Visiting Parry Shokudo in Chichibu: The Old-Fashioned Yoshoku Ryuji Wonders Will "Still Be Around in 10 Years"

Ryuji says he watches TikTok a lot, and that is where he saw videos of Parry Shokudo spreading widely. The videos explained that the restaurant's building has been designated a cultural property, that the owner, now over 80, is still running the place, and that the building has deteriorated to the point where repairs will cost about 40 million yen, so the restaurant is asking for support. Ryuji says that seeing this simply made him want to go and eat there. Permission to film was obtained in advance.

He was accompanied by a person called "Taisho," a chef who runs a sushi restaurant in Tokyo. Taisho is from Saitama and says that about 40 years ago, as a child, they came to this restaurant many times with their father. Their father rented a farm plot in Chichibu and would stop by the restaurant each time. Ryuji remembered the owner saying in a video that it makes them happy when customers from long ago come back. So he reached out to Taisho, and they decided to come together.

As soon as they walk in, Taisho says, "Nothing's changed." Pointing to old Coca-Cola fixtures and the restaurant's furnishings, Taisho reminisces that these are things you can no longer buy. There is even a stove lit with matches, and the group delights in the retro feel. They also mention that the distillery for Ichiro's Malt whisky is right near the restaurant, and touch on the drinks selection. The restaurant apparently welcomes daytime drinking, and Ryuji says he loves how it is kind to drinkers.

The kitchen is run by two people. The first dishes to arrive are potato salad and katsu curry. The only ingredient in the curry appears to be onion. Ryuji describes it as "like curry from a yoshoku restaurant" and guesses that the spices are used a little differently from usual. It is so hot it is steaming, and the katsu coating is just right; Ryuji laughs that he could probably eat two plates by himself. This katsu curry is said to be the restaurant's second most popular dish, and the plate bears the word "Parry."

Next comes the shumai. Taisho is the first to remember, "The shumai is incredibly good," and starts tracing back memories: "The curry was good too." What surprises Ryuji first is how juicy it is, and he wonders aloud how it is made. Eating it with mustard, he says it is "so good it's moving," and praises its tenderness. He also remarks that the moisture from the onions seems to be doing a lot of the work.

For their additional order, they choose omurice and ramen, plus the restaurant's signature sauce katsudon. The sauce katsudon comes in "Mega" and "Jo" (premium) versions. The Mega is a large one using the same meat as the katsu curry, while the Jo uses pork fillet. The group orders the Jo sauce katsudon, among other things.

According to Ryuji, who watched it being made, the sauce seemed to be Worcestershire-style, and it looked like several kinds were being blended. The sauce is also heated before use. The fillet is cut fresh from a whole block and fried in oil that has been used for many years. A wok is used for frying, and apparently a much bigger one was used before. The wok is well-worn and warped, and Ryuji points out, "Yeah, it's a little warped."

After eating, Ryuji says it is "not greasy" and keeps returning to the flavor of the sauce. He rates it highly: personally he might prefer it to the curry, it would be worth coming just for this sauce katsu, and it might be the best sauce katsu he has ever eaten.

At this point, Taisho says, "I remember now," and is in tears. Memories of eating it as a child have come flooding back, and Taisho concludes that it is just as delicious as it was back then. Ryuji wonders why it is so moving and says it is a flavor he could never make himself. He then says that eating this makes you want to contribute to the crowdfunding, and that this restaurant should be preserved.

The ramen comes in a small bowl. It is topped with menma and narutomaki, and there is almost no oil floating on the surface. There is also an exchange suggesting the noodles seem to be homemade.

Ryuji is surprised, saying that he would put more oil on the surface himself, but this has none at all. Even so, he cannot figure out why it is so good, and wonders whether it comes down to the broth. Taisho explains that ramen about 50 years ago was like this. The bowls were about this size too, unlike the big bowls at ramen shops, and ramen was positioned more as a light meal. Taisho recalls that eating styles like ramen with rice or ramen with fried rice probably did not exist back then either.

