The Leptologists Eat at Akai Hana

Candice: It's my choice today, and I pick Akai Hana.
Paul: Why is that?
Candice: I'm making Salmon Teriaki tonight and I need to pick up a few things at Tensuke Market which is located next door.
Paul: Let's eat before we shop. I'm starving.
Candice: I agree.
Paul: Akai Hana is located on Old Henderson Road, up 315 from downtown Columbus. The drive is not bad at all.
Candice: No, not at all. The muted decor is beautiful. I love the honey oak.
Paul: We arrive at noon, and the place is well occupied.
Candice: The sushi bar is full.
Paul: We are seated quickly, even though the place is relatively busy. The waitress is with us right away.
Candice: They have a lucky cat on the sushi bar.
Paul: You approve.
Candice: I do.
Paul: The menu has Japanese and Korean items. The last couple pages are in Japanese characters.

Miso Soup and Onigiri

Candice: There is a lunchbox of the week and of the day. I like that.
Paul: I order Yaki Maki and, of course, dumplings.
Candice: I order the Seafood Champon and ask for Salmon Onigiri which isn't a menu item, but they're gracious. And of course, I'll eat your salad.
Paul: We'll not have it going to waste.
Candice: I love this Onigiri.  I could eat it every day. It's a seaweed-wrapped ball of rice and salmon. The tart seaweed contrasts with the sweeter rice and the smokiness of the salmon. Try it.
Paul: You know I can't stand the taste of seaweed.
Candice: Try it anyway.
Paul: I do like the rice and salmon. My miso soup is good as well, I think.
Candice: You think?

Salad

Paul: It is just miso soup. Perhaps perfection in miso soup is measured in how well it conforms to all other miso soup. In that case, it's very good miso soup.
Candice: The salad dressing is not too tart. The greens are fresh. Very tasty.
Paul: These dumplings are chunkier than we've seen before.
Candice: The dough is light and luminescent. I love the texture of these gyoza.
Paul: I taste vinegar in these. It seems a bit strong. These are pretty good dumplings...
Candice: ... but they aren't the best ever. That honor still goes to Nida's.
Paul: Yep. Here are the entrees. My beef dish looks wonderful. The onions are flavorful. The beef is tasty. The sauce is pleasant.

Yaki Niku

Candice: My soup is fantastic. The scallops are cooked perfectly, and that's hard to do in a soup. These noodles taste like homemade egg noodles.
Paul: It certainly looks full of seafood.

Seafood Champon

Candice: It is. I am very happy with this. Candice wins.
Paul: Mine is pretty good too.
Candice: Candice wins, I said.
Paul: Well, it seems we were both happy with the food. Was there anything we didn't enjoy?
Candice: Other than your abnormal aversion to seaweed, no. It was great from start to finish.
Paul: Good atmosphere, wide-ranging menu, decent prices. This restaurant is a win all around.
Candice: Agreed. Worth the price, worth the wait, and worth coming back.
Paul: So let it be written.
Candice: Now let's get my shopping done.

	Candice	Paul
Worth the Price?
Worth the Wait?
Worth Coming Back?