@vibejapan1: A tourist walks into a CoCo Ichibanya in Tokyo, orders a pork cutlet curry, and pays 1,000 yen. That is under $7, tax included, with no tip. At the chain's Los Angeles shop on Sawtelle Boulevard, the same pork cutlet curry is listed at $15.44. Add sales tax and a tip, and it comes to about $20 — nearly three times the Tokyo bill. For the visitor, Japan is one of the cheapest places in the developed world to eat out. For the people who live there, that same plate is now too expensive. On August 31, Japanese media reported that House Foods Group is considering selling Ichibanya, the company behind the chain. Japanese social media filled up with one complaint: "CoCo Ichi is too expensive." Others wrote that ordinary people can no longer afford it, and that this is why customers walked away. Residents say that once you add toppings, the bill runs 1,300 to 1,600 yen, in a country where many office workers try to keep lunch under 1,000 yen. The basic curry still starts at around 600 yen. Japan's real wages rose 2.4% in July, the biggest gain since 2021, but residents say everyday costs have climbed much faster. Writing in Daily Shincho, chain-store researcher Kazuki Tanigashira points out that Ichibanya's sales are actually at a record high, even as operating profit has slipped. Same restaurant, same menu, same yen — and two completely different answers to whether it is cheap. Is Japan still a bargain, or only if you are paid in dollars?

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Friday 25 September 2026 09:00:51 GMT