Home > Features > Japan Glances Kaiten-zushi (conveyor-belt sushi) restaurants are a cheap and casual way to enjoy Japan’s most famous food, as customers simply pick up dishes as they pass by on the belt or make orders from touchscreens. Simple view / Print First Installed to Reduce Costs Sushi is undoubtedly the best-known Japanese food around the world. It first grew in popularity during the Edo period (1603–1868) as street food bought from yatai stalls. Following World War II, the sale of raw items at these kinds of stall was prohibited, making sushi a luxury food only available in specialized restaurants. With the emergence of kaiten-zushi (conveyor-belt sushi) restaurants, however, the dish became affordable once more. Kaiten-zushi customers sit around a revolving conveyor belt carrying plates of sushi, choosing items they want to eat as they glide past or ordering directly—either by speaking to a chef or, in the modern era, from a touchscreen. With differently colored plates representing various prices, it is easy to keep track of the cost of the meal, and the self-service system can be cheaper and less intimidating than ordering each item directly.

Planet Sushi, a kaiten-zushi restaurant in Paris. The first kaiten-zushi restaurant, Mawaru Genroku Sushi, opened in Japan in 1958. Shiraishi Yoshiaki, the owner of a standing sushi restaurant in Osaka, installed a conveyor belt to make his employees’ work easier and reduce costs. sushi rolling mat londonSince then, the number of restaurants has proliferated. vua sushi doc onlineDomestic chains like Sushirō and Kura-Zushi have numerous outlets across the country, while foreign firms like Yo! buy sushi grade fish san franciscoand Planet Sushi have also found success outside of Japan.sushi making kit sur la table

While Japan’s sushi sales continue to grow, restaurants have to offer more than just low prices to stay competitive. Ordering in English by touchscreen. An increasing number of establishments provide tablet-based touchscreens, allowing customers to order in Japanese or foreign languages including English, Chinese, and Korean. food delivery london 24hAt some restaurants, there is a “fast lane” belt for delivering orders, which may have a specially designed tray to carry the plates to customers’ seats. comprar sushi online buenos airesAt Uobei in Shibuya, Tokyo, in a variation on the kaiten-zushi theme, the conveyor belt only moves to speedily transport customer orders.sushi grade tuna steak

Sushi being delivered on a shinkansen tray. Plates with IC chips. Major Japanese chain Kura-Zushi, which also has outlets in California operating under the name Kula, has a system for automatically returning used plates to the kitchen. By inserting five empty plates into the return chute installed at their table, diners can launch a game on the screen, giving them a chance to win a sushi-themed toy. The restaurants have more than just counter seating: Kura-Zushi and other outlets offer tables big enough for families, with the same access to the delivery conveyors. At many restaurants, including Sushirō, the plates carry electronic chips to track the time when they were placed on the belt, letting the machinery automatically dispose of the sushi pieces on board after a set amount of time to maintain freshness. Count the different colored plates to find how much you owe. Some kaiten-zushi restaurants offer each dish for ¥100 (plus tax). In general, though, prices vary by item, with the high end being around ¥500.

Different plate colors indicate the prices, making it easy for customers to quickly calculate their bill. Plates embedded with IC chips make it even easier for the wait staff, who can calculate the bill instantly with the swipe of an electronic reader. In general, sushi at these restaurants comes with wasabi already included. Those who do not like the eye-watering condiment can ask the chef to make their dish sabi-nuki (without wasabi), though. Some chains, though, including Kura-Zushi, make all their sushi wasabi-free, asking diners to add it according to their preference. All restaurants provide cups and hot water, along with powdered green tea or teabags. Push the cup against the button on the tap installed in the counter or table to fill it with hot water. While customers in other countries may have to pay for green tea at sushi restaurants, in Japan it is free of charge. The gari (pickled ginger) used for cleansing the palate is also freely available. Self-service green tea (left) and pickled ginger (right).

Some kaiten-zushi restaurants do not limit themselves to sushi. Depending on where you go, you may see ramen, fried chicken, fried potatoes, sweets, and even cups of gourmet coffee cruising around the conveyor belt. And regional restaurants will often offer local specialties. The kaiten-zushi experience is one of the least expensive ways to get your fill of Japan’s traditional seafood cuisine, but it is an essential part of life in the country today and something not to miss. (Banner photo taken with the cooperation of Kanazawa Maimon Sushi. © Kodera Kei.) Planet Sushi, Paris: Julien This Year in Japanese Aging in Japan and Across AsiaDURING MY QUEST to rank every sushi conveyor belt in Portland, never have I thought more deeply about the title of my column: Last Supper. As I journeyed into the heart of cheap raw fish and ate more krab than any human should, I figured every piece of $1 salmon could be my last. As I dined at 13 restaurants, ranging from hole-in-the-strip-mall to shiny and new, my odyssey actually served to restore my love of sushi trains.

Sure, the worst feature the flavor of raw tuna carried around in 2008-crazy Britney's purse for a day, and the best don't really approach high art. But there's just something about sitting down to eat with a parade of multi-colored plates zipping by and an order of salmon skin hand rolls on the way that makes me want to indulge on a semi-regular basis. A note on my criteria: Service has to be responsive to a custom order, but what's on the track should be good enough for a meal. Price is important and it's critical that the variety of options don't exclusively involve deep frying, cream cheese, or slathering a roll in spicy mayo. THE WINNER: Sushi Takahashi 22415 SW 5th There used to be a Sushi Takahashi 1, but it is no more. Thank goodness version 2.0, located in a strip mall south of downtown, endures. Chef Kashi loads the finest train in the West. He works alone and skips no steps, as he hand-forms nigiri and places fresh, pretty slices of fish on top. A sushi master in Tokyo, Mr. Yasuda, recently taught me that the real way to gauge sushi is by its rice, and Sushi Takahashi has got it down.

