Anime Review: Isekai Izakaya: Koto Aitheria no Izakaya Nobu

Food anime involving a comfort and homey atmosphere is definitely one of my favourite things to watch if I want to get a break from plot-heavy anime or if I am feeling down and I want to just watch some anime to chill. I ain't talking about Shokugeki no Soma, but series like Isekai Shokudou (a series I also reviewed on this blog) that makes you feel relaxed and it's like those small food stores that are a hidden gem that only locals would know about. Isekai Izakaya is similar to Isekai Shokudou in the sense that it's in another world, which is obvious from Isekai in both titles, but both differ slightly as Isekai Shokudou involves customers from different mythical worlds, whereas Isekai Izakaya is just from one mythical world. 

Isekai Izakaya involves an izakaya (an informal Japanese pub) that is transported to a medieval-like world, but they can still go back to their world through another world to get products. The anime involves scenes where Nobuyuki, the chef, and Shinobu, the waitress, eventually assimilate and serve the local patrons. The anime highlights some popular pub food, as well as some iconic Japanese dishes, where we see the patrons in a state of ecstasy after trying out the delicious food. There's no real plot, other than just some minor complications, but usually that's resolved in one single episode.

Whoever thought of the idea of making this anime 15 min episodes is a genius, and it's a good length for series like these, and personally I only seen this done in Aho Girl and Tsuruzure Children, where the anime is 12 min episodes (makes sense since they are 4-koma). However, people need to be mindful that within this 15 mins, there's only about 11-12 minutes of actual animation, and the rest is a short video involving either the reviewer guy reviewing and showcasing the food shown in that particular episode or either the chef showing alternate ways to make the food shown in that episode. Personally it was interesting to watch and it wasn't too long either, but that may not be the case for some people. I can see why people may not like it because people want to just watch anime and not real-life segments with their anime. Nevertheless, if those sections doesn't tickle your fancy, you can always just skip it, but I definitely appreciate the studio for adding this extra segment (even when they didn't have to).

Overall, it's a decent series that you can chill but there can sometimes be a lack of depth involving the showcasing of food since it's only 12 minutes of animation time. Compared to Isekai Shokudou, where we see a development of the food and also the backstories of the patrons, Isekai Izakaya feels a bit rushed and it feels like it's just showcasing food. But it's 12 minutes and if you just want to chill and want some comedy mixed in with the food, I think it's a good watch for those people who don't watch to/don't have the time to watch anime that are too long. There's not a lot of modern food anime either, so if you are a food anime enthusiast, there's no harm in watching this series. (Hot damn though, the light novel and manga covers have amazing looking art)

Overall Score: 7.5/10

Story: 7/10

Characters: 7/10

Art: 8/10

Sound: 7/10

Enjoyment: 8/10