For fans of The Kamagawa Food Detectives and Before the Coffee Gets Cold, this book is a warm cup of tea and a cozy blanket. The Curious Kitten at the Chibineko Kitchen tells the story of a small restaurant with a cat mascot that is able to prepare dishes that connect people to the loved ones they've lost. While the mystery of the book is very gentle, it keeps the pace of the book quite well. It has comfort, mystery, and even a love story. I can't wait to read more of this fantastic world.

That’s what makes The Chibineko Kitchen such a beautiful and comforting read. This cozy story is about a unique restaurant that serves remembrance meals, or kagazen. While it offers regular dishes, the restaurant has a magical twist—its warm, fragrant steam can bring back the spirits of loved ones, giving grieving customers a chance to say all the things they couldn’t before.

I enjoyed this story.

4.5 stars rounded up to 5.

I picked this book up wanting to ease back into Japanese lit with a short book but wound up unfortunately picking it up right after a few deaths in the family so shelved this for a while until the time was right. It could certainly be the time in my life or my own ability to relate to the characters in the novel, but this was a lovely, cathartic story that handles the struggles of loss in a way that is fantastical yet relatable. Customers of the Chibineko Kitchen are able to enjoy a final remembrance meal with a loved one and converse with them for a short time. It begins with Kotoko's struggling with the loss of her brother and was initially a weak start to the story. But as the vignettes intertwined with the characters for each progressive story, I began to enjoy the book more and more. There's even a recipe at the end of each chapter to recreate the remembrance meal mentioned.

If you enjoyed Before the Coffee Gets Cold or the Traveling Cat Chronicles, this may be a great read for you. Thanks to Penguin Books for the eARC, all thoughts and opinions are my own.

The Curious Kitten at the Chibineko Kitchen is a Japanese magical realism book that talks about grief, loss and hope in a healing way.
It includes four short stories about different people who are grieving a loss and visit the Chibineko Kitchen in hopes of sharing one last meal with their loved ones. Despite dealing with heavy themes, this book has a very cozy atmosphere and it's a really heart-warming, comforting read. It reminded me a lot of Before the Coffee Gets Cold.
I enjoyed seeing how all the stories were connected and the recipes were very nice additions! I also have to say Cat Anderson did a wonderful job translating this to English! I really look forward to reading the other books in the series.
～Thank you to Penguin Group and NetGalley for the ARC!

i read this on my travel home from peru, between the flight from cusco, peru to bogota, colombia and the 7 hour layover in bogota. this was only 192 pages, but i was so tired so it took me a while to read. i did really enjoy this. it seems that many japanese books follow the same idea of food and the comfort food can bring. i really liked this take of it. it was fast-paced and fun. i liked how all the four stories were connected, which made it more enjoyable. also, i was reading this book while hungry and it was a little rough. thanks for the arc netgalley!

Very sweet and delicately written. Very cat focused which is a plus for some, haha. Wish the characters were linked more but I understand it representing the way people pass through others lives

I love cozy books like this so much!! I can't wait to see more from this author, I had a really enjoyable reading experience. 5/5 stars!

This was an absolutely lovely story about loss, grief, memories and food. The Chibineko Kitchen serves a "remembrance meal" which commemorates a lost loved one. But in a sweet twist of magical realism, many patrons actually get to share one last talk with the person who has passed on. The stories intertwined and were so sweet, the food sounded delicious, and I just loved this book.

3,5 stars

Thank you, Netgalley and Viking Penguin, for providing me a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book is perfect for readers who liked (and miss) Before the Coffee Gets Cold, but with its own twist. There is no time travelling exactly, but the intertwined themes of regret and grief are handled in a similar episodic way.

The premise is simple enough. The magic of the remembrance meals for the dead allows grieving family members or friends to have a final conversation with someone who has passed. This conversation will only last as long as the meal is warm, since the dead can only consume meals through the steam/smell of each dish. I thought this was very smart and made sense of the whole ritual too.

Personally, the last meal/conversation was the most emotional for me, and I actually could feel the threat of tears. I think what I liked a lot in Before the Coffee Gets Cold was how the cafe has a ton of lore and even personality with a found family element that made it all the cozier. This one has less of that, but does have a cute little cat!

Overall, this was a fast-paced but impactful read, so I would definitely recommend it. I just wish there had been more depth to the story at times.

Thank you to Netgalley for the arc!


