Midnight Diner

I don't know what brought me to watch this show, but I found myself completely fascinated. The storytelling is phenomenal, and what more can we expect of a show other than a story which makes us feel something. I've watched this show over and over again (each time with some heartwarming meal, mind you), and each time I find it more comforting than the last. Nothing conveys the beauty of flaws, the coincidence of living, and the serendipity of existence better than this show in my opinion. Give it a chance, grab a friend, and a bowl of your favorite heartwarming brothy meal, you won't regret it. :)

Ultimately, this is about important moments in our lives and the foods we often associate with them.

The stories are set at the Midnight Diner, a small and comfortable hole-in- the-wall sitdown you wish you could call your own.

Open from midnight until seven in the morning, it attracts an array of regular and casual denizens. The proprietor will make whatever is ordered, so long as he's got the ingredients.

Often what's ordered are comfort foods that remind the patron of the home of their youth, of a parent or someone close, or of a memorable or important life event. Sometimes it's all of the above.

Many of the tales are peculiar, and even if you suspect a direction the story will take, it likely won't.

Everything about the show is simple and unassuming, which of course is akin to most of our comfort foods.

This won't resemble anything you've ever seen. We laughed out loud throughout and shed several tears. Every last second of it is beautiful, thoughtful, and unexpected.

I just have no language to communication the story - at all. It is drab, dry and surface deep. Well that would be it from one point of view.

For me though, i just want to say, i was broken hearted when i found out there was no more seasons - more than an other show ever!

I can't for the life of me say why.

Why would i say that, well i felt this series drum up all the naive childish experience and the craving i once had to learn how to be a human .... and crystallized it in a single series.

I can't say it is a moral endeavour but for me it was and well, better than anything else a came across in the past 20+ years. In the scope it was also revealing and heart warming. I will watch this series again more than any other over the rest of my life.

I can't speak to the potential audience in this review because there is just so many points of view, what i can do though is speak to the creators:

SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO thank you from the bottom of my heart, this is beyond magic and had enriched my soul beyond measure. i use this series as healing..... I use it and i want you all to know that it would not be magical if the people involved were not contributors to the magic. This is one of a kind! SO SO SO SO SO SO thank you very much!!!

50 years. Best gentle teaching of things Japanese EVER!

Beware, there are two shows on Netflix with a similar name. They are basically the same, but presented separately. Midnight Diner: Tokyo Stories, has two seasons from 2016 and 2019, and was commissioned by Netflix, but the original three Midnight Diner seasons ran from 2009 to 2014. I didn't know the difference at first, and couldn't understand why Netflix couldn't remember which episode I last watched, and why the characters use old cellphones in one episode and then a more advanced one in the next! Anyway, regardless of which series you watch, these slow-moving episodes are delightful as you get familiar with the culture, food, eating habits and regular customers of the restaurant dubbed the Midnight Diner, which, as the title suggests, opens at midnight. The owner, known as "Master", is willing to prepare any dish, as long as he has the ingredients. There is a short cooking summary at the end, so stay tuned until the credits. There are recurrent characters in both shows, but each episode can also be a stand-alone. The episodes are short and low-key, so you can watch it to unwind after a hectic day.