Anime like Bartender

Death Parade

Also known as Death Parade.

Studio: MADHOUSE , VAP , DAX Production , Nippon Television Network
Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Mystery , Psychological , Supernatural , Thriller

When two people die at the same time, they’re sent to a place that’s neither heaven nor hell—a lavish bar between worlds where the stakes are high and the rules are simple: if you win you live again, if you die… you’re gone for good.

Decim is the bartender charged with serving the souls who enter Quindecim. He may make a mean cocktail, but his true profession is to play the role of arbiter—a judge who determines whether or not a soul is worthy of reincarnation. To aid in his judgment, the bar’s patrons are forced to play simple games laced with sadistic twists designed to bring their true natures to light. To Decim, judgment has always been black and white—that is—until he meets a mysterious young woman whose fate seems impossible to decide. His indecision shakes the very foundation of the games and raises the biggest question of all: Who is fit to judge the dead?



Tags: Death Game , Afterlife , Philosophy , Tragedy , Amnesia , Memory Manipulation , Reincarnation , Bar , Primarily Adult Cast , Episodic , Suicide , Gambling , Male Protagonist , Female Protagonist , Mythology , Kuudere , Gyaru , Ice Skating , Revenge , CGI , Bowling , Tanned Skin

Mushishi

Also known as MUSHI-SHI.

Studio: Artland , Marvelous Entertainment , Funimation , Delfi Sound
Status: Finished
Genres: Adventure , Fantasy , Mystery , Psychological , Slice of Life , Supernatural

Neither good nor evil, they are life in its purest form. Vulgar and strange, they have inspired fear in humans since the dawn of time and have, over the ages, come to be known as "mushi." The stories of the Mushi and the people they affect are all linked together by a traveling Mushi-shi, or "Mushi Master," who seeks rare Mushi sightings and uses his shaman-like knowledge of Mushi to help the affected people.

What are the Mushi and what do they want?



Tags: Environmental , Youkai , Mythology , Episodic , Philosophy , Rural , Travel , Male Protagonist , Animals , Iyashikei , Outdoor Activities , Exorcism , Tragedy , Snowscape , Eco-Horror , Seinen , Historical , Wilderness , Coastal , Primarily Adult Cast , Amnesia , Cult , Monster Girl , Suicide

Housekishou Richard-shi no Nazo Kantei

Also known as The Case Files of Jeweler Richard.

Studio: Shuka
Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Mystery , Slice of Life

The 'heartwarming jewel mystery' series centers on the handsome jewelry appraiser Richard Ranashinha de Vulpian and the bright and cheerful college student Seigi Nakata as they uncover the hidden messages that lie within jewels while they solve various jewel-related cases by unravelling the hidden psychological aspects of their owners that lie within the gems.



Tags: Work , Josei , Male Protagonist , Primarily Adult Cast , Educational , Foreign , Episodic , Bisexual , Urban , Boys' Love , LGBTQ+ Themes , Asexual , Cars , College , School , Cute Boys Doing Cute Things

Kino no Tabi: the Beautiful World

Also known as Kino's Journey.

Studio: WOWOW , Genco , A.C.G.T. , Sentai Filmworks , Studio Wombat
Status: Finished
Genres: Adventure , Drama , Fantasy , Psychological , Slice of Life

Based on a hit light novel series by Keiichi Sigsawa, the philosophical Kino's Journey employs the time-honored motif of the road trip as a vehicle for self-discovery and universal truth. Deeply meditative and cooler than zero, the series follows the existential adventures of the apt marksman Kino along with talking motorcycle Hermes as they travel the world and learn much about themselves in the process. Imaginative, thought-provoking, and sometimes disturbing, Kino's journey is documented in an episodic style with an emphasis on atmosphere rather than action or plot, though still prevalent.

Tags: Philosophy , Episodic , Travel , Foreign , Tragedy , Meta , Motorcycles , Achronological Order , Female Protagonist , Dystopian , Agender , Guns , Rural , Steampunk , Snowscape , Mopeds , Politics , Cannibalism , Robots , Kuudere , Battle Royale , Aviation , War , Tanks

Eve no Jikan: Are you enjoying the time of EVE?

Also known as Time of Eve.

Studio: Studio Rikka , Directions , Code , Trick Block
Status: Finished
Genres: Sci-Fi , Slice of Life

The future, probably Japan. Robots have long been put into practical use, and androids have just come into use.

Influenced by the Robot Ethics Committee, it's become common sense for people to treat androids like household appliances. Their appearance - indistinguishable from humans except for the ring over each android's head - has led some people to empathize unnecessarily with androids. Known as "android-holics", such people have become a social problem.

Rikuo, a high school student, has been taught from childhood that androids are not to be viewed as humans, and has always used them as convenient tools. One day Rikuo discovers some strange data in the behavior records of his family's household android, Sammy.

