Sushi-Go-Round

Hello from the truly amazing Tokyo.  I'll get right to my favorite food: sushi.


Conveyor belt sushi (kaiten-zushi) is the fastest of all fast food and great when you're hungry and impatient.  You walk in, sit down and start helping yourself to plates going around.  The conveyor belt  passes by every seat in the restaurant.  You also help yourself to chopsticks, wasabi, pickled ginger and green tea, so no need to wait for an attendant, no ordering.  Just walk in, sit, grab and eat.

At the end of the meal, you pay based on the plates you ate from - each color is a different price.  As simple as that.

Sometimes the tiniest restaurants are the best finds.

You spin me 'round and 'round right 'round...

The "price list" is up on the wall.  The plates range from 100 yen = $1.20 to 520 yen = $6.20

Even the tea is self service.  You grab a mug, put some matcha (green tea powder) in it and add hot water from this tap.

You can order a custom plate from the chef, but most people just grab plates.  For custom orders, you are handed a stack of plates with food on the top one - the plates add up to the correct price.

Some salmon.

Nice raw squid.

Perhaps tuna tartar?

Sweet shrimp.

Freshly torched eel.

Couldn't resist the squid after it passed in front of my nose five times.

Now this has unusual taste... fermented beans in a roll.

Some huge bottles of sake... you can also order beer.

Couldn't be clearer, right?

Ringing up the bill.

My total was ¥2130 = $25.  There is no tipping in restaurants and bars.  My meal was cheap for the area and I was quite full by the end of it.

Visa makes it easy.