Fukushima Restaurants (part 2)

And now, for our second featured Fukushima restaurant . . . (If you missed part 1, click here) . . .

      Gusto   ガスト

“It’s on the west side of the station, near Gusto!”  That’s the easiest way to describe to someone who lives in Fukushima where our tiny Lutheran church is located.  Everyone knows where Gusto is.  Gusto is Japan’s version of the 24-hour Perkins chain restaurant that we all went to at 2am when we were college students.  The wait staff here are very friendly, the atmosphere is busting (especially on Sunday afternoons), the air is a little smoky, the food is quite familiar to both foreigners and Japanese alike; it’s a very comfortable place.

And, quite conveniently, it’s about a 2 minute walk from Izumi Lutheran Church.  When we have visitors on Sunday morning, we go to Gusto.  When the 5 of us want to eat out together, we go to Gusto.  When people are trying to find our church for the first time, we direct them to Gusto. 

As I mentioned, Gusto is a lot like Perkins, with a few improvements:

• When you enter the restaurant, the host/ hostess hails you as お客様 “the most honorable guest”. 
• As soon as you’ve decided what you’d like, you simply press the button on the table, and within seconds a server arrives to take your order.
• If you want to order a beverage, you get the “Drink Bar” which is a self-service, all-you-can-drink bar with a variety of juices, coffees, teas, sodas, and soups!  (no more waiting for the waitstaff to refill your one beverage)
• You can order miso soup, fish, seaweed flakes, and pickled Japanese vegetables!  (Okay, I’m probably the only American here who’s thrilled about that)

The "Drink Bar" - it's pretty amazing.  I'm surprised American restaurants don't offer this . . .

Beautiful picture menus (a lot like Perkins).

What to eat?  Hmm. . . American food . . .

. . . . or Japanese food (there's something here for everyone).

Or you could always order the infamous: "Cheese in Hamburg" (no, that's not referring to the city in Germany).

 

A picture of the 5 of us (actually, SIX of us. . . I think this was Nathan's first trip to Gusto).

For more pictures of the yummy food served at Gusto, visit their website:  http://www.skylark.co.jp/gusto/menu/index.html.

Stay tuned for Restaurant Number 3 . . .