Kaiten Sushi

For many people, Japan is synonymous with sushi. While Japan has far more to offer, there is no denying that sushi is something dear to my heart. Knowing that, my mother-in-law took us to what is called "kaiten sushi" (also known as conveyer belt or roundhouse sushi in English). The great things about such places are the price, ability to see what you're getting, and the fun watching the sushi (and other things) speed by on a conveyer belt that snakes around the restaurant. It's more than enough to rile the appetite of sushi-loving people like me.

For people who are not into raw fish or various seafood, there are still plenty of choices to select from. For example, in a picture above, you will find sushi with omelet slices. Please note on the side of the table adjacent to the conveyer belt, there is a nob that looks like a black button to dispense hot water (to make green tea which is in the box next to it). Also, there is a slot to drop plates to count how many were consumed as it determines the price. Each plate costs 100 yen, or roughly $1.00. In Los Angeles, sushi places that count by plates charge more than twice as much and offer less than half the variety of choices found in Japan.

In this picture there are plates with various cakes and pastries. There are many other cooked and non-fishy choices such as soups and ramen (pasta). Some choices can seem downright strange: bacon sushi, sausage sushi, hamburger patty sushi, and etc.

From the left, here are scallop sushi, tuna roll, and salmon roe sushi.

 

Here you can see an egg and seafood bowl, row shrimp sushi, and cooked and toasted shrimp sushi with mayonnaise.

here you will also see a scallop and sea urchin sushi at the top and a different kind of raw shrimp on the right.

 

These are the 10 plates piled by my appetite. This is not my biggest number, by any means, but I was comfortably full regardless.

 

 

 

Right above the conveyer belt on the side of the table, there is a little touch screen that allows for ordering (in case you do not see or do not wish to wait for the item you want). Also, the screen serves another purpose, it displays various humorous animations when you try to win prizes. When you drop the plates in the slot at the side of the table, for every 5 plates you have a chance to win a prize. The prizes are inside the round plastic balls (known as "gotcha balls") which are above the screen. Prizes may include various items such as figurines to attach to phones or keys, wind-up toys, stickers, and etc. Of course, it is the gambling aspect that is attractive.

 

For my son that was a big charm of this particular kaiten sushi restaurant. After 22 plates, he managed to win a small (about 3 cm square) screen-cleaning pad with a picture of some characters. This pad has special coating on one side that allows it to be attached and reattached to a smooth surface. So you can stick it on a back of a phone or tablet when not in use. In his case, it will come in handy to wipe the screen of his Nintendo 3DS game system.

 

 

 

Even if a kid (or adult) did not manage to win something, there is an assortment of various capsule machines in the lobby. Since each machine has a 5 to 10 different items, one never knows which one he/she will get - the attraction of gambling is not at all inconspicuous here. Furthermore, there is a Nintendo wi-fi zone for those with Nintendo handheld devices to download and play some free games.

 

Kaiten sushi are popular establishments, but they still have to compete with each other and many other restaurants and eating places. Thus, they try to add things that would attract more costumers, in this case those with kids at their side or those who are kids in their hearts.