Yoshinoya
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Established in 1899 in Japan, Yoshinoya (吉野家) is the largest chain among beef bowl (or gyūdon) restaurants, and one of the leading fast food chains in Japan. It is often shortened to "yoshi gyū" (meaning Yoshinoya's beef) among its enthusiasts. Its motto is "cheap, quick and yummy".
A typical order might include Omori(large size) beef bowl, raw egg (mixed with soy sauce and poured on top), a scoop of shoga(ginger) and a dash of spice. Little known to foreigners visiting Yoshinoya in Japan are the no charge special requests such as "tsuyudaku"(extra sauce) and the more rare "negidaku"(extra onions).
In the early 2000s, Yoshinoya triggered a discount war in Japan along with other chains such as McDonald's, by introducing a regular gyudon dish for 280 yen.
However, in late 2001, a domestic mad cow incident critically damaged its beef bowl sales. In late 2003, Japan suspended imports of American beef due to a BSE incident in Washington, cutting off Yoshinoya's main source of short plate (fatty beef) that is the main component of its beef bowl. This forced Yoshinoya to terminate gyudon sales in Japan (the first time in its history) on February 11, 2004. News of the removal of this item from Yoshinoya's menu caused its fans and non-fans alike to queue in massive lines at Yoshinoya restaurants all around Japan to taste what might be their last beef bowl for a long time. Yoshinoya then switched to selling butadon (pork don) instead of beef. However, Yoshinoya restaurants in America continue to sell the beef bowl using American short plate, and restaurants in Japan sold a "gyū yakiniku don" (Korean-style beef bowl).
In December 2005, Japan agreed to remove the restriction on importing US beef. A letter to customers was then put up in restaurants promising that the beef bowl would return in a couple months or so. However, in January imports stopped again because inspectors found banned cattle parts in a veal shipment from the U.S. In June 2006, however, Japan lifted the ban on imports, and on July 31st, 2006, Yoshinoya reposted the letter promising to bring back the beef bowl in about two months. Finally, on September 18, 2006, Yoshinoya brought back gyudon for one day only in a gyudon fukkatsusai (literally 'Gyudon Resurrection Fair') to promote the "return" of the gyudon on October 1, 2006. The hollywood production of "Aliens: Gyudon Resurrection" was cancelled in Nov 2006 due to protests.
[edit] Gyudon Resurrection Fair
On September 18, 2006, in order to promote the return of the gyudon, Yoshinoya started selling gyudon - and only gyudon - from 11 AM until they sold out. They would also only sell the gyudon for one day, and limit take-out orders to four per person. The goal of the fair was to sell 1 million beef bowls throughout the country on a single day. People lined up at Yoshinoyas around the country to have their first Yoshinoya gyudon in 2 1/2 years, with lines stretching around the corner even at the smallest Yoshinoyas. People who got a beef bowl on that day were rewarded with a special banner commemerating the event and a short note discussing the return of the gyudon to Yoshinoya, informing them regular gyudon sales would resume on October 1, 2006. "Regular" sales, however, meant that they would only be sold the first five days of the month in October and November. On December 1, 2006, they began selling gyudon everyday, albeit at limited hours.
[edit] Locations
Yoshinoya has restaurants in the following regions:
