When eating out, what do you look for when choosing a restaurant?
- Homestyle, well-balanced food
- Generous portions at reasonable prices
- A relaxing atmosphere where you can take your time
In fact, there’s a restaurant that meets all these criteria in a convenient location right in front of JR Kurashiki Station.
That restaurant is “Banker.”
It mainly serves curry and various set meals, all with plenty of vegetables and a good balance of ingredients.
And the portions are generous, too.
Banker has it all: generous portions, balanced meals, and reasonable prices—and the food is delicious and homestyle, too!
Here’s an introduction to Banker, a recommended set-meal restaurant.
It closed on February 15, 2020.
The information below is from when it was open.
The information presented was current when this article was published in October 2019. Please note that it may differ from the current information.
Banker is a restaurant in Kurashiki Station West Building serving curry and set meals
Banker is on the first basement floor of the building commonly known as the “West Building,” adjoining the southwest side of JR Kurashiki Station.
The basement of the West Building has a restaurant area, and Banker is one of its establishments.
▼Banker’s main menu consists of two kinds of curry and four kinds of set meals, including a daily special.
Prices include consumption tax. As of October 2019 (Reiwa 1)
▼Drinks, including alcoholic beverages, are also available.
Prices include consumption tax. As of October 2019 (Reiwa 1)
▼Banker’s interior feels spacious.
▼There are six counter seats in front of the kitchen at the back.
▼There are three tables for two and three tables for four.
There was plenty of space between the seats.
So it seems like a place where you can relax and take your time.
The keema curry is packed with ground meat and vegetables
Banker has two kinds of curry.
▼One is the “Vegetable-Packed Keema Curry.”
▼The salad was more generous than it looked.
▼It’s a great deal to get both fukujinzuke and rakkyo.
▼Keema curry is a curry made with plenty of ground meat.
▼There’s plenty of ground meat in the curry sauce.
The sauce is thick and rich.
▼It also contains finely chopped onion, carrot, and eggplant.
▼There’s plenty of rice, too!
▼A halved boiled egg was served on top of the curry sauce.
When you taste the keema curry sauce, the sweetness and savory flavor of the ground meat spread across your palate.
I also noticed the gentle sweetness of the onion and eggplant.
It isn’t very spicy, so I think even people who don’t like spicy food can enjoy it.
The beef tendon curry is loaded with large chunks of beef tendon
The other curry is the “Beef Tendon Curry.”
▼Like the keema curry, it comes with salad, fukujinzuke, rakkyo, and a boiled egg.
▼It’s loaded with quite large chunks of beef tendon.
It looked like a great deal just from seeing it.
The beef tendon in the beef tendon curry is made from domestic Japanese Black Wagyu beef tendon!
▼The beef tendon is simmered until tender and has a melt-in-your-mouth texture.
At the same time, it still has the satisfying chew you’d expect from beef tendon.
▼The roux is Western-style, thick and sticky.
The roux tasted slightly sweet.
Then a moderate spicy kick came through.
The daily set meal offers great value, with a well-balanced selection and generous portions
Bunker also serves set meals.
The most popular among them is the daily set meal.
It is said to be the most popular item on the menu.
▼One day’s daily set meal was “mixed fried foods.”
▼The meal comes with four kinds of large fried foods and cutlets. It’s very generous and thoroughly satisfying.
▼All set meals come with miso soup.
The miso soup has a homemade, comforting flavor.
▼The set meal also comes with a small side dish.
It also came with pickles.
At 750 yen (tax included), it’s excellent value for money!
You can choose from two options for the daily set meal.
▼You can check the daily set meal options on the signboard outside the restaurant.
Check it before you go in.
Order curry or a set meal and get free drinks
At Bunker, free drinks are included when you order curry or a set meal.
Free drinks are self-service.
▼Help yourself to your choice of drink at the free-drink station inside the restaurant.
The free drinks available are:
- Hot coffee
- Iced coffee
- Orange juice
- Oolong tea
At Harenomino Kurashiki 2019, you could enjoy a half-size curry topped with both keema and beef tendon curry
Harenomino Kurashiki 2019 featured half-size curry servings from Bunker.
Even better, you could get both the keema curry and beef tendon curry featured on this page, making it a great deal.
The curry with both toppings is not usually on the menu; it was exclusive to Harenomino.
It also came with one drink: coffee, orange juice, oolong tea, or a glass of beer.
Bunker serves generous, well-balanced curry and set meals that offer excellent value for money.
We interviewed Bunker’s manager, Tomoda Ikuo.
Bunker details
| Name | Bunker |
|---|---|
| Address | Basement Level 1, West Building, Kurashiki City Plaza, 1-7-2 Achi, Kurashiki City, Okayama Prefecture |
| Contact | None |
| Parking | None |
| Hours | 11:00 a.m.–3:00 p.m. |
| Closed | Thursday Third Wednesday of each month ※ Closed even when a regular closing day falls on a public holiday |
| Payment methods |
|
| Reservations | Available Reservations can only be made in person at the restaurant |
| Seating | 24 seats in total ・6 counter seats ・3 tables for two ・3 tables for four ※Table arrangements can be changed |
| Smoking | Smoking permitted |
| Restrooms | Western-style and Japanese-style toilets |
| Families with children | Strollers may be brought inside Children’s tableware available |
| Accessibility | Elevator Wheelchair access |
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The curry comes with a salad and sides of fukujinzuke and rakkyo!