Once strictly for the suburbs, Sushiro lets fans in Tokyo’s otaku district enjoy tasty sushi and still have plenty of cash left over for anime merch.

It wasn’t all that long ago that much of the world found the ideas of eating raw fish or making cartoons for audiences older than 11 to be bizarre concepts, but now sushi and anime are two of the most internationally popular aspects of Japanese society. Statistically there’s a pretty good chance that people who really like one have at least a moderate interest in the other, and there’s now a brand-new option for when you want to indulge your interest in both in rapid succession.

Last week, Sushiro, Japan’s most popular budget-priced revolving sushi restaurant, opened a branch in Akihabara, the Tokyo neighborhood that’s the center of otaku culture. While Sushiro has branches all across Japan, they’re often out in the suburbs, and many are hard to access without a car. The chain has recently been expanding into inner-city areas, though, with Akihabara being the latest locale to get its own Sushiro.

However, even when Sushiro sets up shop in downtown, its restaurants are sometimes a lengthy walk from the nearest rail stop. Not so with Sushiro’s new Akihabara Ekimae branch, though. “Ekimae” means “in front of the station,” and sure enough, the restaurant’s door is just a one-minute walk from the south exit of JR Akihabara Station.

Getting a seat at Sushiro often requires a lengthy wait, but when we rolled up at lunchtime on a weekday, the staff were able to seat us right away. As is quickly becoming the norm at revolving sushi restaurants in Japan, you order via a touchscreen.

Sushiro’s sushi prices start at just 120 yen (US$1.10) a plate, but everything we had tasted great. There’s more to the menu than just raw fish, too, as Sushiro is famous among foodies for its delicious French fries…

…and you can also get cured ham on vinegared sushi rice…

…or desserts if you like both seafood and sweets.

Plus, there’s the fact that Sushiro is open until 11 p.m., making it a great option if you kept on shopping or sightseeing right through a normal dinner time, but don’t feel like hitting up Akihabara’s semi-secret sandwich vending machine.

Sushiro (Akihabara Ekimae branch) / SUSHIRO 秋葉原駅前店
Address: Tokyo-to, Chiyoda-ku, Soto Kanda 1-18-19, BiTO Akiba Building basement level 1
東京都千代田区外神田1-18-19 BiTO AKIBAビル B1F
Open 11 a.m.-11 p.m. (Monday-Friday), 10:30 a.m.-11 p.m. (weekends, holidays)
Website

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