These two episodes exist purely to remind you what made Food Wars work before the series got lost in tournament brackets and pseudo-philosophy. They're loose, stupid-fun cooking battles where the stakes are nothing and the chemistry between characters actually matters again. If you've been waiting for the show to remember that food should taste good and characters should crack jokes instead of deliver speeches, here it is.

Two OVA episodes, packaged with the 24th and 25th volumes of the Shokugeki no Souma manga, take the Totsuki cast outside the usual contests. With their Stagiaire work finished, the Polar Star Dormitory residents and their friends travel to a hot springs inn to relax. They end up running the kitchen when every member of its cooking staff is hurt in accidents, and the guests they feed are anything but ordinary. Later, Souma's hunger for strong rivals grows when he, Megumi and the other Autumn Election quarter-finalists are invited to the yearly Autumn Leaves Viewing to share tea with the Elite Ten Council, whose Tenth Seat, Erina Nakiri, attends with her fellow first-years. Director Senzaemon Nakiri sees the gathering as the first meeting between the reigning elite and the students who will one day replace them. The episodes mix action and comedy with ecchi moments.