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obots in sushi making, and that in general the quality of the fish did not
match the high standards of the specialist sushiya, were also mentioned as
arguments to avoid them.
Despite these shortcomings, the number of ‘rotary sushi bars’ in
Japan grew steadily. New establishments mushroomed, while veteran
giants such as Genroku Sushi, Genki Sushi and Kura Sushi, with numerous
chain stores, ceaselessly expanded. It is estimated that in 2001 between
4,000 and 5,000 such restaurants operated throughout the country. 35 The
biggest advantage of kaitenzushi was their clear pricing system. The most
economical enterprises usually had a fixed price per pair of sushi, regardless
of the sort. Others used plates of different colours to indicate the price
of different types of sushi. Depending on taste and budget, the customers
were able to choose freely from the plates passing by. By the end of the
meal, the empty plates were counted and the customer paid at the cashier.
Throughout the 1990s conveyor-belt sushi bars in Japan began to
acquire an increasingly positive image; they become much cleaner, more
family-oriented and female-friendly than they used to be. 36 Economic
recession has significantly contributed to their growing popularity.
However, by the end of the decade entirely new types of kaitenzushi began
to emerge in the fashionable districts of Tokyo. 37 They modelled themselves
on European sushi bars. As opposed to the cheap-and-cheerful, getit-down-you-and-move-on
dining experience of the pre-1990s establishments,
and the value-for-money character of the new Japanese enterprises,
the European bars are stylish and even high class.
The first kaitenzushi bar in Europe opened in Paris in 1984, but the
rotating bars fad was born a decade later in London. Today, a rotating sushi
bar can be found in every European capital and many are operating in large
cities. 38 Moreover, most sushi bars throughout Europe imitate the interiors
of kaitenzushi bars even if they do not have a conveyor belt running. There
are two reasons why London became the birthplace of the new trend. First
of all, by the 1990s London had become the culinary capital of Europe in
terms of dynamics and innovation; it was the place where American trends
arrived first and new food fashions emerged. In the case of the European
sushi boom, the fact that London hosted the largest Japanese community in
Europe was crucial, since it stimulated the growth of an infrastructure and
the (human) resources necessary for making and selling sushi. The pioneer
of the new trend was Moshi Moshi, which opened in summer 1994 at the
Liverpool Street railway station on the eastern edge of central London. 39
It was established by Caroline Bennett, a former bank employee and a
graduate of the Japanese Studies Department at the School of Oriental and
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