The grains are all lightly flavored with vinegar, and cooked to perfection, neither gummy nor hard. It's best to augment your conveyor selections with orders from the many hand-written signs on the walls, especially the fried oyster hand roll. Regular price plates: $1.25-5.50 (for uni). Happy hour: Mon-Fri, half off train sushi rolls from 8:30-9 pm, take out only. Sensei Sushi Bar & Grill710 SW 2nd Sensei Sushi may be showing off because it's new, but this conveyor belt is bringing it. At 5:30 pm on a Saturday, they had a crazy good selection of nigiri, including octopus and pepper tuna. The rolls showed editing: The Oregon roll with crab and cucumber topped with salmon and avocado didn't come drenched in mayonnaise or teriyaki. Plus, on weekends and during happy hour, you can get any of it for $1.95 or less—and they don't charge extra for special orders, like so many other places do. Regular price plates: $1.35-4.75. Happy hour: Mon-Fri 3-6 pm, all hours weekends, $1.95 (or less) per plate with drink purchase.

I'm going to come out and say it: The salmon nigiri at the new Sushi Chiyo in the Hollywood District is obscene (like, big). Real pros know better than to try and bite a nigiri in half, thereby corrupting the structure of the rice and fish stack, but these $1.85 slabs pretty much require two chomps. The salmon and all the other fish have been among the freshest tasting on my trips to Sushi Chiyo. Northeast Portland already has the city's finest sushi belts, and this is the best of them. Regular price plates: $1.35-3.25. Happy hour: Sun-Fri 2-4 pm, $1.95 per plate. Marinepolis is a West Coast chain, with spots all over the Portland Metro area, Seattle, and Los Angeles. This supply chain helps the food turnover and keeps the quality pretty darn high. I eat here the most, as it's near my office, and I've never eaten an off piece. The service is always quick with a soda and a special order, and their options for $1 plates are on point: salmon skin rolls, cucumber and avocado rolls, inari, and tamago are always on the belt.

Regular price plates: $1-3. If you're trying to get a seat here at noon on a weekday, bring a book. Sushi Ohana's daytime $1.85 prices mean you can snag quality rolls and a nice variety of nigiri, including the elusive okay-tasting conveyor-belt tuna, on the cheapy-cheap. The worker drones of the Lloyd District have caught on and there's no stopping the lunch rush. Regular price plates: $1.35-3.15. Happy hour: daily 11 am- 5 pm, all plates $1.85 (green plates $1.35). I used to love this place—once, someone sent around a game of tic-tac-toe on the actual train that carries the sushi. But it's dropped some in quality over the years, and it's perpetually understaffed. The rice has grown too vinegary, and a recent dinner involved a swamped staff trying their best to keep plates on the track. But their salmon skin hand roll, a heaping of fresh-fried fish with cucumber and avocado, is still one of the best. Regular price plates: $1.25-4. Happy hour: Wed night and all day Sat, selected plates $1.25.

There's a smattering of sushi tracks along SE 82nd, and O'Sushi gets the title of the worthiest. Located in the Fubonn parking lot, they have a crazy "happy hour" that runs all day with $1.50 plates. O'Sushi is a working-class affair, with big-bellied construction guys building stacks of plates higher than their hardhats. Like its clientele, O'Sushi is straightforward and gets the job done. Happy hour: all day, dine in only $1.50 plates. Umenoki Kaiten Sushi9738 SE Washington, Ste. M I have never felt more neutral about a place. Maybe it's because it was my last stop on this oceanic odyssey, but Umenoki produced neither joy nor sorrow. It was fish on a belt. It was one of the cheapest of all. The sushi chef was nice. If I was hungry and leaving Home Depot, I'd go there instead of the Panda Express or the other nearby chain restaurants. Regular price plates: $1.35 for everything. Happy hour: all day Sat, $1.10 plates. When I worked for another alternative weekly that SHALL REMAIN UNNAMED, I used to eat here when I was sad or stressed out.

Frankly, I'm surprised I didn't eat here daily. Recent return trips have shown a marked downturn since then (the sushi is still decent though), accompanied by some of the higher prices in Portland. I ordered a hand roll when I sat down... it didn't arrive until I was ready to go. Mostly, an owner-looking guy barked angrily at his sushi chefs while I bolted down some basic rolls and nigiri. Maybe the misery is spreading. Regular price plates: $1.25-3.75. I don't envy Sushi Sakura's position on the bus mall—our happy hour dinner with plates all $1.95 or less involved some screaming from the sidewalk outside. This is a just fine place to get a plate or three. Service was among the most attentive, refilling my soda without me asking and quickly bringing out special orders. It was just fine. Regular price plates: $1.35-3.75. Happy hour: daily 3-9:30 pm, $1.95 plates ($1.35 red plates) with drink purchase. Hot Pot 'n Sushi10127 NE Cascades If you're into sushi drenched in chili sauce, sushi with tempura dipped in tempura, and sushi with unagi sauce, spicy mayo, and then dipped in tempura, this is your place.