くのっちょ
In December 2020, revisiting the sushi town of Otaru, what is the position of conveyor belt sushi? Restaurants like "Waraku" and "Kantaro" in tourist areas clearly cater to tourists, but "Kaiten Sushi Uoichii" located in Wing Bay Otaru seems to be more geared towards locals. Especially now that stores like the home center "Viva Home," furniture store "Nitori," and clothing store "Shimamura" have become more integrated into daily life since the opening of Wing Bay, it seems to have shifted more towards attracting local customers. It has been 10 years since I last visited this restaurant, and this is my second time. As mentioned in previous reviews, I can't help but feel a sense of mediocrity. This was especially evident in the menu lineup, as it was unclear which demographic they were targeting. If they are targeting tourists, they should offer more menu items that are unique to Otaru, or if they prioritize local customers, they should increase the variety of cheaper dishes. It ends up feeling somewhat indecisive, leaving an impression of a restaurant that is expensive for its content. For this visit, I avoided high-priced items and instead ordered "large shrimp," "amberjack," "mactra clam," "fatty salmon," "mackerel," and "tuna red meat," totaling 12 pieces on 6 plates. The total was 1,463 yen, making the average price per plate 244 yen. Personally, I rated the large shrimp and mactra clam quite well, while I couldn't give a clear evaluation for the mackerel and tuna red meat. The assessment that the content is somewhat lacking for the price remained unchanged. In the same facility, there are two regular sushi restaurants, a conveyor belt sushi restaurant, and a takeout sushi restaurant, all under the name "Uoichii." Since they likely share common purchasing, it should be possible to offer better quality items at a slightly lower price. I hope they can overcome the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic and strive to do better.