Kaidan Restaurant

Kids anime? Based on my opinion as a 15 year old im against the fact that this is kids anime. At a first glance it doesnt seem all that scary,but i was mistaken.When i watched the first episode, it pretty much creeped me out so i watched the next and then the next and the next and the next.
Each episode is split into 3 sections.The two stories will be about ako and weird phenomenons that happen to her and her friends.The 3rd part will be aghost story told by ako and her friends.
Some may just be a little weird and creepy but to be honest ... some actually frightened me a little.

Some of the stories are interesting and i certainly enjoyed most of them.

Although the art maybe not be up to expectations it would be considered average but it cant be compared to all the really detailed new animes.

The back ground music really fits the situation and might give u a fright at certain parts.

In my humble opinion i say that it is an enjoyable anime and each story is pretty much just a story on its own. This anime has no story line so dont expect one :P

The first episodes haven't impressed me much - they were nor annoying, nor special. But for some reason I continued watching and unexpectedly began to enjoy it. I can't say I've ever liked ghost stories and stuff and, fortunately, it didn't matter - 'cause the stories told in this anime aren't scary at all. In fact, it's not the storytelling which makes you watch this show. As for me, I was delighted by the number of various myths and legends collected in these episodes: I've even recognised 2 russian fairytales, which are very familiar to me 'cause I'm from Ukraine :) So it's one ... more way to learn about japanese culture and people's customs.
Summarizing, it's not an anime which makes millions of people scream "What will happen next?". Though, I believe many people will find it enjoyable to learn something new about Japan and will relax for at least 20 minutes watching calm fairy-tales. Looking forward to downloading the new ep!

Kaidan Restaurant is based on a series of horror short story books collection for children that ran from the mid 90s to 2010, when the last book got released, reaching 50 volumes. MAL says it's picture books but it's actually short story collections, each story goes for about 10 to 12 pages and every other story has an illustration to go along with it. I've personally read about 10 or so of these books and I feel like the anime does a very good job translating the material to animation.

The books and the anime are actually a sort of modern take on several classic horror, ... folktale stories and more modern urban legends. Most have Japanese sources but there are a good number of European stories as well. If you have any interest in Japanese literature, especially related to the weird, folk tales and horror, then you'll recognize a lot of these. Some of the stories are based on sources as old as the Konjaku Monogatarishu and Ugetsu Monogatari compilations. Some are based on very modern urban legends related to technology, like being able to talk to the dead through a cell phone, creatures from the Beyond being able to use TV signals to cross dimensions, etc.

Although it's a show written for children, you would be surprised how it doesn't shun away from a lot of things a show like this in the West would do. Children actually die in tragic ways here. This is not a spoiler, just a warning. It's also very well written, setting a good precedent; it's not because it's for children that it needs to be lazy, uninteresting and avoid exploring themes like death, loss, pain, tragedy and the like. Just remember, it is a show for kids first, so it won't wallow in depressing themes, but it uses well to tell the stories it wants to tell. It explores all these things very well and in a very Hyakumonogatari Kaidankai-ish way. That's how it usually starts; the 3 main characters, Shou, Ako and Reiko get together, usually after seeing something weird. Shou remembers a story relating to that event and tells it to the other characters. Sometimes the characters themselves go investigate whatever weird thing that happened in their town or in their school. Most episodes are divided into 3 stories, sometimes 2 and a couple of episodes have a single story.

This show was extremely popular in Japan in its demographic and it's easy to see why. For adults however, it might require a little bit of persistence. Some stories are rather mild and an episode here and there can be a little dull, but if you keep going, there are very good tales to go through, some quite tragic and emotionally charged. Each story is self contained so you can skip the ones you don't like, just make sure to watch the last episode. It's a very nice one and it gives some development to one of the main characters.

Each episode gets a little intro by Garcon, the ghost who runs the Kaidan Restaurant. In the books he serves the same purpose, welcoming  the main character of each story as he or she enters the restaurant to tell or be told a horror story. Here however, he just introduces the stories with the help of other supernatural creatures, but they happen in other places. He's also played by Mr. Hirata Hiroaki, one of the most charming male voices in the industry today.

Going with this show's premise of introducing each story as dishes, I think this anime is a good palate cleanser. If you watched something very somber or depressing, or if you just watched something too cute and excessively sweet or silly, then I think you'll enjoy going through this, especially if you're into horror. There's also a movie out there but what this really deserves is a second season. All in all, it's a very satisfying show to go through.

Kaidan Restaurant is apparently based on a series of children's books; naturally one would expect its story to be simplistic and its characters to be one-dimensional. Neither is entirely untrue, however surprisingly these apparent shortcomings do not detract from the enjoyment this show provides.

The series lacks a definitive overarching plot and rather consists of an anthology of horror stories centered around a group of school children and the town they live in. The stories are presented by the manager of the Kaidan restaurant to the viewers. They may be experienced or narrated by the protagonists. Though almost none of these stories are genuinely frightening, they ... do have their slightly unnerving moments; some even border on the emotional rather than the supernatural.Also the inclusion of several folktales and traditional ghost stories not only from Japan but from around the globe, makes for a delectable recipe.

Not having seen the live-action movie that followed the anime, I do not know if the story continues or not; but I would like to know more about the Ghastly Garcon and his connection to Ako, which was hinted at in the last episode.

Overall a delightful series which may be far from perfect, but serves its purpose decently and provides a welcome relief from continuously watching serious plot-heavy stories in anime.

Score :7/10

Recommended.

P.S. I absolutely loved the ending theme song, LOST BOY.

Man, seeing this series is like watching Goosebumps all over again. Back in the 90s, when I was a kid, that was the only tv-series that showed ghost stories to kids / teens.

This is clearly the present-day (& anime) variant of that series, presenting ghost stories to kids & teens. And yeah, even if its named a kids anime, I'm sure that everyone who likes ghost stories, will enjoy this :-D