Kura Sushi Plus Kyoto — Restaurant in Kyoto

This is on the basement level, the ground floor is a Beams store I recall. Two entryways to get in so either works. Seating area will take walk-ins and on an weekday afternoon, you'll not encounter much lines. Enter number of people, get a ticket, and wait.

Kura's tempura is really nice. I ordered two of their shrimp tempura rolls which was served with a tartar-like mayo sauce inside. Onion rings are great too. Kura has the option to order half portions of rice, I don't think the price lowered but you can fill up on less rice. Just let it load though, oftentimes the half option popped up slower than expected and I missed it half the time while in the order flow.

I think the average diner can spend somewhere between 2000-3000yen and be comfortably full. That's not bad. I drove up the price with drinks and novelty items. Their basics are good, they have seared options if you don't like things raw.

There's a lot more fluff and novelty items compared to Sushiro. I think Kura's atmosphere is more fun but Sushiro's more limited offerings tasted better. In general, I suggest you don't order stuff like noodles or ramen: go fill up on Ichiran or other dedicated shops nearby for that. Focus mostly on sushi related, perhaps the fried stuff too.

Service is pretty bare at these spots. All the sauces and stuff are integrated into the table or off to the side. The plate counting machine said my count was off so I had to wait for a staff to show up. He came a few minutes later and just ok'ed so I could pay. Not sure what the problem was. Payment is as easy as scanning the QR code and pay via...

This chain conveyor-belt sushi restaurant is a smooth, well-run example of its type. Line ups are expected and fully automated, with digital sign up (easily handled by foreigners), regular announcements, and assignment of tables.

You can order by tablet (with English menus) or grab sushi as it moves past on the conveyor belt. If you don’t read Japanese, the latter might be a bit difficult since the sign that precedes items is only in Japanese. But hey, if you’re not picking up random plates of sushi that you can’t name from a conveyor belt, are you even experiencing Japan?

The sushi is reasonably priced and pretty good. Nothing exceptional. When I went, there were only white plates, all of which were 130 yen. You can order more expensive stuff, but that’s direct order from the tablet. There’s a “game” you play; basically after every 5 plates, you get the chance to win something. There’s no interaction for the game, but the anime video that pops up is kinda fun.

Checkout is also automated. After pushing all your plates into a slot, it counts up, tells you the total, and you take a slip with a QR code that you scan at the self-checkout. Many forms of payment are accepted, and the process has an English mode.

This place is the most highly automated restaurant I’ve been to in Japan, and it feels a bit surreal since you don’t really have to interact with anyone at all. You check in and out digitally, and food is delivered to you via the conveyor belt. This vision of the future is worth...

As others have mentioned its an introverts dream or if you don't speak Japanese and want a no-fuss place to eat. However I've scored it 3/5 because it was quite underwhelming and not worry the hype or long wait for a table/seat. Food was average with small portions. Perhaps because it is touristy. You really do need to 'book' your table at least an hour before you want to eat. You go into the restaurant, use the 'check-in' machine where you'll get a reservation number. Once that number is called (it will give you an ETA) you go to the second screen (under the TV that's calling out numbers) to be given your seat/table number. Every seat/table has a tablet you can order on in several languages or you can help yourself to the sushi train belt, or a mix of both. It doesn't matter if you can't find your favourite dish on the belt or you miss it, you can order it on the tablet for same price of ¥150. You deposit your plate either when you're finished or as you go - doesn't matter and the tablet will keep a record of how much you eat. You then select 'checkout' , double check your bill and take your seat/table number ticket to the self serve checkout machine. They have free water, hot meals, cold meals, alcohol and free luck of the drawer capsule toy game for every 5 plates you deposit. Nothing wrong with the place but probably...