The OVAs strip away tournament brackets and just let the Aldini brothers breathe, turning what could have been filler into the character moments the main series barely has time for. Erina's walls crack in ways the actual plot never lets them, and you remember why you cared about these people in the first place. Two episodes that feel like hanging out with the cast instead of chasing the next shock victory, which is exactly what Food Wars fans secretly wanted all along.

Packaged with volumes 18 and 19 of the Shokugeki no Souma manga, these two OVA episodes offer comedic side stories. In the first, the Aldini brothers, Takumi and Isami, use their break after a grueling training camp to tour Tokyo Tower and the neighborhood around it, sampling local dishes along the way. They run into Megumi Tadokoro, Ryouko Sakaki and Yuuki Yoshino, who are sightseeing there too, and the group sits down for lunch at a traditional Japanese eatery, where a surprise cooking showdown is about to break out. The second episode is set during summer break, while Tootsuki students practice dishes for the Autumn Elections. Erina Nakiri has already finished her preparations and has time on her hands when her cousin Alice invites her to a public pool. Erina hesitates at first, then decides to give the ordinary summer outing a try. Meanwhile, the Polar Star Dormitory residents hold a modest get-together at a lake close by to relax before the Autumn Elections. Ecchi elements come mixed in with the comedy.