Yoshinoya

My friends, the time has come to talk about Yoshinoya, a restaurant with which I have had a love affair for the past 6 weeks, and with which I will probably continue to have a love affair with for the next 6 (and however much time I spend in Nihon next year). Yoshinoya is a truly wonderful place. I'd say I eat about 80% of my dinners a week there on average, sometimes more, sometimes less. You see, Yoshinoya is a fast restaurant which, on top of being two blocks away, is dirt cheap, crazy delicious, and about 1000 times healthier than any fast food restaurant you will ever find in the US, and probably the world. This is one of the great things about Nihon: food here is not only extra tasty, it's extra healthy, too. On an average, I don't eat breakfast, I have Udon (thick noodle soup, and a restaurant next to Yamasa's take on it is probably one of the greatest inventions in the history of mankind, ever) for lunch, and Yoshinoya for dinner, and this is definitely reflected in my waistline, which is noticeably thinner after just 6 weeks. I have not stepped on a scale yet, but even if I did, it would be in Kilograms, which means about as much to me Czech native explaining advanced string theory using multivariable calculus in his primary language. So, I'm interested to see what the results are after when I get back to America.

Blast, I got off-topic again. Okay, on to the main event: Every night, usually between 6 and 8, I finish doing some task, usually homework or perhaps my allotted our of games if the homework is finished. By this time I am hungry and a half, so I shut down my apartment and head off on the 2-3 minute bike ride to Yoshinoya. The first few times I went, I carried out, but when I decided to have a sit down meal, the experience was so pleasant that I have done that ever since. The interior of Yoshinoya restaurants is ingeniously designed, as is typical of most things Japanese (I tried to find a picture online but got only exteriors). Basically, you walk in, and there are two long bars (as well as a couple of tables, but I never sit near them). The bars are quite wide, because in the middle there is a section for the employees to walk. Basically, imagine a snake like pattern of bar seats going from one side of the restaurant to the other. Before the bars begin, there is a place to order take-out, and on each side of the bar, there is a cash register, making payment convient for both customer and employee.

So, I come in, sit down wherever I feel like, and within a minute, an server comes with hot cup of (usually green) tea. I used to drink tea extremely seldomly, but Yoshinoya has converted me, mostly because it's rude to refuse a drink if one is provided, or to order an alternative. Simultaneously, they ask for my order. Usually, it is sufficient for me to point at the picture menu, which is taped near every third seat, and say "ookii seto kudasai" (big set meal please). Usually, they understand, but sometimes, usually in the case of a newer employee who is not familiar with me, they need to ask me what kind of meat I want. There are two options for the beef set meal, both in kanji, so I can't read, much less pronounce them, and I always just point at the first one. Once my order is understood, they go back to the kitchen, which is openly visible to the public, and quite clean. They pull no punches at Yoshinoya. It's fast, healthy, and clean, and everyone knows.

Within a couple of minutes, my meal is in front of me. The first option set meal, the one I always get, is presented on a tray. On that try is a rectangular plate with an outstanding beef dish on one side and a salad on the other, a bowl of rice, and a bowl of delicioius miso soup (which Okazaki is famous for, I might add). The meal is unbelievably tasty, and perfectly filling. Just enough to be satisfied, not so much that you have overeaten. All this for a meager ¥650 (about $5). Like I said before, it's fast, exceptionally healthy, considering that it is fast food, and "totemo oishii" (very delicious). I'm usually don't spend more then 15 or so minutes getting my meal, but they are a happy 15 minutes every time.

It's worth noting that I looked up Yoshinoya's website while trying in vain to find a picture of the inside of a restaurant, and in the process discovered that they had a US branch. This excited/surprised me, since I had never heard of them before. It turns out they are located almost entirely in California, with a handful of New York locations. They have plans for another 1000 US restaurants, so hopefully Chicago and/or Boston is on their radar. To Henry Noyes and co., if you are reading this, perhaps you have heard of Yoshinoya, and perhaps you have eaten it. If not, check it out, hopefully it's just as good in the US as it is in Nihon (at least, good from the eyes of a gaijin student looking for good cheap food in a land where just about everything is expensive).