The Restaurant on Top of the World
On aesthetic grounds, I was sad there was a restaurant on the summit of Mount Fuji. Spoiling nature and all that.
Practically, I was overjoyed to sit down in the warmth after climbing seven hours.
“How do you get the food up here?” I asked.
“My daughter carries it up, every week,” the owner said.
“That’s amazing. I’ll have the tonkotsu ramen and a Coke.”
“Of course. The drink will just take a bit more time.”
“How much? I don’t want to be a bother.”
“No bother.” She glanced at her daughter already putting on her coat. “Maybe six hours.”
This story was inspired by a few real life events. One was hiking in the mountains in Korea and seeing people climbing up with huge loads of ramen and other things on their backs to supply the stores further up on the trails.
The second was when I was at a Korean restaurant in Tokyo and ordered a Coke with my meal. One woman left immediately and it was only later that I realized she went to a nearby store and bought it for me since they didn’t have any there.
Also, to clarify: there is no actual restaurant on top of Mt. Fuji. 🙂
The Green-Walled Treehouse 
I at once thought of two things. Windows On the World at the World Trade Center…sigh…and the film Blade Runner
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yeah, I can see that. A bowl of noodles in some rarified air. Kind of reminds me of the floating noodle restaurant in the 5th Element too, now that you mention it.
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I loved in Blade Runner how you got your sushi was delivered by a little stand with propellers at your window, no matter what floor you were on.
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The last line made me laugh. I had a similar (though less demanding) request once in a restaurant in Greece
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I always find that level of customer service very endearing, especially when they won’t accept a tip on top of it.
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Heheheheh! clever twist!
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Thanks, Violet!
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That would be wild, indeed. I’d pass at the coke, though. I’d feel way too guilty!
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Yeah, especially up there. I felt guilty at the restaurant when they just went down the road to get it.
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How could one not? (When one has a heart, that is!)
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Wonderful story, especially with the facts at the end. It’s always fun to travel overseas and coming across the unusual!
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Thank you, Brenda. Yes, traveling is wonderful in general and great fodder for stories too. Have a great week!
-David
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Nice story, sometimes a restaurant at the top of the mountain can be quite a respite, if done aesthetically. I remember there was a tea house on the trail in Banff Canada modeled after tea houses in Germany which was a lovely experience. When we stayed in a cabin on top of the Great Smoky Mountains there was a main lodge that served meals and the supplies were brought up the mountain on llamas.
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LOL
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Funny story, David, and I appreciated the afterword as much as the story itself. I was going to say, drinking Coke at the top of Mt. Fuji would be sacrilege, unless you were shooting a commercial 😉 (just kidding!)
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Dear David,
I’d opt for water at that point. 😉 Clever story as always.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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this was a great story and I liked your little notes – and it reminds me of culture differences and also the diversity in labor – and your story had a very warm tone as I imagined “humble hustling workers” carrying that food/drink, etc
and the humor of 6 hours was funny
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Hahaha! Funny ending to a clever story, David.
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