SightEating: Kura Sushi’s Vision for Their Kaiten Sushi Global Flagship

photos by Takumi Ota and Yoshiyuki Yano

Kura Sushi, Japan’s 2nd largest kaiten-sushi chain, has unveiled a new global flagship in Tokyo’s Asakusa district. The conveyor belt-style sushi shop, with the help of creative director Kashiwa Sato, has completely reimagined the format of the store and created a foreigner-friendly restaurant that combines sightseeing and eating. They’re calling it, “SightEating.”

With over 270 seats, the new global flagship is Kura Sushi’s largest space to date. And with computerized, multi-lingual ordering, a matsuri zone and shooting gallery, it’s got all the bells and whistles for any age group. Sort of like a Chucky Cheese, but for sushi.

Creative director Kashiwa Sato (previously) was tasked with not only rebranding the store’s look-and-feel, which involved designed a new logo, staff uniforms and tableware, but also the computerized ordering app, thus unifying the entire experience.

A centerpiece of the shop is Utagawa Hiroshige’s celebrated woodblock print: “Amusements While Waiting for the Moon on the Night of the Twenty-sixth in Takanawa,” (large version here) which features a lively crowd surrounding edo-era sushi, tempura and soba food stands. The new global flagship is meant to be a modern-day interpretation of this boisterous scene.