Name: Very wholesome, cute slice of life, and...
Item: Samenai Machi no Kissaten
Rating: 90
Author: shikihh

Waifra

Very wholesome, cute slice of life, and... · Waifora

Summary
One day, Suzume, who suddenly cannot wake up from sleep, wanders into the "town that never wakes up" called "Lutetia" and ends up working at the coffee shop "Cattle".
This is a new gourmet food fantasy that unravels the mystery of why she can no longer wake up, along with the delicious cafe menu and the charming dream residents.
The first commercial series by a popular up-and-coming author.

Very wholesome, cute slice of life. In addition, it has solid worldbuilding and a wonderful ending. The story was full of delicious food and love.
The entire series has only two volumes, so it's an easy length to read. And it made me hungry!

Artstyle is so good, so fit.
The facial expressions are deformed and adorable, and the drawings of the dishes and backgrounds are sophisticated. The cover art for each chapter, which combines the Suzume with culinary motifs, is cute and highly creative! I really love it.

Basically, it consists of short, complete stories, with one dish featured in each chapter. At the end of the chapter, you can find the recipe for the dish.
croque monsieur, panellets, hummingbird cake, pate de campagne, toad in the hole, garbure, almond toast, lemonade scone, anise cake, greek meatball pita, persimmon cheesecake, steamed salmon...
I really enjoy seeing posts that imitate the dishes in this series. I want to do something too.

Consistent theme and atmosphere. Unlike the simple slice of life series, there is an underlying dark plot and excellent disclosure and development pacing.
From the beginning, it is implied that Lutetia is a dream, as the place is too comfortable and Suzume has no previous memory of it.

Spoiler, click to view

As we read the story, we learn that Suzume comes to Lutetia when something sad has happened to her. The fact that this place is not just a dream world, but a place she visits when something tragic happens to her, adds more meaning to this wonderful world. The residents tell us that she should be able to return home once her grief is healed, but if she cannot return within a day or two, then a great deal of sadness must have hit her in reality. as I experience their lives, I too become very attached to the place and feel sad that the story is over. In this respect, I sympathize with Suzume as she wakes up and returns to reality. This is why the last lines stick with me so much. Hakuro is shedding tears at the end........ When tragedy happens in our lives that makes us unable to move forward, we need to stop...... We all have a place where we can rest our hearts for that purpose. "If I hold all the lively, warm, drifting moments close and move forward with them, that town will never sleep and the coffee will never get cold."

I add it to my favorite complete series!!