A Great Way to Beat Rising Prices! Is “All-You-Can-Eat Yakiniku for Under 1,000 Yen” Really That Good? We Tried It Out
[Part 1]
With the yen weak and inflation on the rise, how can they offer this price?
The recent rise in prices due to inflation is hitting many people’s wallets hard. Amid this, there are restaurants offering all-you-can-eat yakiniku at bargain prices. However, the cheaper it is, the more you wonder about the taste. We’ve picked out some well-reviewed restaurants offering all-you-can-eat for around 1,000 yen. We went to try them out for ourselves—
“Late-Night Lunch” in the Dead of Night: Shinjuku Meat Center Goku Main Store (Shinjuku Ward, Tokyo)
Right in the heart of Kabukicho, Shinjuku Ward. This restaurant, with its “Late-Night Lunch”—an all-you-can-eat menu available only at night—embodies the true spirit of Kabukicho. Orders are accepted from 11:00 PM to 2:00 AM the following day. For those working the Kabukicho night shift, this is likely their “lunchtime.” The FRIDAY reporter conducted this interview while keeping an eye on the last train.
When I arrived 10 minutes before service began, four people were already waiting for the “Late-Night Lunch”—despite the late hour. I’m told that if the restaurant is crowded with customers ordering from the regular menu, it can be difficult to get a seat. Fortunately, on this day, I was able to get in without waiting.
The all-you-can-eat session lasts 45 minutes, with last orders accepted 10 minutes before the end. You can choose from three sets—A, B, or C—and rice, soup, and onion salad are all unlimited. For all this, the price is a staggering 1,200 yen, tax included. On top of that, drinks are half price. It’s so cheap it actually makes you a little uneasy.
We visited as a pair and ordered Set A—thigh (salted) and neck pork (miso-flavored)—and Set C—pork heart (salted) and liver (salted). Incidentally, Set B consists of thigh (sauce-flavored) and neck pork (miso-flavored).What surprised me most about the meat was its freshness. It’s not the kind of meat you’d expect to find at this price. The meat is already seasoned, so it tastes great even without the sauce.
Another great feature is the high heat of the grill—the meat cooks in the blink of an eye. Even with a 45-minute time limit, I think you could get quite a bit done.
For the liver, grilling each side for about 20 seconds is plenty—I was able to fully enjoy the best way to eat it, thanks to the freshness of the meat. Also, the sliced onions in the salad were the perfect palate cleanser; taking a bite of the light, refreshing onion made me reach for the next piece of meat.
I never would have imagined that there’d be a restaurant in Kabukichō late at night offering all-you-can-eat meat this delicious. The sense of satisfaction far exceeded what you’d expect for 1,200 yen, and it’s no wonder people were already waiting before 11:00 PM.
The reason they can offer meat of this quality at such a low price is likely due to their strong purchasing power, built on connections with wholesalers. It was the kind of place I’d want to stop by even if I were rushing to catch the last train.
From the November 6, 2026 issue of “FRIDAY”
Reporting & Text： Midori Shirashi PHOTO： Shinya Nishizaki