The Garlic Tree celebrates Thanksgiving

It's fair to say that it has been a turbulent few days in Restaurant Story. Black Friday was the mother of all anticlimaxes, with only six items offered up and little to provide any cheer for the players.

But that doesn't mean we couldn't celebrate Thanksgiving! I may not be from the US, but that hasn't stopped me from paying homage to this US holiday. I've sacrificed part of my outdoor area to house a cosy family feast:

Thanksgiving feast section of The Garlic Tree

At the centre of this section is the Thanksgiving Feast which was a goal prize in last year's Autumn goals. I know there have been a lot of dining based decorations of this format, but this one is quality in my opinion. There's a really happy feel to it, stemming from the smiling faces and tasty food. The basket of flowers is also really nice, and the wreathed chairs make for an excellent match with the Fall Dividers I have used to flank the zone.

Black Friday 2015 analysis

Black Friday. The day everyone waited for with baited breath. The day we'd all been saving for over the course of the last few months. The day the game's developers could be sure of a large windfall of cash from its devoted players. And the day that delivered one of the great let-downs in Restaurant Story history.

Before I go to town with my thoughts on this year's big sale, let's get the housekeeping done. There were six items made available in the market, all for a 40% discount on their original price.

Notification for Black Friday 2015 sale

Game update: 25/11/15

We've reached the big week! The last weekly update of November is always something of a sideshow as we prepare ourselves for the drama of Black Friday, and this year is no exception.

Notification for Acorn Crate

We were long overdue a new box, so it should come as no surprise that the Acorn Crate has been added. As ever with boxes, upon opening it for 24 gems you'll receive one of nine possible prizes. It's just your luck as to how rare an item you obtain so think carefully before making that fateful tap.

Suggestions Box (Nov 2015)

Every month I list five things I'd like to see added, altered or abolished from the game. Because even though my long time of playing Restaurant Story clearly shows I love it, that doesn't mean it's perfect. Some of the ideas I'll air will be significant game changers while others will be low-key and irrelevant in the eyes of many of you readers.

You can share your own suggestions too via the comments. If I like them, I may even include them in the next instalment!

In no particular order, here are this month's entries...

Game update: 18/11/15

Thanksgiving is a week tomorrow, and you can get ready for it with this latest update.

With eight new items added, there's plenty to get our teeth stuck into, all of which is available at level 22. Let's have one of those traditional lists...

Tables:

• Hay Bale - 6,000 coins

Chairs:

• Acorn Stool - 4 gems

Wall decorations:

• Colorful Corn - 4,600 coins

Autumn 2015 goals content report

It's now six days since this year's Autumn goals were released, and many players have now completed all the steps, thus unlocking a number of items exclusively available via the quest.

The speed at which everyone was able to pass through the goals was varied by some noticeable differences in the difficulty of certain steps. Perhaps the most tricky section of the quest has been the neighbour requests. The fourth step required you to ask 10 neighbours for Golden Apples, which in itself doesn't seem unreasonable. But this was then followed up in the fifth step with a request for 10 Silver Apples. And of course there was then construction of the second appliance to think about too.

Autumn 2015 goals (in full)

Please note that this set of goals expired on Tuesday 8th December 2015.

It's once again time to open up that clipboard and get busy with goals! The most recent Autumn update is accompanied by a new quest, which offers the chance to obtain five new items, including two appliances which themselves house six recipes.

There are 28 days available to get through all the steps, so expect the goals to vanish forever on Tuesday 8th December.

Here is the complete list of steps:

• Step 1: Autumn is for Apples
• Step 2: Conquer The Core
• Step 3: Crisps for Phoebe
• Step 4: The Golden Rule
• Step 5: Modest McIntosh
• Step 6: Fall Flavors
• Step 7: Candy Apple Cookies
• Step 8: Autumn Duo
• Step 9: Seasonal Sweets

Game update: 11/11/15

It's not just leaves falling from the trees at this time of year - there are apples dropping to the earth too!

Introduction to Autumn 2015 goals

This is your November goals update, which naturally means a greater range of content than we sometimes get. It should also mean an absence of gem items, but that's not the case this time. There are a handful of floor decorations for gems, but I think they're designed to compliment the coin goodies involved in the quest.

RS2 News (Nov 2015)

It's only a fortnight since my last Restaurant Story 2 round-up, so that means we have a little less to dissect in this edition. So we'll go deeper with the thoughts and analysis!

The focal point of this post is the Ghost Pirate Cruise Event, which was just getting underway at the last review. This was the culmination of a really impressive Halloween season in the sequel game, and featured a slightly different final prize from the norm.

Notification for Ghost Pirate Cruise Event

Until now all but one of the cruise events have featured a gem producing recipe as the end goal, but on this occasion the big reward was the Ghostly Stove, which contains six new recipes. I'm not sure what to make of this. The prospect of unlocking six more dishes and therefore access to another 18 mastery stars is clearly exciting, but it's not on the same level as adding to gem production.

Game update: 04/11/15

As we enter November, the time has come to get out your hat, scarf and gloves.

There's an opportunity to sprinkle some Autumn chill on your restaurant in this update, although there are only eight new items in the market. They're all unlocked at level 21, and are shown in the following fabulous list:

Wall decorations:

• Leaf Torches - 17,200 coins
• Wall Flowers - 33,000 coins

Floor decorations:

• Autumn Kitten - 17 gems
• Puppy Pile - 24 gems

A Halloween showcase

The dust has settled on another Halloween, with the skeletons firmly back in the closet. But that doesn't mean we can't distribute some more fear into the world, and so I present a Halloween showcase!

At Christmas last year I offered a glimpse into some of the festive creations a few of my blog-contributing neighbours had conjured up, and so I'd like to repeat that now with a look at some of the tricks and treats that Halloween has inspired...


We'll start at Nibble and Noms, who posts regularly on the blog as Whipped Cream.

Nibbles and Noms

The Garlic Tree celebrates Halloween

Today marks the start of November, and that means that yesterday evening the streets were swarming with all manner of queer beings. And my restaurant, The Garlic Tree, was no exception. As has become tradition every year, I have decked out my place for the occasion, with every corner given a Halloween twist. So let's take a look!

We'll start the tour where the magic happens - in the kitchen.

Kitchen section of The Garlic Tree

Generally my kitchen is largely unaffected when these big decorating projects some around, and that was the case again this time for a good while. But after the goals I felt there was scope to do some re-jigging. The Potion Vials and Spooky Brooms were the main motivation, with the Light Bar wallpapers and Purple flooring following. Swapping out my Plus Windows for Stormy Windows adds some dramatic effect, and the Modern Circle Art is there just because it fits the colour scheme and has a wacky feel to it.