Kabukicho’s “Shabu-zuke” Controversial Comment Became Viral for this Reason!

The “shabu-zuke” comment by the former managing director of Yoshinoya, which was heavily criticized by the public, has caused quite a stir among the women who frequent Kabukicho.

Like the public, they are critical of this comment. However, the reason for their criticism is a little unusual.

The great man at Yoshinoya compared beef bowls to shabu, but host clubs are much worse. After the recent issue, everyone is saying, ‘Hosts are more addictive than beef bowls! We are all getting excited about it.

Karin (pseudonym, 21) has been hooked on Kabukicho host clubs for a year. After graduating from high school, she moved to Tokyo from Hokkaido and started working at a nail salon, but left the job after spending too much money on hosting. She now works at a delicatessen in Kabukicho and puts all the money she earns into the hostess business.

“I used to be a ‘raw girl’ myself,” she says. But after a friend invited me out and I happened to go to a host, I was hooked. …… The dependence on host clubs is really bad. I’ve been to a lot of host clubs and I would say over and over again, “I’m not going back! I won’t spend any more money! But a few days later, I realized I’m still at the restaurant (laughs).

In fact, there are many women who go to the hospital for “host club addiction.

Why are host clubs so addictive? As a person who has been completely addicted to host clubs, I believe that the key lies in “a place to be” and “approval. If you pay tens of thousands of yen, they will take care of you and make you feel cherished. And they will say, “I need you,” or “Sales will increase because of you,” and they will need your presence.

 

There is no other environment like this, and many women find it hard to stop going. Surprisingly few people go hosiery crazy just because the host is good-looking.

Moreover, with the recent advent of matching apps, more and more women are becoming addicted to hostesses. Makoto (pseudonym, 25), who works for a major host group in Kabukicho, tells us.

There are a lot of hosts who use matching apps to attract customers. People who have absolutely no connection to Kabukicho or host clubs happen to be matched with a host and fall in love. They hide the fact that they are hosts, develop a dating relationship, and from there, they make a sales pitch saying, ‘Actually, I’m a host for my future goals, so I want you to see my work. Some stores even encourage that kind of sales approach. The stores there are really amazing. All the girls don’t look like at Kabukicho. And they all think they are the girlfriend of the hostess in charge. It’s a bizarre space (laughs).

According to Makoto, these so-called “raw girls” are more likely to fall in love with their hosts. They eventually have trouble with their relationship with their host and try out other establishments. Then they find a more enjoyable place and go to ……, and so on, in an endless loop. These girls are talking about hosts while eating beef bowls at dawn.

 

That’s all for this issue, I thought about the dependency of host clubs based on the “raw girl shabu-zuke” comment.

Sasaki Chihuahua

Born in Tokyo in ’00. After attending an integrated school in Tokyo from elementary school to high school, he went on to Keio University. 15 years old, he has been going to Kabukicho and has a wide range of personal connections. At university, he is studying the sociology of the downtown area, including Kabukicho. His book,” Pien” to shakai” (“The Disease of ‘Pien’: Consumption and Approval of the SNS Generation”), is now on sale.

From the May 20-27, 2022 issue of “FRIDAY