The Curious Kitten at the Chibineko Kitchen: The Beloved Japanese Bestseller about a Magical Restaurant That Will Nourish Your Soul

"Wonderful . . . A cozy, emotional gem . . . Each chapter is a quiet, healing moment, filled with food, memory and the comfort of cats." --The Seattle Times

Your table awaits at the Chibineko Kitchen, where a soul-nourishing meal in the company of the resident kitten will transport you back in time to reunite with departed loved ones--for fans of Before the Coffee Gets Cold, The Midnight Library, and Studio Ghibli films like Spirited Away.

In a remote seaside town outside of Tokyo, Kotoko makes her way along a seashell path, lured by whispers of an enigmatic restaurant whose kagezen, or traditional meals offered in remembrance of loved ones, promise a reunion with the departed. When a gust of wind lifts off her hat, she sees running after it a young man who looks like her recently deceased brother. But it's not her brother; it's Kai, the restaurant's young chef, who returns her hat and brings her to the tiny establishment, where he introduces her to Chibi, the resident kitten, and serves her steaming bowls of simmered fish, rice, and miso soup--the exact meal her brother used to cook for her. As she takes her first delicious bite, the gulls outside fall silent, the air grows hazy, and Kotoko begins a magical journey of last chances and new beginnings.

Menu
Namero-don: Seasoned minced fish served on rice
Easy omelette sandwich
Umebishio: Pickled-plum jam
Sukiyaki-don: Beef hotpot, served over rice

Author: Yuta Takahashi
Binding Type: Paperback
Publisher: Penguin Books
Published: 02/04/2025
Series: Meals to Remember at the Chibineko Kitchen
Pages: 192
Weight: 0.32lbs
Size: 7.80h x 5.31w x 0.56d
ISBN: 9780143138617


Review Citation(s):
Booklist 01/01/2025 pg. 23
Shelf Awareness 02/22/2025

About the Author
Yuta Takahashi is the award-winning author of the eight-book series Meals to Remember at the Chibineko Kitchen as well as several other popular series spanning historical and contemporary fiction. He was born in Chiba Prefecture, Japan, and now lives in Tokyo.

Cat Anderson (translator) has won the Japanese Literature Publishing Project's International Translation Competition and is the translator of The Bookshop Woman by Nanako Hanada.