the industry of kaitenzushi (sushi on mats) in Japan is being affected by a series of hygiene incidents, which have been called “sushi terrorism“, caused by malicious customers, who lick the sauce bottles or end up touching food while passing through the conveyor belt. As a result, chain restaurants have struggled to maintain their reputations for cleanliness, and some companies have taken extreme measures, such as stopping conveyor belts that transport dishes.
Choshimaru restaurant, for example, announced that it would shut down conveyor belts in all 63 restaurants, forcing employees to manually deliver orders. While the change removed the fun factor, the company argued that it would make it virtually impossible for misbehaving customers to interfere with other customers' orders.
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Other chains, such as industry leader Sushiro, began delivering sushi only via an “express lane” to customers ordering via touchscreen devices. The Kura Sushi chain is also planning to introduce AI-powered cameras to monitor tables at its restaurants in an attempt to deter mischievous customers.
The changes come after the kaitenzushi industry was hit hard by the barrage of viral videos showing customers licking sauce bottles. communities, sprinkling wasabi on food as it passed by, spraying sushi with hand sanitizer and snatching plates of food meant for others. tables. These incidents have brought down Sushiro's stock and caused operators to rethink how they serve their dishes.
Restaurant chains are also being forced to remove condiments and utensils from tables, with Gyoza no Osho, a popular chain Chinese restaurants clearing soy sauce and other condiments from tables, and ramen chain Ichiran is taking cups off counters and tables. The Yomiuri Shimbun noted that the sweeping changes were in response to a minority of "evil" customers. However, some people online questioned whether the demise of high-tech restaurants meant they would just become your average sushi restaurant.
Kura Sushi's head of public relations said the crisis is not just for its stores, but for the entire conveyor belt sushi industry. rolling stock, and that the use of AI would reassure customers, even if it meant they were effectively being put under surveillance.
Meanwhile, restaurant chains continue to struggle to find solutions to ensure that your dishes arrive at the table in perfect condition and free from inappropriate behavior by customers.