Sun Lemon’s Turkish Lunch ～ A Calorie Bomb—This Guilty Pleasure Is All the Better for It! A Signature Dish at a Showa Retro Café

Have you ever suddenly found yourself craving a hearty meal?
Sometimes, in a world focused on healthy eating, you just want to fill up on something a little junky.

Sun Lemon, a Showa-retro coffee shop in Kojima, Kurashiki City, has a menu that satisfies just that kind of craving.

It’s the shop’s most popular dish, the Turkish Lunch.
Two star dishes—Italian spaghetti and katsu curry—are served together on one plate, making for a wonderfully indulgent meal. I tried this Turkish Lunch, which makes quite an impression with its appearance, too.

A Showa-retro coffee shop founded in 1970

Sun Lemon is marked by a large lemon sculpture.
Founded in 1970, this traditional coffee shop is now run by third-generation owner Fujino Tatsuki.

Inside, it’s a retro space that feels as if time has stood still since the Showa era. Red, pop-style lights and chandelier-like fixtures give it a distinctive charm.

The large teddy bear by the window is another symbol of Sun Lemon. Its outfit changes with the seasons, making it easy to grow fond of.

These days, it’s popular with young women, too, for being “retro and cute,” but apparently until fairly recently, most customers were men. Women began joining the male customers who came for hearty meals after the shop attracted attention on Instagram.

The Showa-retro boom also helped bring about a dramatic change in its customer base.

I tried the hearty Turkish Lunch

The most popular item at this traditional coffee shop, which retains the atmosphere of the Showa era, is the Turkish Lunch.
It combines the popular Italian spaghetti and katsu curry with a side salad, all served on one plate. All three portions are generous, so the Turkish Lunch is sure to leave you full. It’s truly a calorie bomb.

There’s no shortage of people captivated by the guilty pleasure of polishing it off in no time.

The curry has been simmered for a long time until the ingredients have melted into it, and it comes with a thick pork cutlet.
The generous curry, poured as if to spill over onto the neighboring dish, and the mound of rice shaped into a round heap give it a playfully hearty feel. The curry alone is a substantial serving, but the playful touch of topping it with a pork cutlet is irresistible.

It isn’t spicy, so I think even children can enjoy it.

The Italian spaghetti is pasta made with a ketchup-based sauce.
The onion, bacon, and green pepper, all stained red with ketchup, give it a retro feel. Third-generation owner Fujino still makes it using the recipe he inherited from the second-generation owner, though recently he has started adding basil for fragrance.

It’s a retro pasta dish that makes you want to eat it with your mouth stained bright red.

Both dishes have flavors loved by people of all ages, and they were so addictive that I wanted to eat them again. With two stars on the plate, and neither the generous portions nor the high quality taking a back seat, it was a satisfyingly hearty meal.

A word from the owner

I spoke with third-generation owner Fujino Tatsuki.

Was the Turkish Lunch on the menu from the time the shop opened?

Fujino (surname only)

When my grandfather, the founder, first started the shop, there wasn’t a Turkish Lunch; there was something called the Lemon Lunch. It was a dish with ketchup rice, hamburger steak, and salad. I used to eat it when I was little, too. At some point, it changed into the Turkish Lunch.

Nagasaki has a dish called Turkish Rice, which comes with Italian spaghetti, katsu curry, and pilaf. It seems the second-generation owner adapted that and created the Turkish Lunch.

What makes the Turkish Lunch special?

Fujino

A calorie-packed treat.
It’s a menu item that brings together the best of our shop. The pork cutlet used to be a little thinner, but we made it thicker so it would be more satisfying to eat.

I like thick, rich curry, so I keep adding to it and simmering it continuously. We mix in coffee as a secret ingredient.

From the Writer

I tried the generously portioned Turkish Lunch.
This was my second time eating it, and once again I polished it off. With two main dishes, you can alternate between the flavors as you eat, and above all, it’s delicious—before I knew it, I’d finished the whole plate.

It’s the kind of food that goes against the health-conscious trend, but sometimes you just want to indulge in your favorite things. Finishing the whole meal leaves you with a mysterious sense of accomplishment.

At the end of the interview, Fujino told me, “To rival the Turkish Lunch, we created a ‘Hearty Lunch.’ That one is generous, too, and I recommend it.” As a Turkish Lunch fan, I found myself wanting to try the Hearty Lunch as well.

The most popular dish at this traditional coffee shop, marked by its large lemon, is the Turkish Lunch. Be sure to arrive with a good appetite!

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