Are you looking for a sushi restaurant in Osaka? Then you’ve probably seen Yaichi on the internet or social media. Yaichi is a conveyor belt sushi restaurant where you can enjoy sushi made by skilled chefs. But is it worth a visit for travelers?
In this article, the author visits Yaichi and provides an honest review from an international traveler’s perspective, covering the taste, prices, and whether the restaurant is traveler-friendly.
If you want to know more about Yaichi, this is a must-read. Be sure to check it out!
What is Yaichi
Yaichi, a sushi chain with six locations mainly in the Kansai region, stands out due to the fresh seafood selected from all over Japan. Unlike typical conveyor belt sushi, where machines often make the sushi, Yaichi has skilled chefs who prepare sushi just like in high-end restaurants. With both counter and table seating, Yaichi is also a great option for families with children.
Basic information
In this section, you can find the basic information about Yaichi. Make sure to check it out before visiting the restaurant.
Operation hours
All stores have similar operating hours. Please refer to the details below:
Hours: 11:00 AM to 10:00 PM
Last call: Depends on location, usually 30 minutes to 1 hour before closing
The only holiday is New Year’s Day. However, some stores are located in commercial facilities and follow those facilities’ closing days. It is recommended to check it before visiting.
Location
Yaichi has six locations mainly in the Kansai region, with three in Osaka. Here is the location information:
YAICHI UMEDA
HANKYU DEPARTMENT STORE UMEDA 12F
8-7 Kakudacho Kita-Ku
Osaka-City 530-0017 OSAKA
YAICHI TENNOJI
TENNOJI MIO PLAZA 4F
10-48 Hideincho Tennoji-Ku
Osaka-City 543-0055 OSAKA
YAICHI SAKAI
1-2 Yashimocho Sakai-City
599-8101 OSAKA
Menu
Yaichi’s menu is available on a touch panel and supports English, Chinese, and Korean. There are over 100 menu items, including sushi and side dishes, sweets. They are committed to high-quality ingredients, sourcing their food from all over Japan.
Reservation
At Yaichi, you might have to wait for 30 minutes to an hour during lunch or dinner times. (When I went at 3 PM, the wait time was only about 5 minutes.)
Yaichi does not accept reservations. However, there is no need to wait in long lines. They have a system to avoid waiting in line.
Simply select the desired location on your smartphone and join the waiting list online. You will receive an email when your turn comes up.
You can access the system through the link below. It’s free, so be sure to try it out!
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Honest reviews
I went to Yaichi (Umeda store) to provide honest reviews from a traveler’s perspective, covering aspects such as taste, whether it’s traveler-friendly or not, price, and more.
Use this guide when considering a visit to Yaichi.
Traveler friendly
Yaichi has many foreign travelers as customers. Therefore, their menu is available on a touch panel in multiple languages. According to the staff, there are also some English-speaking staff members.
However, it’s not perfectly globalized. For example, the condiments on the table and instructions on how to enjoy the sushi are only in Japanese. This might be a concern for travelers.
Food
This time, I ordered several types of sushi and miso soup. Here is my honest review.
Assorted Tuna Sushi : 1,5000 yen (USD9.55)
This is the restaurant’s number one popular menu item. It includes four pieces of tuna sushi and four tuna rolls, making it a great deal. The tuna is very fresh, and the vinegared rice melts in your mouth, which is a sign of good sushi. It’s incredibly delicious.
Raw Salmon : 600 yen (USD3.82)
The pieces of salmon are large, with no fishy smell, and have a nice amount of fat. So good.
Pickled Mackerel : 250 yen (USD1.59)
Pickled Mackerel is marinated mackerel with vinegar. Personally, it’s one of my favorite sushi. The use of fresh mackerel means there’s no fishy smell, which is surprising. The size of the pieces is impressive. This is definitely worth trying.
Gizzard Shad : 250 yen (USD1.59)
Gizzard shad, known as “kohada” in Japanese, is a small, silver-skinned fish often used in sushi. It is not special but still good.
Bigfin Reef Squid : 400 yen (USD2.55)
Bigfin reef squid, known as “aori-ika” in Japanese, is often served as sushi or sashimi. Between the squid and the rice is a shiso leaf. The flavor of the bigfin reef squid very well with the shiso. It’s worth the price.
Red miso soup with aosa seaweed : 400 yen (USD2.55)
When it comes to sushi restaurants, red miso soup (aka-dashi) is a classic choice. Many Japanese people order aka-dashi when they visit a sushi restaurant. It has a flavor similar to miso soup, and the warm soup is very conforming.
price
This time, the total bill was 3,740 yen. It’s a bit on the pricey side for conveyor belt sushi in Japan. In particular, 400 yen for the red miso soup is too expensive. It’s the same price as the Bigfin Reef Squid, but I don’t think it is worth it.
To make it easy to know the price of each sushi, the prices are indicated by the color of the plates. I attach an image of the prices for each plate color below for your reference.
165 yen | USD1.05 |
297 yen | USD1.89 |
396 yen | USD2.52 |
495 yen | USD3.15 |
583 yen | USD3.71 |
693 yen | USD4.41 |
847 yen | USD5.39 |
935 yen | USD5.95 |
Overall evaluation
At Yaichi, you can enjoy sushi prepared by skilled chefs. The sushi is very fresh and large, providing a high level of satisfaction. Additionally, with menus available in multiple languages and multilingual staff, travelers can enjoy their meal with ease.
While Yaichi offers sushi at reasonable prices compared to high-end sushi restaurants, it is slightly more expensive than typical conveyor belt sushi places in Japan. The sushi is delicious, but other conveyor belt sushi restaurants also offer high-quality sushi at lower prices. If you want to experience sushi made by skilled chefs and savor its taste, you should visit Yaichi. However, if you want to enjoy a lot of sushi at a low cost, other conveyor belt sushi places might be sufficient.
The recommendation score : 6 out of 10
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