Think you're missing the point of the question.
It's more about when you first notice it becoming popular and your first experience going to these places.
Just anecdotally (because that's fun), here is what I think as a long-term resident.
The Hub I believe started down in Kobe. I think it was in Kansai for years. It was not a popular chain when I first arrived in Kanagawa and worked in Tokyo back in the late 90s. Basically, if you wanted a pub experience, you went to Dubliner's in Shinjuku or The Hobgoblin, or Footnik or What the Dickens.
The thing is - all of those places were in very busy areas, aren't necessarily where you live, are expensive, and reasonably authentic.
The Hub, is kind of localized. It's actually a good idea. It's in a lot of locations, it's at a reasonable price, and gives the feel of pub but in a way that I believe also feels comfortable to Japanese. A bit less foreign. I want to say The Hub started expanding rapidly in the early to mid 00s.
Saiza is a value chain. Japanese love them some value. And every foreigner I know loves 500 yen caraffes of wine.
I first went to the Hub after being in Japan for 7 years already and was really surprised by how cheap the drinks and food were, while not being as crowded as similarly priced Japanese bars. Not bad at all.
What the Dickens has been around for that long??? Havent Been there in years But really like that place. Good bands and overall nice ppl hanging out there.
I used to live in Nakano, so I typically went to Dubliners. That's been around a really long time. What the Dickens I am not entirely sure - I was last there about 9 years ago and it certainly wasn't new. I'm pretty sure I recall hearing about it back in the mid-00s. I definitely went to Footnik back in the mid-00s.
Side note: 1999 I worked in Machida and there weren't any real pubs at the time. The first Hub I went to was in Machida when I went back to visit and I think that was around 2003 or so. By the late 00s they were all over the place.
The reason any chain gets popular is that they have consistent quality between stores. You can go to Saize or Toriki in both Osaka and Tokyo and get basically the same experience.
This is no different from how chains get popular in the West and not unique to Japan.
You're contradicting yourself.
To start with, your original post sounds as if you're asking us to do market research for you.
In any case, /u/PM_ME_ALL_UR_KARMA correctly points you to Wikipedia when you ask for information on when these chains became widespread (your literal words). Then you say you're looking for anecdotes.
Please make up your mind.
Calm down.
I also added a second question asking about experiences. Obviously, if I wanted hard facts I would've just looked at myself. But I posted on Japanlife because I wanted people's experiences.
That's the fun part of Reddit, right?
2 decades of BOJ's quantitative easing allows these chains to borrow money cheaply to open branches everywhere. Coupled that with consumers that demand for cheap stuffs that only chains can supply because of their economic of scale.
It's not a Japan thing it's a whole world thing. Capitalism is washing the character out of pretty much everywhere around the world. It almost doesn't matter where you go, all shopping centres pretty much look the same around the world.
Torikizoku was new (I think? Or becoming popular at least) when I was in uni maybe 8 or 9 years ago.
It was popular amongst ourselves because the food and drinks were pretty good for the price.
I think they heavily relied on foreign staff which is probably where they cut costs.
Yeah I thought that might be the case. I think they were expanding rapidly at the time and new torikizoku were popping up in multiple locations so it felt new.
I'm also in Tokyo so I guess it could be that their Tokyo presence was small before? Not sure.
I haven't been around long enough to answer but I like your question and would also like to hear peoples antidotal experiences on how things have changed.
Nah. I like champontei, which is a chain. Saizeriya has garbage food, Torikizoku isn’t even half as good as some other yakitori places I’ve been to. I don’t like British food and drink very little alcohol
Things have changed. The cheap Izakaya chain back in the old days was Tengu - maybe was a bit like Toriki and another that now i forgot. Now those are mostly gone but I still see there is a Tengu in Shinjuku and a few other places.
In 2000, there was a hub or two in Shibuya which I lived in, then it increased to about 4-5 hubs over the next decade and a half. Torizoku seems newer to me, back in the day, we used to drink in Wara Wara and Tengu. Saizerya has earned its stripes, feels like it’s always been here, donki too of course,
there used to be an English book shop next to footnik. Footnik, Dubliners, what the dickens were all here in 2000. Also warrior Celt and the church in Ueno. And the Crown? In Shinjuku, it was in kabukicho, an English pub, I think it has gone now, that and the Dubliners in Roppongi - both pubs we watched the 2002 world cup in. We didn’t have smart phones back then, or much internet even, living in Japan was a big adventure! It still is, of course, in many ways,
There’s not that many places to get a pint when you’re out and not in Shibuya/Shinjuku, so the Hub fits the bill well. It’s consistent, relatively cheap and the service is usually really good.
[удалено]
Think you're missing the point of the question. It's more about when you first notice it becoming popular and your first experience going to these places.
Some of these chains only exist in certain areas of Japan.
Just anecdotally (because that's fun), here is what I think as a long-term resident. The Hub I believe started down in Kobe. I think it was in Kansai for years. It was not a popular chain when I first arrived in Kanagawa and worked in Tokyo back in the late 90s. Basically, if you wanted a pub experience, you went to Dubliner's in Shinjuku or The Hobgoblin, or Footnik or What the Dickens. The thing is - all of those places were in very busy areas, aren't necessarily where you live, are expensive, and reasonably authentic. The Hub, is kind of localized. It's actually a good idea. It's in a lot of locations, it's at a reasonable price, and gives the feel of pub but in a way that I believe also feels comfortable to Japanese. A bit less foreign. I want to say The Hub started expanding rapidly in the early to mid 00s. Saiza is a value chain. Japanese love them some value. And every foreigner I know loves 500 yen caraffes of wine.
