If you’ve been going stir crazy since the coronavirus outbreak, chances are that you’ve ordered take out a couple of times. Well, thanks to a new initiative by the Japanese government, you may find yourself with a chance to go to a restaurant and eat out again—all for a discounted price.
Meet the Go To Eat Campaign. While information is still scarce and primarily in Japanese, here’s what we do know:
Go To Eat Campaign
Similar to the Go To Travel Campaign, this new campaign aims to stimulate business for those restaurants and food providers that have been hit hard by the virus outbreak.
Organized by the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, and Fisheries (MAFF), Go To Eat will begin sometime around the end of August and offer diners a discounted meal.
There will be two systems by which customers can get a discounted meal:
Ticket System
By purchasing these ticket coupons, you’ll be able to get up to 25% off your meal’s total price (up to 20,000 yen). That means, if your meal was 12,500 yen, you will only be paying 10,000 yen! Coupons will be sold until the end of January 2021 and must be used by the end of March 2021.
Point System
Japan does love their point system and point cards—and the Go To Eat Campaign takes full advantage of that culture. If there is a restaurant you find yourself visiting again and again, then it may be best for you to take advantage of this system. Points can be accumulated only after the first (non-discounted) visit. After that initial visit, you’ll gain points for that restaurant to be used when you make a reservation.
You can use 500 yen discounts for lunch and 1,000 yen discounts for dinner—with up to 10 people in your party, that makes for a bargain saving of 10,000 yen. Points can be used for bookings made until the end of January 2021 and must be used by the end of March 2021.
Just how to get your hands on these coupons and points remains to be seen—check back later for more updates regarding the Go To Eat Campaign.
Participating Restaurants
A big concern for this campaign will, of course, be hygiene. Have no worries! All participating restaurants must first meet special guidelines proving that they can meet the safety regulations necessary to provide a clean and safe environment for diners. Participating restaurants will display a sticker on the outside of their establishment, proudly announcing that they are part of the Go To Eat Campaign.
Get ready for some good eats!
If you go to izakaya on weeknights before 8 or 9 p.m. they tend not to be crowded.