Rikuo and his friend Masaki trace Sammy's movements, only to discover a mysterious café that features a house rule that "humans and robots are to be treated the same"...



Tags: Robots , Artificial Intelligence , Philosophy , Bar , Male Protagonist , Urban , Amnesia , Surreal Comedy , CGI , Found Family , Female Protagonist

Ristorante Paradiso

Also known as Ristorante Paradiso.

Studio: The Right Stuf International , David Production , Fujipacific Music
Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Romance , Slice of Life

When Nicoletta was a little girl, her mother, Olga, abandoned her and ran off to Rome to remarry. Now, 15 years later and a young woman, she travels to Rome with the intention of ruining her mother's life. She tracks Olga down to a restaurant called Casetta dell'Orso, but the second Nicoletta steps through its door, everything changes. It's a peculiar place staffed entirely by mature gentlemen wearing spectacles, and like their clientele, she is helpless against their wise smiles and warm voices. Before Nicoletta realizes it, her plans for vengeance start to fade, and she's swept up in the sweet romance of everyday Italian life.



Tags: Josei , Foreign , Primarily Adult Cast , Female Protagonist , Age Gap , Restaurant , Food , CGI , Ensemble Cast , Coming of Age ,

Isekai Shokudou

Also known as Restaurant to Another World.

Studio: SILVER LINK. , Sotsu , Avex Pictures , TV Tokyo , flying DOG , Shufunotomo , Dai Nippon Printing , Nikkatsu , Crunchyroll
Status: Finished
Genres: Fantasy , Slice of Life

There is a certain restaurant in the first basement level of a multi-tenant building in one corner of a shopping street near the office district. The historical restaurant, marked by a sign with a picture of a cat, is called "Western Cuisine Nekoya." This restaurant looks completely normal through the week, but on Saturdays, it opens in secret exclusively to some very unique guests. During these hours, doors in various areas of a parallel world open to allow customers of many different races and cultures into the restaurant.



Tags: Food , Work , Isekai , Ensemble Cast , Episodic , Monster Girl , Restaurant , Elf , Urban Fantasy , Demons , Dragons , Primarily Adult Cast , Mermaid , Fairy

Osake wa Fuufu ni Natte kara

Also known as Love is Like a Cocktail.

Studio: Creators in Pack , xenron
Status: Finished
Genres: Comedy , Romance , Slice of Life

The "slightly sweet tipsy couple comedy" manga centers on the 28-year-old senior public relations company staff member Chisato Mizusawa. The story follows Chisato's daily life as she enjoys her husband Sora's cocktails. Chisato has secrets that only her husband knows.



Tags: Episodic , Food , Family Life , Marriage , Heterosexual , Male Protagonist , Primarily Adult Cast , Female Protagonist , Office Lady , Bar , Seinen , Work , Chibi

Death Billiards

Studio: MADHOUSE
Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Mystery , Psychological , Thriller

Two men have just arrived at a location known as Quindecim and are unable to remember how they got there. They are immediately greeted by a young woman who escorts them to a small bar, where a bartender awaits them. They are told that they will have to participate in a game, randomly chosen by roulette, and will be unable to leave until its completion; if they refuse, the consequences will be dire. In addition to the rules of the game, the two men are told to play as if their lives are at stake.
The game that has been chosen is billiards. But there's more to it than just pocketing pool balls, as the two are about to find out the outcome could mean life or death.
Death Billiards is one of the four anime works that each received 38 million yen (about US$480,000) from the "2012 Young Animator Training Project." Just like in 2010 and 2011, the animation labor group received 214.5 million yen (US$2.65 million) from the Japanese government's Agency for Cultural Affairs, and it distributed most of those funds to studios who train young animators on-the-job.


Tags: Afterlife , Philosophy , Gambling , Primarily Adult Cast , Bar , Death Game , Elderly Protagonist , Amnesia , Primarily Male Cast , Kuudere

Apocalypse Hotel

Also known as Apocalypse Hotel.

Studio: CygamesPictures , CyberAgent , Nippon Television Network , Takeshobo , Sammy , arma bianca
Status: Finished
Genres: Comedy , Sci-Fi , Slice of Life

Following the collapse of civilization, one storied hotel stands among the ruins of Tokyo’s Ginza district. Overrun by nature, this lone hotel continues to defy humanity’s collapse. Current guests: zero. Check-ins scheduled today: zero. Yesterday’s website traffic: zero. Enter with caution in this story of survival and mystery in a world where the memory of humanity begins to fade.



Tags: Post-Apocalyptic , Robots , Work , Female Protagonist , Inn , Anthropomorphism , Artificial Intelligence , Surreal Comedy , Urban , Aliens , Time Skip , Iyashikei , Episodic , Shapeshifting , Heterosexual , Space , Language Barrier , Pandemic , Parody , Marriage , Disability , Politics , Philosophy , Super Robot , Environmental , Superhero