One of the restaurants you’ll see everywhere in Japan is Saizeriya, the best place to experience Japan’s take on Western food!
Known for its vast menu of delicious foreign cuisines, Saizeriya is everyone’s “go-to” restaurant for a quality meal that isn’t, well, Japanese!
You may ask yourself “Why would I want to eat non-Japanese food in Japan?” Well, at the end of this article, you won’t be asking that silly question any longer!
Fantastic Restaurant Layout
Saizeriya is a restaurant that serves what the Japanese like to call yoshoku which means “Western food.”
If you’ve had one too many bowls of rice and noodles, then head on down to Saizeriya to mix things up!
Upon arrival, you will be given a (rather large) menu with pages for starters, mains, desserts, and beverages.
The ordering system is super convenient, as you simply write down the code of your order on the ordering sheet and hit the buzzer when you’re ready to hand it to the waiter.
For just 200 yen, you can enjoy unlimited refills on all your favorite sodas, teas, coffees, and juices.
Delicious Starters
The starters at Saizeriya are really something, offering amazing quality at remarkably low prices.
You could enjoy a 4-piece plate of focaccia bread for just 150 yen or a plate of fried prawns for just 250 yen.
You could even get top-quality lamb skewers with cumin for just 200 yen a piece (if you’re feeling a little fancy).
Personally, I recommend the focaccia bread (150 yen) and the 4-piece chicken wings (300 yen) for an appetizing starter set of only 450 yen.
I also recommend grabbing the unlimited drinks option for just 200 yen, because let’s be real, you aren’t getting that kind of deal in the West!
Tasty European Cuisine
Saizeriya is predominantly an Italian restaurant, or at least that’s how they market themselves.
In truth, their menu covers many types of European cuisines including French, German, Belgian, and of course, Italian.
As I always say, Japan puts its own twist on Western concepts. In this case, they have their own version of the cheesy French dish Gratin.
You’ll find this dish in many yoshoku restaurants and even convenience stores in Japan.
The only difference is, they call it doria here. While gratin consists of cheese and béchamel sauce baked over a potato base, doria uses a rice base instead.
That may not be what you wanted to hear if you’re looking for a break from rice, but I will say with all the cheese and sauce included, this dish tastes far more like pasta than it does a rice meal, so give it a go!
Casual Dining Never Looked So Good!
Don’t worry, they wouldn’t be an Italian restaurant if they didn’t make actual pasta, right?
At Saizeriya, you can select all kinds of pasta from the typical carbonara to the bolognese, fettuccine, and more!
There are also a variety of pizzas you can order too, each priced at just 500 yen or less!
Again, there is an optional Japanese twist here, where for an additional 50 yen you can have a soft-boiled egg as a topping to your pizza or pasta (Japan love their eggs!).
You’ll notice the dish in the back there consisting of a cheesy hamburger steak with fried egg, potato, corn, and dipping sauce, all for just 500 yen.
Japan is notorious for hamburger steaks because of their low production costs, but if you’re craving a real steak, Saizeriya offers them for just 1000 yen.
And there you have it! While you’re exploring the many delicious foods of Japanese cuisine, be sure to mix things up with a Saizeriya meal and get the real yoshoku restaurant experience!
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