Cheer up the cat and try to win a prize!

The conveyor belt sushi restaurant industry has been in a state of flux recently. Incidents of unsanitary behavior by obnoxious customers have made people wary of the signature communal food distribution system of a conveyor belt running through the entire restaurant dining area. On top of that, rising prices have made them feel less and less like the budget-friendly eating establishments they once were.

To address these problems, major chain Kura Sushi is trying to add value to its dining experience with a new game. Those who have eaten at Kura Sushi, or “Kurazushi” as it’s colloquially known, will no doubt be familiar with their current game, in which a random video is triggered at the table once five empty plates are inserted into the return slot. If a winning video is shown, the customer is given a capsule toy from a machine installed above every table.

But with plates getting more expensive, the chances of winning trinkets have been diminishing somewhat. Luckily, Kura Sushi has come up with an alternative way to win at the gacha game that won’t cost customers a single yen.

Starting at select locations on 22 September, they will be introducing the Smile Challenge. Every once in a while, a monitor displaying a crying cat will float past your table on the conveyor belt. As it passes your table, an AI is monitoring you to see if you smile at it. If you give the cat a big enough smile, it will smile back at you to varying degrees. Getting a big smile from the cat will trigger a gachapon video with a chance to win something.

In addition to the Smile Challenge, Kura Sushi is also planning to expand on its Present System, where a cake is delivered along the conveyor belt in a full parade accompanied by pop music. Now, in addition to their Seasonal Fruit Cake, the Present System can also be used to order Happy! Mille Crepe, Happy! Cheesecake, Happy! Choco Cake, and Happy! Pudding. Each dessert comes with a cookie that has “おめでとう” (“Omedeto” [“Congratulations”]) written on it.

▼ Happy! Mille Crepe

Both of these additions are currently being rolled out gradually and, as of this writing, can only be found at a few locations. The restaurants most likely to have them now are found in major urban areas like downtown Tokyo or Osaka. But gradually they will make their way to a Kura Sushi near you, maybe even outside of Japan someday.

Source: Kura Sushi
Images: Kura Sushi, ©SoraNews24
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