Ryuji says it struck him as "a bit like soba," and Taisho agrees that old-fashioned chuka soba tasted like this. Ryuji wonders whether it is a seasoning style that was popular in the past, but says that it has surely lasted to this day precisely because it is still delicious now. He says he never imagined the ramen would be this good.

Between dishes, there is a scene where they are shown a menu said to be about 90 years old. It lists vegetable soup, potage, consommé, fried oysters, fried shrimp, fried fish, Irish stew, fried carp, croquettes and more. There is also an entry reading "boiled eggs," and the group laughs, wondering if that means hard-boiled eggs. Looking at the number "35," which seems to be a price, and the handwritten arrows, Ryuji is surprised that it is a full yoshoku lineup and says he can feel the history.

The owner says they have been doing this work since the age of 16.

What drew the group's attention most was how the omurice is made. Ryuji and Taisho were allowed to watch it being cooked. Ketchup is added directly to finish it, and only one egg is used. Ryuji says it was a method he had never known, and that he had never seen omurice made with just one egg.

According to the owner, the recipe has not changed since the old days. What has changed is the side: originally it was just the rice. One time, when a cast member from the TV program Kuishinbo! Banzai came to the restaurant, fruit was added to the plate, and that stuck.

After eating, Ryuji repeats, "Why is this so good?" He says he does not understand how it ends up tasting like this, even though he watched it being made and it looked simple. Taisho replies, "The history speaks for itself." In Ryuji's view, the meat is chicken breast but very tasty, and the dish is actually good precisely because it uses only one egg. It is light overall, to the point that he wondered whether that amount of ketchup was really enough. He explains the difference: the omurice he knows has rice that is bright red and sweet, but this one is not sweet.

The karaage that came out last was large, and both of them said they "could eat another round."

After the meal, they exchanged a few words with the owner. Ryuji admits that at first the owner was cooking so intently that he felt he should not talk to them. Because the food was so wonderful, he worked up the courage to speak, and the owner responded in a friendly way.

Taisho tells the owner about coming here often with their father as a child and about finally being able to come back today after a long time, and says they hope the owner keeps going forever. When Ryuji asks what the owner enjoys most these days, the owner answers, "Work." Ryuji responds, "Same here."

The owner jokes that their doctor has told them to stop drinking, but then reveals that the only reason they did not drink yesterday was that they had surgery for an ingrown toenail the day before. The group toasts with the owner using Chichibu sake. The owner says, "To be able to toast with such an important person," and Ryuji is humbled.

Toward the end, Ryuji summarizes the restaurant's current situation and his reasons for supporting it. The building shows damage here and there, and its earthquake resistance is so inadequate that the restaurant cannot operate with peace of mind as things stand. Preserving the building requires 40 million yen, and support is being sought through crowdfunding. There is also a 30-year-old fourth-generation successor, the owner's grandchild, who wants to keep the restaurant going and carry on its flavors.

Ryuji believes that a significant part of what makes food at a restaurant delicious is eating it in that restaurant's atmosphere. That is why he takes the position that there is meaning in preserving the building itself.

He goes on to share his view that flavors like these will disappear in the future. The reason is that they are not efficient. Continuing with such labor-intensive methods is no small feat. As rationalization advances more and more, he asks, how many restaurants will still be able to serve this flavor 10 or 20 years from now? He also says he very much hopes the flavors of the omurice and the sauce katsu will be passed down.

Ryuji says that before coming he had only seen the restaurant on social media, but after actually eating there, he wants this flavor to continue and wants to tell everyone about it. He told the owner that he now wholeheartedly wants to support them and asked to be allowed to help. He says he will put the crowdfunding page in the description, and asks anyone interested to at least take a look at the page.

Saying there are still dishes he has not tried and that he wants to visit again, he recommends that anyone who can make the trip be sure to try the omurice and the sauce katsu, and the video comes to a close.