Why not feast like royalty while keeping your wallet, and your date, happy?

The first date is an important milestone in any budding romance: your presentation, your clothes, your attitude, and your charm all play a factor in the success of it. So too, does the location, with many people springing for a fancy restaurant in order to impress. However, what if it didn’t have to be that way? What if you could just have a much better experience in another place that is a lot kinder on your purse strings? What if you had your first date at Japan’s low-budget casual Italian restaurant, Saizeriya?

Whether a first date at Saizeriya is acceptable or not has been a long-held debate that often makes its rounds on social media, to the extent that, at one point, the phrase “a girlfriend who is happy with Saizeriya” went viral. To have a partner like that is to assume that she doesn’t need to have lots of money spent on her for her to be impressed and instead cares more about you as a person than as a walking sack of money. This is due to crazy levels of food and customization you can get for just 1,000 yen (US$6.29); in fact, we even had to go three times for our 1,000 yen challenges, and yet still have more combinations we could try.

Our Japanese-language reporter Asami Oshima is firmly on the side of a Saizeriya first date being perfectly fine. Yes, she may be partly biased towards the chain, given that she worked part-time at Saizeriya back in her high school days, but that doesn’t change the restaurant’s other attractive qualities for a date.

▼ Her first recommendations for the perfect date spread are Shrimp Salad (350 yen)…

▼ … and Spaghetti with Pollock Roe Sauce (400 yen).

There are generally two camps for who pays the bill on the first date: either the man pays, or the bill is split. Asami is a fan of splitting the bill, though she wouldn’t say no to someone deciding to treat her. However, should the restaurant be too high-end, she would end up feeling too hesitant about ordering exactly what she wants, so wouldn’t really be able to enjoy herself much. With Saizeriya, this is barely a thought that crosses the mind, because no matter how much you eat or drink, the price will always remain modest, meaning you can eat and drink without hesitation, no matter who ends up paying.

▼ Since that’s the case, splurge and go for a whole bottle of Lambrusco Rosé, at a stunning price of 1,000 yen.

▼ To go along with the wine, you should order the Caprese Salad with Buffalo Mozzarella Cheese (430 yen)…

▼ … and the Grilled Mussels with Vegetable Salsa (400 yen).

▼ Cheers!

As it’s a place you would most likely visit in your day-to-day life, you’re more likely to feel comfortable, and thus be able to have a date while being your natural self. The higher-end a restaurant is, the more formal it feels, often turning the experience into a performance of hospitality rather than a date.

Asami also has a theory that customizations deepen your bond. Japanese social media is overflowing with Saizeriya Customized Recipes, such as the Infinite Ajillo our reporter Ahiruneko recommends, or creating a Bismarck-style Pizza by topping a pizza with prosciutto and a soft-boiled egg.

Honestly, Asami had wanted to try out the Bismarck-style Pizza, but dining alone on this occasion, it was far beyond her stomach’s capacity to withstand, so she went for the Grated Cheese Topping (100 yen) instead.

▼ The cheese goes well with the salad…

▼ …the pasta…

▼ …the mussels…

▼ …and even the tiramisu (300 yen) she had quietly ordered.

There aren’t many people who dislike cheese, so you should order it if you go on a date. Since the restaurant’s prices are so cheap, you can experiment with customizations without worry, while also subtly scouting out the other person’s food and drink preferences.

These are Asami’s points for Saizeriya being a legitimate first date location option. However, she does understand the opinion for the other team, being that Saizeriya is out of the question for a first date, as she thinks it’s perfectly reasonable to want to cherish the feeling of doing something special on such an important occasion.

Asami ran a survey on Instagram and Twitter, thinking that opinions would be split, but surprisingly, “totally fine” was the overwhelming majority.

Reasons for Saizeriya being a good choice included:

  • “Good value for money”
  • “No need to show off”
  • “If it’s someone you like, the place doesn’t matter”
  • “Seems like you’d see their true personality”

Whereas, on the other hand, the “not good” camp argued:

  • “I want an extraordinary feeling”
  • “A bit weird for an adult date”
  • “It feels like I’m being looked down upon”
  • “Because it’s controversial, there’s no need to choose it on purpose”

To summarize Asami’s findings, people who view the first date as a special event usually fall into the “not fine” side, while people who prioritize the company of the person tend to be in the “fine” camp. So, while neither side is wrong, it’s best to go on a Saizeria date with someone who’s expressed their preference for it, and if so, you now have a delicious recommended menu to impress them when you visit, all for the low cost of 3,080 yen.

Related: Saizeriya Website
Photos ©SoraNews24
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[ Read in Japanese ]