Chapter 238: Looks Like We'll Be Regulars
Around five o'clock in the afternoon, the two of them, having leisurely strolled through the streets without buying anything, arrived at the Italian restaurant for their dinner.
Although she enjoyed shopping, Eriri was quite restrained when it came to purchasing items; she never bought a huge pile of clothes haphazardly whenever she went out.
Of course, when she saw otaku merchandise, that was a different story, and she couldn't control herself.
Standing in front of the restaurant, Eriri exclaimed in surprise, "Oh!!! Although I saw pictures online and knew it was a high-end restaurant, seeing it in person feels even better."
Kaede nodded in agreement: "Exactly. The decor looks excellent, and combined with the online reviews and Takanashi-san's confidence, dinner tonight should be fantastic. Let's go, Eriri. You must be hungry."
The table had been reserved yesterday, and they had contacted Takanashi Toka, so after they reported their names upon entering, the waiter immediately led them to their reserved seats inside the restaurant.
After handing them the menu, the waiter asked them to wait a moment, and soon Takanashi Toka, wearing a pristine white chef's uniform, came over.
"Welcome, both of you."
Seeing Takanashi Toka's attire, Eriri's eyes lit up as she said, "Wow! Takanashi-san, you look so cool in that chef's uniform!"
Takanashi Toka was actually a woman with great looks and figure, but the previous two times they had seen her, she was dressed simply in jeans and a long-sleeve shirt. Now, in her work uniform, she had a different kind of capable aura.
A slight smile appeared on Takanashi Toka's face, and she said, "Thank you for the compliment. Since this is your first time here, let me give you some recommendations."
Takanashi Toka then recommended a series of dishes based on their tastes, and Kaede and Eriri naturally ordered exactly what she suggested.
After noting down the order, Takanashi Toka said, "Please wait a moment. I will personally prepare this meal for you, so please look forward to it."
Since her younger sister had caused them quite a bit of trouble, and she had no other special skill, she could only use this method to express her apology.
After watching Takanashi Toka leave and taking a sip of her drink, Eriri happily said, "Hehe, our luck is really good. Usually, in a restaurant like this, it's impossible for the head chef to prepare every single dish herself. At most, she'd manage the temperature and seasoning of the main ingredients and control the kitchen's pace."
Kaede was just as extremely excited about tonight's dinner as Eriri was.
Having the head chef personally prepare the entire meal is not something you encounter often. They could say they were completely basking in Takanashi Rikka's reflected glory this time.
At this moment, Kaede felt a considerable amount of gratitude toward the Chuunibyou girl.
Before long, the waiter brought out the appetizer, a salad mixing vegetables, ham, and a bit of seafood, which looked excellent.
Afterward, the dishes were served one after another, perfectly pacing Kaede and Eriri's eating speed. They never brought out the next dish before the previous one was finished. The entire dining experience was extremely satisfying, and the taste was exceptionally good.
Although the whole dinner process was somewhat lengthy, since they were enjoying extremely delicious cuisine and the restaurant environment was excellent, neither of them minded the extended duration. On the contrary, they thoroughly enjoyed it.
Finally, while they were drinking their after-meal coffee, Takanashi Toka, having finished her work, came over and asked, "How was dinner?"
Eriri was the first to give a thumbs-up, praising her: "It was amazing! Takanashi-san, I can confidently say this is the best Italian meal I've had in years!"
Kaede put down his coffee and nodded: "That's right. Although I haven't eaten Italian food often, Takanashi Toka's cooking skills are truly exceptional. It was definitely worth the trip today. And I feel like we will be coming back often."
Takanashi Toka let out a small sigh of relief and smiled, "That is truly wonderful."
As a chef, even with confidence in her own skills, it's impossible to satisfy every diner sometimes. Fortunately, nothing unexpected happened today. She had secretly watched them while she was busy, and Kaede and Eriri genuinely looked satisfied while enjoying the food, without any hint of pretense.
Although she was the head chef, Takanashi Toka had clearly discussed this with the owner today. She didn't immediately return to the kitchen but instead chatted with Eriri about some cooking matters.
When dinner was over and it was time to pay the bill, she actually used a bit of her head chef authority to give Kaede and Eriri a thirty percent discount. It must be noted that this meal was not cheap, and even though she was the restaurant's head chef and valued by the owner, she didn't have unlimited chances to grant such discounts.
However, because Kaede and Eriri were very satisfied with the dinner and promised they would definitely come back again, from the restaurant's perspective, it was not a loss.
Even though her stomach was full, Eriri still dragged Kaede to buy milk tea on the way home, muttering, "It's fine! Besides, don't we have to work tonight? Drinking this is pretty much the same as drinking the tea I brew!"
"No... the effect is very different, isn't it?"
And it doesn't have that much sugar.
But just then, his mother called.
"Kaede-kun, are you and Eriri on your way back?"
"Yes, we're on our way back now."
Then, Asakura Reiko, who was already at Kaede's house, stroked the cat and said, "In that case, pick up two cups of milk tea on your way back. Sayuri and I went shopping this afternoon, and we're both at your place now."
"...I understand."
After hanging up, Kaede looked helplessly at the smiling Eriri beside him: "You lucked out today."
"Hehe~~~ My luck is always good."
Carrying the milk tea, the two returned to the apartment. The moment they opened the door, they saw their two mothers using a cat teaser to play with Camilla. As for the other two little ones, they hadn't grown enough to be so active yet.
Seeing Kaede and Eriri return, the two women put down the cat teaser, letting Camilla play with it by herself. They walked up to the two, and in perfect synchronization, ignored Kaede and immediately hugged Eriri.
Sawamura Sayuri suppressed Eriri's annoyance, pinched her cheek, and then squeezed her arm, saying, "Hmm, looks like you've gained a bit of weight?"
"Huh?"
Eriri froze. She quickly broke free from their embrace, ran over to stand on the electronic scale, and loudly declared, "Mom! Don't talk nonsense! I haven't gotten fat! This is just normal growth!!!"