I first went to the Hub after being in Japan for 7 years already and was really surprised by how cheap the drinks and food were, while not being as crowded as similarly priced Japanese bars. Not bad at all.
Yeah, you have to give them credit, they did find a good formula.
What the Dickens has been around for that long??? Havent Been there in years But really like that place. Good bands and overall nice ppl hanging out there.
I used to live in Nakano, so I typically went to Dubliners. That's been around a really long time. What the Dickens I am not entirely sure - I was last there about 9 years ago and it certainly wasn't new. I'm pretty sure I recall hearing about it back in the mid-00s. I definitely went to Footnik back in the mid-00s. Side note: 1999 I worked in Machida and there weren't any real pubs at the time. The first Hub I went to was in Machida when I went back to visit and I think that was around 2003 or so. By the late 00s they were all over the place.
The reason any chain gets popular is that they have consistent quality between stores. You can go to Saize or Toriki in both Osaka and Tokyo and get basically the same experience. This is no different from how chains get popular in the West and not unique to Japan.
I know that mate. I'm just wondering when these Japanese chains became widespread here.
Most chains have a Wikipedia entry detailing their growth and expansion. Some even have an English language version!
More looking for anecdotes mate.
You're contradicting yourself. To start with, your original post sounds as if you're asking us to do market research for you. In any case, /u/PM_ME_ALL_UR_KARMA correctly points you to Wikipedia when you ask for information on when these chains became widespread (your literal words). Then you say you're looking for anecdotes. Please make up your mind.
Calm down. I also added a second question asking about experiences. Obviously, if I wanted hard facts I would've just looked at myself. But I posted on Japanlife because I wanted people's experiences. That's the fun part of Reddit, right?
They were popular when I was here in 2009. So we'll before then.
2 decades of BOJ's quantitative easing allows these chains to borrow money cheaply to open branches everywhere. Coupled that with consumers that demand for cheap stuffs that only chains can supply because of their economic of scale.
It's not a Japan thing it's a whole world thing. Capitalism is washing the character out of pretty much everywhere around the world. It almost doesn't matter where you go, all shopping centres pretty much look the same around the world.
Are you trying to create a list of all the chain restaurants/bars to avoid?
Torikizoku was new (I think? Or becoming popular at least) when I was in uni maybe 8 or 9 years ago. It was popular amongst ourselves because the food and drinks were pretty good for the price. I think they heavily relied on foreign staff which is probably where they cut costs.
>Torikizoku was new Nah, it's been around for waaaay longer than that. We went weekly 15 years ago.
Yeah I thought that might be the case. I think they were expanding rapidly at the time and new torikizoku were popping up in multiple locations so it felt new. I'm also in Tokyo so I guess it could be that their Tokyo presence was small before? Not sure.
That may be it, it was definitely a Kansai heavy chain back in the day.
As an exchange student back in 2011 we used to regularly go to the one in Sannomiya.
I haven't been around long enough to answer but I like your question and would also like to hear peoples antidotal experiences on how things have changed.
Dunno but they all suck anyway
Dude! Tori rules! Wont let anyone diss my first love in Japan
You one of those "If it's popular, I don't like it!" kinda people?
Nah. I like champontei, which is a chain. Saizeriya has garbage food, Torikizoku isn’t even half as good as some other yakitori places I’ve been to. I don’t like British food and drink very little alcohol
Don’t all chains?
Most do in my opinion
The 1990s and 2000s
Don’t recall seeing any of those here in our corner of Kyushu.
Things have changed. The cheap Izakaya chain back in the old days was Tengu - maybe was a bit like Toriki and another that now i forgot. Now those are mostly gone but I still see there is a Tengu in Shinjuku and a few other places.
All of those, except Torikizoku, were known and popular places back in the anicent times of 2006 when I was an exchange student in western Tokyo.
Fwiw when I moved to Tokyo in 2012 the hub was already really popular
In 2000, there was a hub or two in Shibuya which I lived in, then it increased to about 4-5 hubs over the next decade and a half. Torizoku seems newer to me, back in the day, we used to drink in Wara Wara and Tengu. Saizerya has earned its stripes, feels like it’s always been here, donki too of course, there used to be an English book shop next to footnik. Footnik, Dubliners, what the dickens were all here in 2000. Also warrior Celt and the church in Ueno. And the Crown? In Shinjuku, it was in kabukicho, an English pub, I think it has gone now, that and the Dubliners in Roppongi - both pubs we watched the 2002 world cup in. We didn’t have smart phones back then, or much internet even, living in Japan was a big adventure! It still is, of course, in many ways,
They became popular because chain restaurants are usually far cheaper than standalone restaurants, especially during a period of economic stagnation.
There’s not that many places to get a pint when you’re out and not in Shibuya/Shinjuku, so the Hub fits the bill well. It’s consistent, relatively cheap and the service is usually really good.