wish that Nagare would allow the poor cat to come inside. I love all the food descriptions, it genuinely made me salivate! Each story is full of emotion and each meal an homage to relationships and happy memories. Another enjoyable and entertaining read.
4.5⭐️

I absolutely loved 'The Kamogawa Food Detectives' so could not wait to read this second installment.

This book like the first is like a warm hug from your grandmother, its cosy, heartwarming & full of individual stories with the most beautiful descriptions of food, you will almost imagine tasting the dishes.

This is such a unique, clever and creative story that you can't help but get lost in.