I’m planning to introduce the real lifestyle of Japanese people in English while improving my English skills.
I was wondering what kind of articles I should write, and since sushi is strongly associated with Japan, I decided to start with an article about sushi.
Foreign tourists often eat sushi when they visit Japan, but have you ever wondered when local Japanese people eat sushi?
Rice is the staple food in Japan, so Japanese people eat rice almost every day. However, sushi is not something we eat daily.
From the perspective of an average household, sushi is considered a luxury food, so it’s not something we can afford to eat frequently.
That said, it’s not so special that we only eat it a few times a year either.
Of course, it varies among individuals, but in my experience, Japanese people eat sushi about two to three times a month.
It’s familiar yet slightly special—that’s the kind of relationship we have with sushi.
People eat sushi on celebratory or auspicious days, like New Year’s or birthdays.
It’s also a popular choice when you want to treat yourself, like on payday, after receiving a bonus, or as a little reward for hard work.
On the other hand, there are also times when you eat sushi for no particular reason, like thinking, “I haven’t had sushi in a while, so maybe I’ll grab some.” In such cases, people often buy affordable sushi from supermarkets.
If eating sushi two to three times a month feels infrequent, consider this:
There aren’t many types of meals we eat more than four times a month.
Excluding staples like rice or bread and side dishes like miso soup, fried chicken, or French fries, sushi is one of the most frequently eaten meal types in Japan.
Personally, I eat sushi more often than pasta, pizza, or curry.
The only types of meals I eat as often as sushi are probably “udon” and “ramen.”
Sushi itself comes in a wide price range, from affordable to luxurious.
At supermarkets, you can buy a sushi set for less than 1,000 yen per person, while at high-end sushi restaurants, a meal can cost tens of thousands of yen per person.
Japanese people often eat sushi but choose different types depending on the occasion.
For example:
- If you want a quick sushi lunch alone, you can buy sushi for 500–1,000 yen from a supermarket or convenience store.
- If you’re having lunch with colleagues or friends, you can eat sushi at a sushi restaurant or other dining spot for 1,000–3,000 yen. If it’s dinner, it might cost 3,000–5,000 yen.
- On a date, you might spend 5,000–10,000 yen at a sushi restaurant, or more if it’s a special occasion like an anniversary.
- If you order sushi for delivery, the cost is usually 1.5–2 times higher than supermarket sushi.
- When dining with family, supermarket sushi might cost 1,000–2,000 yen per adult. At family-friendly sushi restaurants, it’s about 1,500–4,000 yen per adult.
Since sushi is raw, supermarket sushi is often discounted in the evening, especially near closing time. It’s common to find sushi at half price. Even if you didn’t plan to eat sushi, seeing it at a discount can feel like a great deal, and you end up buying it!
To summarize:
Japanese people don’t need a special reason to eat sushi—they enjoy it on all kinds of occasions.
However, the type of sushi they eat depends on the situation.
This is a glimpse into the real-life sushi-eating habits of Japanese people!