Note: A copy of the game was gifted to me by a wonderful friend. ^^



Kitchen Sync: Aloha! is a cozy, story-driven, tactical, cooking RPG developed and published by Lemonpepper Games. You take on the role of either Kai or Kala, a brother-sister pair who has arrived in Maikai to take over the family restaurant from their recently deceased aunt. Not only do you have ambitions of running a successful restaurant, you and your sibling want to make it the best and first 5-hoku (equivalent of star) restaurant on the island, and with the use of pop-up restaurants, that could be a reality. However, no dream comes without its challenges, and in this case, there's a villain who doesn't want the restaurant business in Maikai to succeed. :o

As for the gameplay, you can choose from among three difficulty levels: cozy, normal, or hard-boiled. (You can change the difficulty level at any time.) Depending on how quickly you complete any or all of the goals (both mandatory and bonus) and the quality of your dishes, you can earn up to S rank. S+ rank is available, too, but only on hard-boiled mode. Both main and side quests are available as well as mini-games, such as fishing and hiking with other chefs. Also, Kai and Kala meet many characters during their journey, and up to 7 chefs can be recruited, each of whom have their own stats, such as speed and technique. Chefs can have a maximum level of 20, and they can gain abilities as they do so. Also, they have special powers that are activated when the cooking meter is filled up, and these powers can range from increasing dish quality to temporarily freezing the timer. Chefs can have relationships ranging from friendship to romance, depending on how often they cook together. There are plenty of potential relationships, both with and without the main character. Also, there's a shop feature in which you can purchase additional items or books to improve a chef's cooking technique or even items to give to other chefs to improve (or worsen) relationships with them. Plenty of Steam achievements are available, and at the time of this review, they count towards a user's global total.


When I first noticed Kitchen Sync: Aloha!, I never thought it would involve any sort of tactical gameplay, especially since it appears more like a cozy game. However, I quickly learned to put my preconceptions aside. :o

First, I enjoyed the main story. It starts off a bit on the slow side, but it quickly picks up after Kai and Kala arrive in Maikai and are thrust into cooking. Regardless of who you choose to play as (I chose Kala ^^), you're the head chef while your sibling is the restaurant manager. If this were simply a story about building a restaurant empire, I might have found it a bit boring, but there is a major plot as you get further into the game. It's nothing crazy like destroying the world, but I find that wanting to get rid of most of the restaurants via financial destruction a terrible plan. :/ Anyway, it's up to Kai and Kala to ultimately stop this plan and to help the other restaurants. The story is very enjoyable, and I was happy with how it ends.

As for the characters, there's such a wide variety of personalities. First, there's Kai and Kala. I liked Kala a lot, as she is bright and cheerful and has a genuine passion for cooking. With Kai, he has enthusiasm and optimism although I feel that it can be a bit too much at times. At one point, he pushes Kala towards going for this cooking contest that can bring the restaurant quick fame even though it's obvious that Kala is feeling stressed. This annoyed me, but thankfully, Kai learns to back off. (To be fair, this could be the same if you choose to play as Kai and Kala is the restaurant manager who ends up being pushy.) As for the other characters, I liked getting to know the various chefs, such as Hina, the shy one who used to come to Aloha Pearl (the name of Kai and Kala's restaurant, but the name can be changed) and wants to be a chef, and Lono, the person in charge of the local farmers' market. I haven't even gotten into all the possible friendship and romance pairings (otome, yuri, etc.), but there are definitely many. The game makes it so much fun to build up relationships and get to know all the characters, their backstories, etc.

With the gameplay, it's a lot of fun, but it can feel challenging at times, especially if you're aiming to get all of the achievements, including that elusive S+ rank for all restaurants. You have to plan out which chefs you're going to use for quests as well as the materials and ingredients and any special powers, such as Aloha Sync that makes your chefs temporarily move faster and improve the quality of dishes. This can be quite difficult at first until you get all of the chefs and unlock all of their special abilities. It's definitely worth it to vary the chefs who work together, not only to level them up but to unlock their special powers, which can be the result of specific relationship pairings and whatnot. In addition, the items in the shops can help although I didn't find them that necessary since I could get really good item rewards from quests. Also, the mini-games are lots of fun. They range from fishing to hiking to swap meets. You can take a couple of chefs with you, and spending time with them increases their relationship meters. Of course, I obtained all of the achievements even though it took me a while (but totally worth it).

As for the art, it has this cute pixelated style in the individual restaurants and on the world map that's perfect for a cozy game. There's enough detail and the colors feel bright and cheerful. As for the more story-heavy parts of the game, the sprites are drawn and colored in an anime style with accompanying backgrounds that give plenty of detail.

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3468495506

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3468495682

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3468496057

In regards to the music, the tracks have this relaxing vibe that makes you feel like you're in Hawaii. Although a lot of tracks have a slower beat, there are a few tracks that are faster when chefs' powers are activated, letting you know that you only have access to them for a limited time. No voice acting is present, but the game is very enjoyable without it, and I found myself immersed in the gameplay and the story.


Would I recommend Kitchen Sync: Aloha!? If you're looking for a cozy, cooking game but you want that challenge at the same time (and believe me - this game is plenty challenging if you're going for all the achievements), then this is totally worth checking out. You'll probably spend a lot of time playing and (probably) getting addicted to this game. Even though it took me quite a while to complete this game (and it may very well take less time for others to do the same), it was totally worth it, and I'm happy that I took the time to explore all the aspects of the game rather than rush through it. Suffice it to say that it's worth the asking price, but you can always wait for a sale. ^^

The Introverted Gamer and Otome Rakuen team up to give readers highly detailed, thorough reviews of hot romance games.

This game is everything I want in a cooking RPG—a relaxing gameplay loop, fun mechanics, and a well-written story. The art style is gorgeous! I play in cozy mode with no pressure, just chill vibes. I’ve also learned so much about Hawaiian cuisine and culture~ Highly recommend!

Want a cozy take on Overcooked but as a strategy game with Fire Emblem and a dash of Advance Wars mixed in? You've got it right here!