Thomas has been coming to Nekoya for years and loves his pasta with meat sauce. He’s an older, quiet man who always seems to be in a good mood. He hopes one day his grandson Sirius will take over his company and shares with him the location of the Nekoya door which is located in the company’s cellar.

Thomas is an interesting guy because, unlike many other customers, he doesn’t get into fights about which dish is best, instead choosing to quietly enjoy his meal. He provides Tenshu, the owner, with ingredients from the other world in exchange for a free meal and the days’ earnings. He definitely gets more than food out of the deal, but Thomas loves the Nekoya cuisine so much he started his own food supplier company that mimics these dishes. He states that he just wanted to be able to eat it on the other side too. Apparently even once a week is just not enough!

She is the red dragon that has lived thousands and thousands of years. Yet she’s never had anything as delicious as the beef stew at Nekoya! For a being that literally sleeps on piles of money she sure has simple tastes. She emits a menacing, powerful aura even when she transforms into a human so she waits until all other customers have left before entering the magical door.

It’s pretty surprising anyone could convince such a powerful being to do anything, but she patiently obliges Tenshu in his request for her to wait until the restaurant is empty. She very much considers Nekoya her treasure and refers to it as such. Aka considers anyone who might bring harm to the staff or damage the restaurant as her enemy and would be quick to deal out punishment. While this could just be her natural sense of greed, we know she has to have a real love for that beef stew as she comes in every time with a giant pot for Tenshu to fill so she can take some back with her.

These two friends are like brothers, sharing in everything and willing to even die for each other. When Gilem eventually decides to share his discovery of the magical door with Gard, it is not a light matter. Gilem is quite amused at Gard’s initial disbelief in good seafood being found on a mountain and his shock upon entering Nekoya. The two dwarves eat huge amounts of fried seafood platters and guzzle beer, considering the spirits at Nekoya to be quite superior to those in their village.

Gard and Gilem are some of the louder patrons at Nekoya and everyone knows they enjoy their food. Gard is even mesmerized by the glasses their beer comes in and wants to try his hand at smithing something similar. In a strange mix of both kindness and selfishness, the two of them build a rest stop in the mountain around the door to Nekoya. It’s convenient for travelers to have a free place to rest, but the dwarves also built an incredibly heavy locked door to keep anyone else from discovering it. They alone have the key and access to the best food either of them has ever tasted and they do not feel like sharing!

Heinrich is a man of honor, as to be expected of a knight. He is an avid lover of his country and fried shrimp and will defend his ebi fry just as he would his home. He talks very loudly about how much he’s enjoying his meal, completely disregarding anyone else that might be there. He’s also known to get into fights with other patrons about how superior his food is compared to what anyone else is eating.

When Heinrich stumbles upon the eatery, he is tired, hungry, cold, and terrified he won’t be able to complete his mission. He is immediately hostile which one can understand given the circumstance but once he tastes his food his mood completely changes. He’s so grateful to be eating the beloved shripe from his childhood, that he insists Tenshu take his beloved sword as payment until Heinrich can pay his tab. After completing his mission, Heinrich is devastated that Nekoya is gone, not knowing it only appears every 7 days. When another diner reunites him with his sword at his home, he’s happy but much more excited at the idea of being able to eat ebi fry again. In three years, the restaurant has never left his mind.

Faldania discovers the door in her search for mushrooms to make soup for her father. She tends to look down on humans for eating things elves do not, such as meat and egg, because of their respect for animals. She also considers humans incapable of making anything an elf would enjoy, so she’s wary when Tenshu says he can whip something up that’s not on the menu. Sure enough, once she tries her tofu, her doubts are completely erased.

Faldania is an interesting patron because unlike the others, she very readily tries new dishes. The tofu dish alone is enough to inspire her to study the culinary arts. When she later comes with her father’s friend Christofer, she's eager to try new dishes and even to suggest variations on them. She smiles happily as she eats and mentally makes notes on how to recreate these same flavors back in her world.

