Shortly after, the Watsons head to the restaurant street; it got known by that name due to being a street full of fast restaurants from all over the world, and some from far alien planets. Not that there aren’t any restaurants elsewhere in Tokyo, but this street is the fastest one to choose when not sure what to get.
As they are walking, Sue keeps an eye on Lee due to the fact that he is carrying the backpack full of items that he bought at the cosplay shop.
Just then, he stops looking around; Sue holds Kenji back as Lee closes his eyes and tilts his head back as he smells the air, almost like a greyhound smelling the air for its prey.
“Lee? Are you okay?” Kenji asks.
Lee nods, then he opens his eyes, his nose twitching and his head snaps to the side. “I can smell something really good; it’s making my mouth water,” he says without removing his eyes from the restaurant.
Sue and Kenji exchange a look then they look at Lee; noticing the shine in his eyes, Kenji says, “Why don’t we go take a look at the restaurant, see what that nose of yours found?” Hearing the words, Lee starts to walk in a straight line.
Sue and Kenji follow with Sakura still sitting on her father’s shoulders; as Lee walks, it’s almost like there is an invisible barrier in front of him, as other pedestrians make way for him to pass.
Lee stops and takes a gulp as he looks at the displays of cakes; as he looks at them, the names flash in his mind automatically.
“They look nice; can I have one?” asks Sakura looking at the cakes.
“They do look nice; what restaurant is this?” asks Sue as she looks for an indication on the signs.
Without removing his eyes from the cakes, Lee says, “It’s a Portuguese restaurant mum.” He then looks at Sue and Kenji and adds, “I can tell by the smell of the food, and the cakes and drinks on display.”
Sue looks at Kenji and he nods, then lowering down to Lee’s level, Sue speaks. “Do you know the food? Do you know what’s good and not?” Lee looks into Sue’s eyes and nods. “Lee, we have never had Portuguese cuisine; are you sure you know what is good?”
“Yes mum, I don’t know how; I just know that I know,” says Lee.
“Why don’t we give it a try?” asks Kenji. “The cakes do look good, and we can always take a look at the menu.”
Noticing that it’s three against one, Sue sighs. “Fine, let’s go in.”
The author's narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.
A waitress approaches them and asks in Japanese, “Hello and welcome. Is it a table for four?”
Kenji nods as he drops Sakura on the floor. “Yes, but is there a chance we can take a look at the menu first?”
“Not a problem at all.” The waitress then turns around, snaps her fingers at someone behind the counter, waves, and makes a two sign with her fingers. The guy behind the counter nods and passes two menus. “Here you go, sir and madam,” she says as she passes the menus to Kenji and Sue.
Kenji starts to look through the menu; as Sue is not looking at the one in her hands, Lee takes it and starts to look at it. The menu has the dishes' names in Portuguese, then in brackets has how to pronounce them in Japanese, and under is a description of what the item is. As Lee looks at the names, he starts to lick his lips so as not to drool.
Lee then looks at the waitress and asks, “Sorry, these chicken breasts with chips, do they come with rice and salad or just one of the two?”
The waitress, being distracted, replies, “It can be with one or both, but we do bring the salad on a side plate.”
Lee nods. “In order for the salad not to be hot.” The waitress nods in agreement. “And is it plain or does it come with a mushroom cream sauce?”
“Normally it comes with the sauce, but we do ask if the customer wants it or not,” the waitress says.
“Lee honey, what are you saying?” Sue asks looking between Lee and the waitress.
Lee freezes for a second then says in Japanese sheepishly, “Sorry for speaking Portuguese; it just came out.” Hearing this, the waitress gets back to reality and notices that in fact she was talking in Portuguese to Lee, who has a perfect accent like someone born in Portugal.
“That’s fine; I see that the money we spent on the software was well spent,” says Kenji and Lee understands what his dad is doing so he nods and Kenji continues. “But what did you ask?”
Lee points at the menu he is holding. “This is a good option for me and Saki; it’s grilled chicken breasts with chips, rice and salad, served with a mushroom cream sauce.”
Sue nods. “What about me and your dad?”
Lee looks at the menu and says, “This one is a good idea for dad; it might sound like a sandwich, but it’s really big. The name is Francesinha.”
Sue looks at Lee then at the waitress. “How big is this one we are talking about?”
“It’s that one!” Lee says pointing to a table nearby.
“It looks nice; I will have one of them,” says Kenji.
Sue shakes her head. “No, that would be too big for me.”
“How about this one, mum?” Lee says pointing to the house steak. “And we could ask for Saki’s sauce to come on the side; that way if she doesn’t like it, you can have it.” Sue nods in agreement.
“In that case, allow me to take you to your table,” the waitress says and takes the Watsons to a table for four.
After noting their order of the foods and drinks, the waitress goes away; shortly after, she comes back with the drinks: two pineapple juices for Lee and Sue, a natural apple juice for Sakura, and a beer for Kenji.
Taking a sip from the beer, Kenji nods in approval. “Lee, you were right; this is a good beer,” he says in a whisper so as not to attract too much attention.
As they are waiting for the food, Lee reaches into his backpack and takes two strings, a pink and another violet, then in quick movements he starts to twist and turn the strings. Sue and Kenji are talking to one another but keep an eye on Lee to see what he is doing; in about two minutes, Lee looks up.
“Saki, show me your arm,” Lee calls out and Sakura extends her arm across the table. “Here you go; what do you think?” Lee asks, having turned the two strings into a bracelet and fastening it around Sakura’s wrist.
