Priority services that allow customers to pay fees to skip lines at popular restaurants are attracting attention among customers looking for «taipa,» short for time performance.
Such a line-skipping service is available in Tokyo Ramen Yokocho, a ramen food hall near Tokyo Station, through a mobile system called SuiSui. Customers scan QR codes on smartphones at ramen shops to buy tickets to bypass lines.
«It comes in handy for people who have something planned right after eating, such as catching a shinkansen bullet train,» an official of the operator of Tokyo Ramen Yokocho said. Tokyo Station is the terminal for most shinkansen lines.
About 100 restaurants have used the SuiSui service since it started in 2023, mostly popular restaurants in urban areas, operator SuiSui Inc. said.
The service is offered to a limited number of customers in consideration of others waiting in line and charges vary depending on waiting times.
Keiichiro Sato, chief executive of SuiSui, said the service should help customers in tourist spots to save time.
Among other companies offering similar services, TableCheck Inc. provides a paid online restaurant reservation service.
«(The service) makes it easier to plan trips for foreign tourists unfamiliar with Japan’s culture of waiting in lines and using numbered tickets,» a company official said, adding multilingual support is also provided.
Kooriya Peace, a popular shaved ice shop in Tokyo known for toppings using seasonal fruits, uses the TableCheck FastPass reservation system.
«I used to feel sorry for customers coming from far away, including overseas, when they gave up and left without eating» due to long lines, said Yumi Asano, who runs the shop, adding the service also helps people who are busy taking care of children.
Tokyo Ramen Yokocho
Tokyo Station
Kooriya Peace
Tokyo Ramen Yokocho
Tokyo Ramen Yokocho
Tokyo Station
Kooriya Peace
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