Kura Sushi is an extremely popular sushi chain that can literally be found everywhere in Japan, and for good reason – it takes everyone’s favourite conveyer belt sushi and adds a fun element by introducing a lucky draw. And the best part- it’s incredibly cheap!

Kura sushi sells each plate at only 100 yen, and the food’s pretty great! It’s quite high tech with touch screens, allowing you to order items not already circulating (these items can cost 200 – 300 yen). There is also complementary green tea.

Although the concept of conveyer belt sushi is nothing new, in my opinion, it’s one of the most effective and easy ways of ordering and delivering food. I also love how no human interaction is required, which is great for those struggling to order in Japanese (or if you’re awkward like me).

After you’re done eating, you slot the plates into the plate return (the green sign with an arrow at the bottom of the picture). Every 5 plates enters you into a lucky draw where you can win a gachapon! The more expensive plates count as more than 1 plate (so a 200 yen plate counts as 2 plates). They play a cute little animation clip that tells you if you’ve won or lost.

the gachapon prizes usually change according to their promotions. The gachapon I won had washi tape in it, with One Piece designs on it. My friends also won One Piece related items.

Kura Sushi is a great place to grab a meal in Japan. They are often conveniently located  (the one I went to was just outside the ever so famous Kinkaku-ji in Kyoto) and have really affordable, good sushi, which is why the place remains popular even among locals!