Kouraku An (行楽庵) Otsu

Today is our wedding anniversary, so I made a reservation by phone a few weeks ago. Due to the holiday, they only offered an 8,000 JPY course for lunch, but I went ahead and booked anyway.I arrived about 5 minutes early, but they were already open, so we went in. It seemed we were the only customers.The food was simply amazing, and the hospitality from the owner was delightful, making the drinks flow.We finished with 3 go of sake.It was a lovely lunch, and I felt like we had indulged a bit.Then came the shocking bill!!!Even though we had 3 go, I thought it would be around 25,000 JPY at most, considering 8,000 JPY x 2 plus the drinks. I prepared three 10,000 JPY bills.But then the receipt came out!!! To my astonishment, it was ¥31,900! Boom!My mind went blank. My hands were shaking. Was it a calculation error on my part? No, I graduated from a science university! I completed Calculus III C! I don’t make mistakes in calculations!!The meal was 8,000 JPY x 2 = 16,000 JPY.Was the drink 15,900 JPY?! Wait, did they forget the service charge and tax?!Still, what’s going on?!Can someone please explain this bill calculation to me?!All the sake I drank was local sake from Shiga. I didn’t order any premium brands! In fact, there wasn’t even a menu!The owner asked, "What would you like to drink?"I replied, "Please give me some sake."She asked, "Do you prefer it dry?"I thought, "Isn’t there a menu?" and said, "Yes."That was the only conversation! Why? What’s happening?!Seeing me frozen, the owner said, "You drank a lot of sake, didn’t you? Hehe."I replied, "Well, it was delicious! (But what’s going on with the drink prices?!)"With trembling hands, I added another 10,000 JPY bill...It seems I unknowingly had some very expensive sake.Not being able to ask for a menu to choose my drinks was my defeat.It was a wedding anniversary where I decided to have the "courage to speak up."On the way back in the taxi, my wife and I tried to calculate it, but we couldn’t figure it out.If we hadn’t drunk, the bill might have been clear, but I won’t be returning.I wanted to give it 1 star, but my wife said the food and service were good, so it should be at least 3 stars, so I settled on 3.Let me say it again.I recommend it for those who don’t drink! Less