The Curious Cat at the Chibinekko Kitchen follows the story of a restaurant where a miracle happens. You eat a remembrance meal for someone you care for and you just might see or hear them…

I absolutely LOVED this book! First up, the descriptions of the food alone had me salivating. It all sounded so delicious and I adored that they gave a how to cook it as well. I found myself earmarking the pages to go back to at a later date so I can make these dishes myself.


The story is perfectly paced and follows mainly 2 characters (plus a bonus one or two) They each have stories in their own right and they come together beautifully. I found myself crying on more than one occasion. Even though this is on the shorter side I connected with every single one of these people. I felt their pain, their disappointment, their regrets. Life has a way of sneaking up on you and reading this reminded me to enjoy every single second of it. Whether you live to be 80 or 25 or 10 life is a gift. And I so enjoyed re-learning that lesson.

I can’t wait to read more from this author and hopefully from this world. It felt like a warm hug and a must read if you’ve ever lost someone you cared about. Maybe make a remembrance meal for them. And think of Chibi while you eat. 5 stars.

The Chibineko Kitchen makes remembrance meals that just might bring your loved one back for the length of that meal. The Curious Kitten at the Chibineko Kitchen is the story of this cafe and four persons who find solace in a remembrance meal. You start with Kotoko who has recently lost her brother when he saves her life from an oncoming car. While she is grieving a friend of his tells her about a cafe they used to go to, the Chibineko Kitchen. She is told that there is a rumor that a remembrance meal can bring their loved one back one last time. Kotoko then drives the rest of the novel by first telling a school boy who just found out about the death of a classmate he thought he hurt right before she disappears. Then Kotoko realizes that she did not met the woman who owns the cafe when she was there and is wondering what occured. She learns her story through the process of helping provide a remembrance meal for a family friend. Finally, Kotoko creates a meal for Kai, the son of the owner.

If you are familiar with Before the Coffee Gets Cold, then you are familiar with The Curious Kitten at the Chibineko Kitchen. It is structurally the same with four supernatural scenes that revolve around a cafe and there are rules for the experience. This is an enjoyable book but feels so close to the others that there is no drama or strong pull to finish the book quickly. If you like these cozy stories then this one is enjoyable but I would not go out of my way and recommend it.

Heartbreaking, heartwarming, and cozy all at once. The idea of being able to fix your regrets with a loved one who's passed is one that should resonate with everyone, and the way its laid out here is so incredibly touching.

In this beautiful little book, we meet a range of characters largely unrelated to one another, but who share one particular characteristic: they all suffered loss.

One by one, we meet this pensive cast, each in need of finding closure with their lost loved ones.

Kai, a young chef at a remote restaurant outside Tokyo, serves one guest at a time. He prepares a final meal for the living to share with the dead, and with that meal, a chance to start fresh.

Thank you to Viking Penguin | Penguin Books and NetGalley for the advance copy. All opinions my own.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for letting me review this book. People are given a chance to reconnect briefly with their loved ones. How Kai knows exactly what dish to prepare and he gets a chance as well. I like that the cat is a calming presence for the customers. Kai even finds the unexpected.

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Books for the e-book copy!

I finally got around to reading this and it has now become of my favorite books. The premise may seem silly with the fact that the characters can eat a meal and see their loved ones that have passed. However, I think the author did a great job making those scenes very poignant and heartwarming. I also liked the subtle hint of romance as well as friendship between the two main leads it was done well. I am happy that this is apart of a series as I left this feeling like more could be done with this concept. I will be awaiting the sequels as they get published in english.

Whimsical with a touch of magic, but also emotional and heartfelt . I love the sense of yearning the characters feel, and the emotional healing they experience from the chance to connect briefly with a loved one who has passed away. Lovely!

The pace of this starting out felt meandering and I couldn't find any investment in it. I know that slow-pacing is often a part of these cozy fantasy reads but this was too slow for me to feel engaged or interested. I think it's probably a great fit for some, but just didn't hit for me.

This was such a sweet little book. I think if you were a fan of Before the Coffee Gets Cold & The Kamogawa Food Detectives this would be right up your alley. I think the stories were interwoven perfectly to make a complete story that didn't feel lacking. It was equal parts cozy and heartbreaking and just one of those books that makes you nostalgic of memories of loved ones who have passed away.
I received an ARC of this book via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

This book was touching and beautifully written. It has a light and wistful air to it, even while dealing with the complexity of grief. Overall it was a quick and enjoyable read.

3.5 stars. A delightful story about a café that allows patrons to have one last visit with a lost loved one while eating a remembrance meal for them. The different depictions of grief through the four narratives were heartwarming, while the descriptions of the food were absolutely mouthwatering! Overall this cozy magical realism story was worth the read!

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the book.