Ranking of Japanese chain restaurants that foreigners like
Ichiran 2. CoCo Ichibanya 3. Sukiya 4. Matsuya 5. Yoshinoya 6. Marugame Udon 7. Tendon Tenya 8. Gindako 9. O-toya Among them, the popularity of Marugame Udon has recently risen sharply since last year. What’s your favorite?
by Immediate_Fan6924
25 Comments
VR-052
Is this tourists or foreign residents? On the list I’ve only eaten at Gindako. For all the other ones, there are better local places to eat, both chains and independent restaurants.
cjyoung92
Marugame udon/seimen is highly underrated in my opinion! I would put it above Sukiya on this list
yankiigurl
Sukiya more than yoshinoya? Wow
jamtea
No way GoGoCurry isn’t on this list, not real foreigners.
kyoyuy
But I ate at Saizeriya like 5 times… 🙁
levu12
Where is go go curry 🙁
SlackerDS5
I really regret not having curry while in Japan. Y’all hyping it up, and I feel like I missed out. Guess I’ll have to go back and try it.
RocasThePenguin
The queues at Ichiran in Fukuoka support this ranking.
SergeantBeavis
Yamachan belongs on this list but most tourists don’t even know it exists.
NintendogsWithGuns
I don’t understand how anyone can have ramen in Japan and feel that Ichiran is anything other than mid and overpriced. Literally every small independently owned ramen shop I had was vastly superior. Maybe it’s because they only do tonkotsu and that’s the only variety that foreigners care about?
rintohsakadesu
No sushiro?
tagyhag
Is CoCo that different in Japan compared to the US?
Because I’ve had it in the US and it tastes great but nothing mind blowing. Just curry.
kmx2600
Locals know that Nakau is the best but don’t tell the foreign tourists 😑
Nomadic_monkey
Looks like Ichiran really doubled down on catering to tourists
hungryhugh
Where’s Royal Host? 😢
wolf_boi_
Who is number 10??
ivovanroy
I don’t know, could be me, but maybe it’s not a ranking of Japanese chain restaurants that foreigners like, but a ranking of what tourists go to? Slight nuance but big difference between local foreigners who live here as immigrants and expats compared to foreign tourists who don’t want to spend time to actually find out what’s good and just go the easy/sns-popular way?
gugus295
Dogshit list if you ask me. Ichiran’s some of the most unremarkable and overpriced ramen I’ve had in this country, I wouldn’t put more than one of the dirt-cheap gyudon chains on here, CoCoIchi is waaaayyyyyyy too expensive for how mid their curry is and you can easily get way better Japanese curry all over the place for far cheaper.
Never heard of or been to 7, 8, or 9, but the only ones on here that’d make my list at all are Marugame and Sukiya (though Sukiya would probably be at or near the bottom lol). Definitely got a lot of way better chains I’d put here as well, like Komeda’s Coffee, Sushiro, and Royal Host. As well as a bunch of local chains that I don’t think exist outside of Kyushu or even just my own part of it lol
Mr_WhatFish
I think a lot of this is just name recognition, these (especially the first 5-6) have a good number of franchises outside Japan.
WangFury32
Eh…no fast-serve cafes (like Doutor or Pronto), no regional powers like Gogoichi, Ringer Hut or Blue Seal, no dessert joints like Fujiya, no family restaurants like Royal Host, no mention of conveyor belt sushi places like Kura or Sushiro, no shokudos like Nakau or Shinpachi, and no Kissaten chains like Komeda or Hoshino?
Historical-Duty3628
No Pepper Lunch? Surely you jest.
mail_on_sunday
I’ve never understood the tourist obsession with Ichiran. Even amongst ramen chain restaurants Tenkaippin and Marugen are better quality and flavour by a longshot. Are those little individual stalls at the restaurants carrying the brand here or something?
25 Comments
Is this tourists or foreign residents? On the list I’ve only eaten at Gindako. For all the other ones, there are better local places to eat, both chains and independent restaurants.
Marugame udon/seimen is highly underrated in my opinion! I would put it above Sukiya on this list
Sukiya more than yoshinoya? Wow
No way GoGoCurry isn’t on this list, not real foreigners.
But I ate at Saizeriya like 5 times… 🙁
Where is go go curry 🙁
I really regret not having curry while in Japan. Y’all hyping it up, and I feel like I missed out. Guess I’ll have to go back and try it.
The queues at Ichiran in Fukuoka support this ranking.
Yamachan belongs on this list but most tourists don’t even know it exists.
I don’t understand how anyone can have ramen in Japan and feel that Ichiran is anything other than mid and overpriced. Literally every small independently owned ramen shop I had was vastly superior. Maybe it’s because they only do tonkotsu and that’s the only variety that foreigners care about?
No sushiro?
Is CoCo that different in Japan compared to the US?
Because I’ve had it in the US and it tastes great but nothing mind blowing. Just curry.
Locals know that Nakau is the best but don’t tell the foreign tourists 😑
Looks like Ichiran really doubled down on catering to tourists
Where’s Royal Host? 😢
Who is number 10??
I don’t know, could be me, but maybe it’s not a ranking of Japanese chain restaurants that foreigners like, but a ranking of what tourists go to? Slight nuance but big difference between local foreigners who live here as immigrants and expats compared to foreign tourists who don’t want to spend time to actually find out what’s good and just go the easy/sns-popular way?
Dogshit list if you ask me. Ichiran’s some of the most unremarkable and overpriced ramen I’ve had in this country, I wouldn’t put more than one of the dirt-cheap gyudon chains on here, CoCoIchi is waaaayyyyyyy too expensive for how mid their curry is and you can easily get way better Japanese curry all over the place for far cheaper.
Never heard of or been to 7, 8, or 9, but the only ones on here that’d make my list at all are Marugame and Sukiya (though Sukiya would probably be at or near the bottom lol). Definitely got a lot of way better chains I’d put here as well, like Komeda’s Coffee, Sushiro, and Royal Host. As well as a bunch of local chains that I don’t think exist outside of Kyushu or even just my own part of it lol
I think a lot of this is just name recognition, these (especially the first 5-6) have a good number of franchises outside Japan.
Eh…no fast-serve cafes (like Doutor or Pronto), no regional powers like Gogoichi, Ringer Hut or Blue Seal, no dessert joints like Fujiya, no family restaurants like Royal Host, no mention of conveyor belt sushi places like Kura or Sushiro, no shokudos like Nakau or Shinpachi, and no Kissaten chains like Komeda or Hoshino?
No Pepper Lunch? Surely you jest.
I’ve never understood the tourist obsession with Ichiran. Even amongst ramen chain restaurants Tenkaippin and Marugen are better quality and flavour by a longshot. Are those little individual stalls at the restaurants carrying the brand here or something?
Ootoya’s great they’re missing out
Where’s my Bikkuri Donkey? Was I the only one?
Royal Host or Komeda Coffee for me.