Masamune Hanzawa, a 27-year-old office worker with no time for love or cooking, reluctantly tries a housekeeping service at his section chief's suggestion. Enter Natsuki, a charming college student and his boss's son, who quickly captures Masamune's heart. After their first meeting, Natsuki boldly confesses his feelings, leaving Masamune torn. Though undeniably attracted to Natsuki, Masamune hesitates due to their age difference and the potential complications of dating his superior's son. As they navigate meals and growing emotions, Masamune must decide whether to embrace this unexpected chance at love—or let it slip away.

Do You Really Want Only a Meal? is written and illustrated by Yasu Tadano. This volume is translated by Katie Kimura and lettered by Vibrant Publishing Studio. Published by Tokyopop (September 2, 2025). Rated T.

Rebecca Silverman
Rating:

Does a story need to be more than cute to be good? I go back and forth, but Do You Really Want Only a Meal?'s first volume makes a mild case for no. The story, which follows an office worker and the housekeeper he hires to occasionally cook for him, isn't particularly exciting or interesting, but it has adorability in spades, as well as a discernable plot, which isn't always a given with stories that are more cute than anything.

The hungry man in question is Masamune, a twenty-seven-year-old whose late nights at the office aren't conducive to eating well…and whose cooking skills aren't helping. When a coworker suggests that he try out a housekeeping service that offers meals and meal prep, he decides to go for it, which lands nineteen-year-old Natsuki at his door. Natsuki's huge and a little alarming at first, but his skills are the real deal, and Masamune is so tickled to have a homecooked meal for the first time in forever that he impulsively invites Natsuki to eat with him. It's pretty great until Natsuki bursts out with the fact that he's fallen for Masamune based on his kindness in a stunning case of instalove at first sight.

Given that Masamune is gay, that's not a huge problem, but he's not comfortable with the age gap and he's still smarting from an old, failed relationship. Plus it turns out that Natsuki is the son of his supervisor at work, which is, needless to say, super awkward. The majority of the book is Masamune slowly backing away as Natsuki keeps moving towards him, until finally the one slows down enough that the other can catch up with him. It's all incredibly low-key, with not even a kiss scene to heat up the pages. I wouldn't call that a problem per se, but it may make the book feel less rewarding than it otherwise might for some readers, even though the ending is very nice.

I suppose that's the real problem with this book – it never gets beyond “very nice.” The art is pleasant, the characters are sweet, the romance is cute, but there's no real urgency or tension in the story. That can be a good thing, because sometimes you just need a warm bath of a book to calm your soul. But it also makes it a little hard to recommend this, because it risks leaving readers unsatisfied. Maybe wait until volume two comes out in November before picking this up.

Lauren Orsini
Rating:

We all know better than to hit on that cute service worker. But what about when he hits on you first? Do You Really Want Only A Meal? is a BL that reverses the usual expectations of the classic power imbalance love story. Instead of a story about a younger man who feels no choice but to give in to his boss' salacious overtures, this twist is about an older man who wants to do everything he can to keep from taking advantage of the handsome home cook (who also happens to be his boss' son), much to the disappointment of said handsome cook. However, a complete lack of objectionable content does not in itself make a good story. Despite the age gap between these adult leads, it feels more like a turbulent love story between two dramatic teens.

Masamune is a stressed out 27-year-old office worker who doesn't have the time or know-how to make himself a decent meal. So he hires Natsuki, a 19-year-old college student who moonlights as part of a home cooking service. The story is told from Masamune's perspective, and Natsuki is presented as the perfect man for man-likers: he cooks, he cleans, he's tall (not sure why this is so important, but multiple characters remark on it), and he does it all out of love. Because of course, it's love at first sight for both of them. Masamune is too much of a gentleman to say anything, so Natsuki makes the first move. Seems straightforward enough, right? But of course, it gets complicated. Despite the way Masamune plays up the age gap between the two of them, Masamune is clearly the more immature. He obfuscates his feelings, avoids Natsuki for weeks at a time, and does just about anything but communicate directly. It's the worst kind of love story, where the obstacles keeping this couple together aren't even problems of their own making—they're problems of exclusively Masamune's making. I don't think Masamune should worry about the age gap when he's less mature than a literal teenager.

BL manga that combine romance with home cooking are a dime a dozen, and there have been far better entries in this niche genre. One of my favorites is What Did You Eat Yesterday? by the incomparable Fumi Yoshinaga. Do You Really Want Only A Meal? has art that's pretty enough to make both the leads and the food look scrumptious, but its juvenile love story left me ravenous for more substantial fare.