‘Good food, great atmosphere’

Gentle Brook Cafe and Restaurant is running on its 10th year this year. They are located on the ground floor of Marianas Business Plaza in Susupe. (Bea Cabrera)

When you are looking for a restaurant to take your family, friends, or a loved one, Gentle Brook Café and Restaurant should be on top of the list. Conveniently located on the ground floor of the Marianas Business Plaza in Susupe, this café and restaurant prides itself on having a relaxing, child-friendly, and romantic atmosphere accompanied with many choices of scrumptious food in their menu.

Now on their 10th year, owner Satoko Kobayashi said the challenge to be better is always a goal they strive for every year. “Gentle Brook originally opened in 2008 but we took over management in 2010… We wanted a place for people to enjoy good Japanese, American, and European food… after 10 years we are still here and doing what we love and I am glad that the community appreciates it,” she said.

“We temporarily closed in March due to COVID-19 concerns and in June, we slowly reopened the business and did take-outs. In July, we reopened our dine-in operations and we were amazed that people started coming in. We saw that as a good sign,” she added.

To be able to try in one sitting the many dishes at Gentle Brook, the $10 “2 Choice” option where you can mix-match dishes is highly recommended. Choice A comes with hamburger steak with gravy sauce as the main dish. It can be partnered with breaded deep fried basa fillet, pork yakiniku thin cut stir fry pork, fried dumpling or gyoza, and boneless fried chicken.

Gentle Brook staff are ready to serve and satisfy. From left, Michael Vincent Sanchez, Nagisa Kishimoto, and Zenaida Abendan. (Bea Cabrera)

Choice B comes with Menchi Katsu which is breaded beef fried hamburger steak and can be paired with breaded deep fried basa fillet, pork yakiniku thin cut stir fry pork, fried dumpling or gyoza, and boneless fried chicken. Both choices come with salad, rice, and iced or green tea and available for lunch and dinner (dine-in or take-out).

For those who still shy away from dining in, Gentle Brook hears them as its $8 take-out promotion is ongoing. Bento A includes two pieces of tempura and fried boneless chicken. Bento B includes namban deep fried juicy chicken mixed with sweet soy vinegar topped with delectable tartar and fried dumpling. Bento C includes fried boneless chicken and inarizushi which is a kind of sushi made of aburaage (deep fried tofu stuffed with rice). All bentos come with salad and steamed rice.

Regular menu is available and bestsellers go from $10 to $11 only. Bestsellers include tonkatsu which is breaded deep fried pork cutlets with a side of Japanese Worcestershire sauce with steamed rice for only $10, teriyaki chicken saute which is crispy chicken combined with original savory teriyaki sauce and comes with steamed rice for only $10, and the katsu curry rice which is Japanese-style spicy curry sauce poured on top of rice with breaded deep fried pork and chicken cutlet for only $11.

As for safety protocols, Gentle Brook is compliant. “It is good people go straight to the hand sanitizer upon entering and record their names. We get their temperature and we lead them to the table… our customer’s safety is an important part of our service,” said wait staff Michael Vincent Sanchez

Spicy tuna poke is a staple at Gentle Brook Cafe and Restaurant. (Contributed Photo)

“Most of our customers are locals—families and corporate people. We also had tourists come… I think our staying power is due to our regular customers. We treat them like family…We see people come here twice or thrice a week and when somebody I recognize come, it makes me feel happy and excited to see them because people come back because of the connection they have in this place,” he added.

Gentle Brook Café and Restaurant is open from Monday to Saturday, 11:30am-1:30pm for lunch and from 5:30pm to 9pm for dinner. For more information, call (670) 234-2333 or visit their FaceBook: Gentle Brook Café and Restaurant.