5 Hours for ¥1,500: The Rise of “Unlimited-Time” All-You-Can-Eat Dining
All-you-can-eat restaurants with no time limit are gaining attention across Japan.
At a shabu-shabu specialty restaurant in Shinjuku, some customers spend up to five hours enjoying lunch for around ¥1,500.
Meanwhile, a udon restaurant in Saitama offers unlimited noodles, tempura, rice, and even curry—with no time restriction. Customers can also enjoy creative combinations like curry udon and tendon (tempura rice bowls). We take a closer look at these unique eateries.
Originally aired on ‘news every.’, on February 5, 2026.
READ the latest news and full transcript on https://www.ntv.co.jp/englishnews/
**********************
▼Please subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/NipponTVNews24Japan
▼Somos Televisión Nippon, la estación de televisión de transmisión privada más antigua de Japón. ¡Por favor, suscríbete a nuestro canal!
▼Like us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NipponTVNews24Japan/
**********************
#AllYouCanEat #UnlimitedTime #JapaneseFood #ShabuShabu #Udon #FoodInJapan #TokyoEats #BudgetGourmet #JapanTrends
19 Comments
Not sure if it's good to widely spread this info in English…
1500 yen is less than 10 US dollars, that's very inexpensive compared to here. We have all you can eat buffets but they are much more expensive, lower quality food and often filled with unsavory people. The people in the video all seem charming and friendly.
For me. I have my "breakfast and lunch all you can eat at APA HOTEL-Asakura-Kumarae" costs ¥1,110 weekdays till 11am, and now it could be higher costs as of today. Is there a weekend lunch or dinner 'all you can eat' price and location without 'time limit'?
They should have policy that reads, "No Chinese or Americans, please."
Thankfully the Chinese tourists aren’t coming
There's a new sushi & tempura conveyor belt restaurant in my area that gives a time limit on how long you can stay to eat. I guess people like to linger?
As for all-you-can-eat restaurants in Japan, I'm actually surprised that they have this, I thought it was the opposite of what Japanese diners enjoy
The good thing is Japanese keeps 80/20 diet rule so it doesn’t matter how long you are at table
It would be a very good price for a buffet, if the customers get a decent amount of meat
Who’s going to stay 5 hours though?
Buffets like this cost $30 in US and you will need to tip
No time limit is such a bad idea. It’s gonna become like how Starbucks used to be and people will sit there all day long. This will hurt their turnover rate and during peak times the wait would be long
Oh my gosh! Flying there now!
The “meat” is incredibly fatty, over half fat. So that’s one way to keep costs down. But 1.5k yen is still a solid deal for the quality of lunch
Homer Simpson bout to bankrupt these businesses…
I went to Shabu-Yo its pretty good.
There's no need to bring gluttony and conspicuous consumption to a well mannered and restrained society like Japan
WHY IS EVERYTHING SO EXPENSIVE IN NORTH AMERICA. IT SHOULDVE BEEN LIKE THIS BUT BILLIONAIRES TOOK OVER
The AI voice over is so weird
1500 yen? up to 5 hours!! What, is the owner the next Elon Musk or the new Mother Teresa or something? Who could possibly be this generous? More to the point, how can anyone possibly spend more than half of a workday eating at a restaurant non-stop?