Conveyor Belt Sushi

    Last weekend, we had conveyor belt sushi, known as kaiten sushi. While the quality of kaiten sushi is generally lower than that of a traditional sushi bar, it is fun for kids and serves a broader array of non-sushi items, like noodles, fried chicken, and rice bowls among other things. 

    We went to a place called Kura Sushi in Harajuku (they have many locations, including ones outside Japan). The Harajuku location is known for its fun atmosphere and extensive dessert menu. The Harajuku area is known for its over the top dessert crepes, which you can order at Kura. They also have Blue Seal ice cream, an Okinawan brand that boasts distinctive flavors, like Okinawan Salt Cookies, Royal Milk Tea, and Brown Sugar Cane (Okinawa is famous for its brown sugar canes). I ordered the Okinawan Sweet Potato with its distinctive purple color. It's one of my favorite flavors, and the texture is nice and fluffly, almost like gelato. 

    Other dishes we enjoyed were onion rings (freshly fried) and grilled fish, but to be honest, the quality of the food is not the focal point here. Although you could undoubtedly find better sushi in Tokyo, this was nevertheless a good experience. Kura is one of those places where you have to embrace the entire environment. 

    We went with E's cousins, who range from age 5 to 13 and are here in Tokyo for the summer. 

    We ordered via iPad, which is typical of kaiten sushi these days. Since Covid-19 began, many restaurants place plastic models of food on their conveyor belts instead of the real thing. You order by iPad. Kura does a hybrid. There are two conveyor belts: a top one and a bottom one. The bottom one carries a variety of dishes. You can look and take whatever you like. Or you could order via iPad. The order then arrives on the top belt, zooming to your table at super speed. 

    After we ate, the empty plates went into a slot at the end of each table. The slot automatically counted and calculated our bill based on these plates. We let M do this, and she loved doing it. We received "points," for each plate that went in, and after a certain number of points, we got to play a game on the iPad. The game is really a lottery where you can win a small capsule toy. We won one toy after thirty something dishes, so don't get your hopes up. 

The booth seating gives you relative privacy - another reason this place was good for families. 

    

    Kura Sushi was a hit with my kids and their cousins. As with so many things, the adults are happy when the kids are happy (to a degree). It wasn't a bad way to spend a hot summer night. Gochisousamadeshita!