Forced to endure a life of solitude lest she kills the weaker creatures of her world, Kuro lives on the moon. She has very little to take her mind off her isolation, so her interest is immediately piqued when a mysterious door shows up. Knowing her dragon form would kill those on the other side, she takes the form of an elf girl. Upon entering, another patron offers to pay for as much food as she wants and she ends up eating a mountain of chicken curry. An old friend of hers, Aka, asks Tenshu if he would take her on as a server and pay her in curry, which she happily accepts.

Kuro has faced years of not being around people or having to answer to anyone, so you'd think the idea of having to serve strange people at a popular restaurant would be too much for her. However, with curry chicken as her reward, nothing seems to phase her. She very rarely expresses emotion, so seeing her smiling at her favorite food is precious. With the amount of work she does, it’s very likely just three free meals isn’t the same value but to Kuro, they are everything.

As a member of the Gold family struck with adventure lust, Sarah could never be a proper noblewoman. After many adventures, she decides to go after the treasure her ancestor wrote about located in an abandoned mine. Sarah is completely baffled when instead of gold or jewels she finds a door. But when she tastes the food inside, she understands why this was regarded as a treasure. She often ends up eating at the same time as Heinrich and while sometimes exchanging harsh words, the two have an understanding.

Sarah is an accomplished treasure hunter so it’s surprising she’d be so moved by food. But just as her ancestor before her, she falls in love with the minced meat cutlet. She believes so strongly there is nothing like it and isn’t afraid to fight the other patrons about it. She has no fear despite most of the customers being male and warriors or mages to boot. Living a rather frugal life, most of Sarah’s money from adventuring goes to Nekoya, where she seems happiest.

Aretta is one of the main characters so we get to see pretty much in every episode how much she loves food. While most people would be scared or mad to find someone passed out in their kitchen, Tenshu saw her potential as a valuable worker. She works a 14-hour shift and deals with some pretty demanding customers, but always has a good disposition. And she's always excited to see what the staff meals will be!

Perhaps Aretta is so easily moved by food because of how scarce it was for her for a time. Having nothing but potatoes to eat can really make you appreciate good cooking! Even in the middle of work, she’ll sometimes stop to sniff when new dishes come out. She often squeals happily when she eats and treasures snacks she’s been given. Even something as simple as a steamed potato can make her really happy!

Alphonse was once a well-known admiral whose ship was attacked by a fearsome Kraken. He ended up on an uninhabited island and got by eating the animals he came across. When he found the door to Nekoya, suddenly his hard days didn’t seem so hard anymore. His enthusiasm for curry rice is well-known, as he’s yelled in the restaurant about it being the best rice dish ever. He eventually tries chicken curry too, and loves it as well.

Alphonse definitely feels very passionate about food. He was trapped on an island for 20 years and he didn't once think to ask the other patrons he'd meet in the restaurant to send a search party for him or at least let people know he was alive. When a ship ends up landing on the island and offers to take him back to civilization, Alphonse is actually NOTICEABLY reluctant to go. This man facing 20 years of near solitude and harsh living conditions has to actually wonder if he wants to be rescued or not. One of the first things he does is search for another magic door when he gets home and he’s overjoyed to find one.

Lionel is the leader of a band of mercenaries who is defeated by another mercenary and sold as a slave. He was taunted with the idea that if he won enough fights as a gladiator slave he could buy his freedom. Lionel was contemplating his inability to even win one match when the Nekoya door appeared in his holding cell. After eating the katsudon, a meal for winners, he goes on to win battle after battle and earns his freedom, as well as money to buy more katsudon.

Lionel really owes his success to the katsudon. He was pretty sure his first fight with the manticore would kill him, but after his first meal, he was confident he could kill it. Lionel is a seasoned warrior, yet food alone can make him yell out and his tail twitch. It wasn't the thought of earning his freedom that inspired Lionel, it was knowing he would need to pay for katsudon next time and the only way to get money was from winning these fights. Going from hopeless and accepting of death to having the determination to live to eat more katsudon is the most miraculous transformation in the show, so Lionel takes our top spot.