Samurai Gourmet
Cast & Key People
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Our Review
Cast & Key People
▶
Our Review
Samurai Gourmet (2017) is a drama and action series from Netflix. It has built a run of 12 episodes. It premiered on March 17, 2017. Viewers rate it 8.0 out of 10. It is currently ended. It runs 1 season.
What Samurai Gourmet Is About
Kasumi Takeshi has just retired and is quietly getting into his second life. He never had the luxury of a beer during the day on a weekday during his 35 years as a salaryman. But in that instant Kasumi gets acquainted with the taste of that one glass and eating alone. This is the start of his battle with eating by himself. It is an unexpectedly high hurdle for Kasumi to cross and one that he keeps fretting over.
What to Expect When You Watch
The format keeps each instalment self-contained enough to drop into, the full run covers 12 episodes, spread across 1 season and it leans into its drama/action roots while leaving room for the quieter character beats.
Performance-wise the series leans on Naoto Takenaka, Tetsuji Tamayama and Honami Suzuki to carry the emotional weight, with the rest of the ensemble filling out the world around them.
Cast and Creative Team
Naoto Takenaka, Tetsuji Tamayama and Honami Suzuki lead the cast.
Key roles include Naoto Takenaka as Takashi Kasumi; Tetsuji Tamayama as Samurai; Honami Suzuki as Shizuko Kasumi.
Why It Stands Out
Fans of drama and action have a clear reason to give this one a shot. It sits comfortably alongside Netflix’s other originals, a 8.0/10 audience score puts it in steady company and it commits to its premise instead of hedging between tones.
Released in 2017 and carried by Netflix with the series still ended, it lands hardest with drama and action viewers.
How Samurai Gourmet Compares
If Samurai Gourmet lands for you, the next stops are Breaking Bad, Firefly and The Wire, which share its drama/action lean.
Each of those sits at a different point on the same spectrum, so they make a natural follow-up once you finish the run here.
Where to Stream
Samurai Gourmet comes from Netflix. Check your preferred platform for current availability, since regional rights move around.
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On the whole Samurai Gourmet is the kind of series that rewards a patient watch, with Naoto Takenaka and Tetsuji Tamayama doing the heaviest lifting, a tone that stays true to its drama/action roots, It has held up since 2017 and so if the premise sounds like your lane, the execution holds up.
The Bottom Line
Samurai Gourmet is a safe bet for anyone already inside the drama and action lane, at 12 episodes it is an easy run to work through, the audience score holds around 8.0/10 and so there is little risk in starting it tonight.
Verdict: 8.0/10. Watch it if you want drama/action you can settle into.
