I work at the Osaka branch, and there are only three colleagues besides me. Even when I first joined the company, most of us worked at the Tokyo headquarters. But now, even more often, we work in Tokyo. The Osaka headquarters has many subsidiaries, and the office space is also much more spacious.
This isn’t my own welcome party, but we decided to have a drink with four people plus an outing visitor from Tokyo. The host arranged a restaurant for the meal. Although I don’t have any deep professional or personal relationships with those four people, we are naturally familiar with each other, and we sometimes catch up by having conversations.
The restaurant is located on the north side of Osaka Station. It was designed with consideration for convenience for people who are leaving after their dining sessions. The restaurant is quite spacious, and one entire floor is dedicated to showcasing the atmosphere of this place. There’s a room at the back that functions like a compartment, but it’s clearly meant for four people. On one side, it’s possible to seat three people, but it’s still cramped. The price for a course of 6,000 yen includes drinks.
The bonito sashimi was exquisite and served in thick cuts, making it very delicious. The meat itself was also juicy, making it a quite good dish for a izakaya meal. Towards the end of the meal, when the utsubo fried potatoes appeared, I realized that this dish combined elements of Takayama's local cuisine.
It's a drink-freeze service, where orders are placed via QR codes. The people who handle this process seem quite efficient. There wasn't any strict rule like having to empty the glass before ordering the next drink. Everyone drank continuously, but despite the large number of customers, the service was very fast and efficient. I'm impressed. It seems that most of the staff are part-time workers, but they work very well.
We talked about the details of our respective jobs, but it was pointless. So we got carried away by memories from the past. Being classmates, it was almost expected that all of us would retire in just 2 or 3 years. There wasn’t any awkward or awkward conversation like that. Instead, it was refreshing! The retirement period is actually a joyous time. We finally left the restaurant and headed straight home. I must say, I’ve grown old indeed.
