Suddenly craving for crab, I muttered "I want to eat crab" and my husband made a lunch reservation at Kani Doraku. We usually visit the Sakai branch, but this time we went to the Matsubara branch for the first time. The garden in the courtyard was refreshing and full of cleanliness, which was nice. It had been a while since we last visited Kani Doraku, but the prices seemed a bit higher now? Well, I guess it can't be helped in these times. I think the best amount of crab to enjoy is a little more? I personally love the sashimi of live crab! Grateful to my kind husband. Although not shown in the pictures, we also had crab tempura and crab hot pot here. It was delicious!

I went with my family. When I called to make a reservation two hours earlier, the private rooms were fully booked so we sat at a regular table with a spacious sunken kotatsu and floor heating, which was comfortable. We had the Koharu course. The crab miso shell grill that I was looking forward to had a slightly disappointing aftertaste, like a film sticking to my tongue. The dessert was vanilla ice cream with matcha on top, where they poured freshly whisked green tea over the ice cream. The matcha was cold and the vanilla ice cream was firm, so the bitterness of the matcha was quite strong. In my opinion, it might be tastier if the warm matcha was poured over slightly melted ice cream. Overall, it was good and my family members who ordered different courses seemed satisfied.

My younger brother, who lives in Tokyo, came back to Osaka for work, so our family gathered for a meal. Participants were me, my brother, my sister, and our mother. My brother and sister chose the restaurant, and my brother paid for the meal. It was a special occasion as Osaka locals are said to use it for celebrations. We went to a popular restaurant called Kenminsho for the holiday, and we made a reservation online in advance. The restaurant was fully booked for private rooms months in advance, so we had to settle for a table. The tables were well separated, so we could enjoy our meal in peace. We started with a toast with beer and ordered different dishes: I had the Momoka set, my mother had the Yuika set, my brother had the Himeka set, and my sister had the Hoshinoshizuku set. I also ordered the grilled king crab as an additional dish. We shared the dishes and enjoyed the meal, although we had trouble distinguishing between them. Overall, the restaurant provided a special dining experience with attentive service. It was a relaxing and enjoyable meal.

Since this restaurant opened nearby, I used to go there about once a month! I really like the private rooms, but you have to make a reservation well in advance because they get booked up quickly. My partner and I always order two courses, including dishes like deep-fried crab, crab sashimi, Chinese-style crab miso grilled, gratin, and crab cream croquettes. The food is always delicious and never disappoints, but one thing I've always thought they could improve is the vanilla ice cream with matcha topping.

On this day, I visited Kani Doraku for dinner. It was during a state of emergency and alcohol was not available, but I had no choice but to go. I ordered the course menu as usual and enjoyed it without alcohol. It was my first time eating without alcohol, but oh well... However, the Kani Doraku was not as crowded as usual on a holiday and the staff seemed a bit unfriendly. Thank you for the meal.

On this day, it was Setsubun, and this time I prepared the Crab Ehomaki from Kani Doraku. We faced south-southeast and inside the roll were boiled crab and egg! Usually, I struggle to finish one roll, but this time I was able to eat it all smoothly. Thank you for the delicious meal.

In December, we celebrated with a luxurious lunch at Kani Doraku, filled with crab dishes. ■ Special Crab Course 13,200 yen including tax Especially delicious were the grilled Taraba crab, two types of crab tempura, Taraba crab, and snow crab, crab sushi, and matcha ice cream with green tea. It was a luxurious course. ■ Crab Shabu-Shabu Course 10,450 yen including tax Easy-to-eat crab shabu-shabu, very delicious. ■ Haruka Lunch 4,730 yen including tax A crab kaiseki lunch for lunch. ■ Crab Cream Croquette 726 yen My 2-year-old ate a little. ■ Strawberry Parfait 550 yen My 2-year-old ate most of it. It was delicious and good to eat before the coronavirus. Now, we can't go out, but it's a comfortable place to dine. This was my third visit, but my first review. I would like to visit again. For reference, this is about Kani Doraku Matsubara store.

Today's lunch was a bit luxurious. We went to a crab specialty restaurant that my wife has been wanting to try for a while. Normally, we go to places like Kinosaki or Tango Peninsula for crab during our year-end parties, so this time it was a treat for my wife. It had been about 12 years since I last went to a crab restaurant, so it was a nice change. The restaurant had a high-class feel with tanks full of crabs, flowing water, and a traditional Japanese garden. I remember a similar restaurant I went to in the past also had a stream running through it. We had pre-ordered the lunch course for my wife and me, while the kids ordered crab tempura and crab rice. We shared everything among ourselves. We started by cooking the crab rice and enjoyed crab vinegar and crab sashimi. Then we had chawanmushi, gratin, tempura, and more crab dishes. The crab tempura was especially delicious. Even though the kids enjoyed the crab dishes more than expected, I gladly shared with them since I had just eaten crab on Wednesday (laughs). Finally, we topped the cooked crab rice with more crab and steamed it to perfection. For the second serving of crab rice, we had it as ochazuke. My son, who has been into ochazuke lately, was delighted. Although it was pricier than our usual lunch, the restaurant was fully booked, showing its popularity. It's nice to come as a family once a year for a special meal like this.

As always, I bought an Ehomaki from Kani Doraku for Setsubun this year. I faced north-northwest a little before eating it. It was delicious as always. Thank you for the meal. I will come back again next year.