Visited on a Saturday afternoon before 6 pm. No other customers were there. When I opened the door, the owner was relaxing inside (laughs). I heard that the chef is from the now-closed "Chinman" in Shari-cho. I visited Chinman a few times when I was a child, but to be honest, I don't remember the taste... I came here with the intention of trying the rumored fried rice, but there was a set menu so I also ordered dumplings. The fried rice was on the dry side. It had a mild pepper flavor, which I liked, and was very easy to eat and delicious. The egg drop soup had a lot of green onions. It was a bit strong, but it went well with the fried rice. The dumpling skin was thick and had a satisfying texture. It was a bit cold, which was a shame, but it was within my tolerance. My partner ordered the ankake yakisoba. I had a small taste, and it had thick sauce on top of firm, thick noodles. It was so rich that it didn't change even if you ate it slowly until the end. Free self-service coffee was provided to customers, so I enjoyed it slowly until my partner finished. The interior of the restaurant was clean and there were plenty of tatami rooms, so it was a relaxing place. Thank you for the meal.

The katsudon with extra egg was delicious, but the amount of katsu was a bit too much. The service was good, with a lunch coupon and complimentary coffee. The gyoza was tasty, so I want to try the set with fried rice next time.

I had the Ankake Yakisoba set meal and received a free Kyun coupon for a Chashu bun. Coffee was self-serve and complimentary, which was nice. They also had manga and magazines available. A hot towel was provided. The gyoza was delicious, but everything else was just okay. I would give the gyoza a rating of 4.0 or higher. If I have space in my freezer, I would like to buy their frozen gyoza. I hope they add a gyoza set meal to the menu. I think I'm done with noodles for now and would prefer rice dishes. I would like to try their spring rolls and shumai.

Visited around 1 pm on Saturday. There were 3 cars in the parking lot with 2 spaces available. There were 2 groups of 3 people already there. I had the Ankake Yakisoba for 870 yen, and it was so delicious that I would want to eat it again. They even served complimentary coffee after the meal. Thank you for the great meal!

Ei-cho, Kitami City. A Chinese restaurant located in a residential area. It's surprising to find a restaurant like this here. Only two people, the "Heavyweight" and "Iron Man" of Okhotsk, are present. As expected. (^ー^) Let's prepare a little by reading the reviews of the two before lowering our expectations and trying it out. "Kouraiken" around 11:30 AM. One customer already there. The atmosphere is a bit low-key, but the wife greets us with a "Welcome" and the owner follows suit, albeit in a very soft voice. Unexpected, as "Heavyweight" mentioned there was no greeting! (laughs) We sit at a table in the back. Well, let's skip the ramen this time (is there a next time?). "Iron Man" mentioned it was like Kushiro, so we won't try it. (laughs) I order the "Ankake Yakisoba Set" for 1030 yen. It comes with yakisoba, gyoza, rice, and soup. The "Ankake Yakisoba" sauce is not very distinctive, with a mild salty flavor. The thin, slightly chewy noodles (reminiscent of Kushiro) don't absorb the sauce well. The ingredients are mainly vegetables, a bit lacking in variety. The "Gyoza" are neatly wrapped and come in a set of three. The meat juice is moderate, but the flavor of the leeks is nice. This is quite tasty. My wife even says it's one of the best she's had. Well, I can't disagree. The egg soup is average. The service is minimal, but the taste is decent, I think.

There was no hospitality at all, but the background music playing was "AKB48" and the store didn't open on time, so I thought it might be closed for the day. However, the entrance didn't have a curtain hanging, so I thought, "Maybe it's actually open!" and decided to try opening the door. It didn't open, and the inside was dark. It was a Saturday, but I thought they might be closed. So, the new me, different from the old me, decided to make a phone call. I waited for the phone to ring six times, thinking that I have indeed changed from the old me, but the old man didn't answer. After the seventh ring, he finally answered, and when I asked if they were open for business, he replied, "We're open!" I used to be different, so I might have said, "No, we're closed!" but the old man said, "Are you in front of the store?" I replied, "Yes," and he said, "Then I'll open it now." What? "I'll open it now!" Sorry about that. Despite this, I didn't leave and realized I had become really mild. I said, "Thank you for waiting," and the old man said, "Please come in." I had various scenarios in my mind, but I had to admit defeat in the situation. I felt like I was dying from the sense of defeat. I entered the store and greeted the old man in the kitchen with a nod and a "Hello." He didn't even acknowledge me. "Welcome!" would have been fine! I ordered the "Salt Ramen" and the "Ramen and Fried Rice Set." The old man asked, "Which one do you want to make small?" I didn't quite understand what he meant, but I kinda got it. But hey, where's the service spirit? We're the customers paying money. If I were a rude customer, it would be understandable, but I'm paying here. The ramen and fried rice in the set are small portions, right? That's why he was asking, "Which one do you want to make small?" I think that's what he meant. He didn't explain anything until the end. "Please make the fried rice small." It'll be ready in about 10 minutes. Naruto, normal seaweed, unnecessary green onions, normal bamboo shoots, desalted chashu, which looks tough but isn't that tough. The noodles are the old-fashioned soft noodles. Well, I have no complaints, but the soy sauce won over the salt, and the soup doesn't have a strong taste of chemical seasoning. The taste is old-fashioned. The salt gets a 3.2, the soy sauce gets a 2.9, and the fried rice gets a 3.0, so overall it's a 3.0. That's good enough. I won't include the customer service in the evaluation because it would lower the score. Another customer arrived, no greeting. Thank you for treating us the same! There was no discrimination, so I could leave feeling relieved. AKB48 music was playing the whole time, which didn't match the atmosphere at all. If you have set opening hours, please open on time, and if you're late, at least say "Sorry for the wait" to the waiting customers. If you said "Hello," at least say "Welcome" as well. It's okay if you didn't say it to anyone, but be consistent. Well, good luck, Kero.

◆February 2014◆ I am continuing my ramen restaurant exploration of places I have never been to before. This time, I visited a Chinese restaurant called "Kouraiken" located in a residential area off Sakae-machi street, not far from the yakiniku restaurant "Yakiniku Tonkyuu." The restaurant is run by a couple and the interior consists of four four-person tables and four tables in a slightly raised area. While the sign reads "Chinese Cuisine," it gives off more of a vibe of a casual Chinese eatery known for its extensive set menu options rather than authentic Chinese cuisine. [Menu Tried] I was tempted by the new set menu offering ramen and mini curry set, but this time I opted for the ramen and fried rice set. You can choose between soy sauce or salt ramen, and either the ramen or fried rice will be in a half-size portion. I chose soy sauce ramen with half fried rice. The ramen had a slightly oily appearance with a clear soup, reminiscent of Kushiro ramen. The taste was not seafood-based but rather a light pork bone soup, with a hint of sweetness. The noodles were medium-thick and slightly wavy, providing a chewy texture. The fried rice was a classic combination of egg, diced char siu, and kamaboko. Both dishes were decent, with no major flaws, but at the same time, they didn't stand out in any particular way. They were just average. It might be a bit challenging to write a review on this type of food. However, I believe you can't go wrong with any dish here, and the set menu offers good value for money. If you live nearby, it could be a convenient spot for a lunch meal. Next time, I'll try the gyoza set, which seems to be a specialty of the restaurant.