Is Gyukatsu Motomura Worth It? Japanese Locals Mourn the Chain That Went All-In on Tourists
牛カツもと村は行く価値ある？「外国人向けに振り切った」日本人の本音
The most-liked comment (28,150 likes) under Japan's bluntest review of Gyukatsu Motomura isn't about one bad meal — it's a eulogy: “It used to be a proper restaurant. Inbound demand must really be something, for them to throw away the trust they built and go all-in on foreign tourists.” Former regulars pile on: great value at opening ten years ago, unrecognizable now — “I queued forever and the meat had no taste; I thought it was me” (429 likes). One commenter supplies the missing context: the chain was acquired by the company behind Saint Marc, and the playbook changed (353). The line that stuck: “hugely popular with foreigners” — the insult that sounds like a compliment (5,823). Where wary locals point you instead is not another hip spot.
“It used to be a proper restaurant. Inbound demand must really be something, for them to throw away all the trust they'd built up and go all-in on the foreign-tourist business.”
昔はちゃんとした店だったのに積み上げてきた信頼を捨ててまで外国人向けビジネスに振り切るほどインバウンド需要ってすごいんだな
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What locals said (excerpted from 2163)
- @ねむ-v8j👍 5,823
“Hugely popular with foreigners” — I love how that compliment reads as an insult.
外国人に大人気とかいう褒め言葉に聞こえる悪口好き
- @mini5958👍 7,096
“Symbolic Japanese-ness.” What a way to finally put into words the thing I could never quite express!
「記号的和風」 今まで上手く表現できなかったことをこんな分かりやすい言葉にできるとは！
- @志ひ👍 10,666
Build up the name, pull in the foreign tourists, then crater the quality and jack up the price. Clever.
ある程度知名度を作って外人を呼んでから質をガクッと下げて値段をグンッと上げるの賢い
- @SN-wv8pj👍 353
Hold on — Motomura was bought out. By the company that runs Saint Marc. The owners now aren't the owners back then; today's approach is pure Saint Marc management. And more branches isn't a bad thing in itself.
ちょっと待って。もと村は買収されたんだよ。サンマルクやってる会社に。だから昔といまでは経営者が違う。今のやり方は完全にサンマルク経営陣の路線。 それに店が増えることは悪いことじゃない
- @k-535👍 1,226
When I went ten years ago, right after they opened, it was affordable, gyukatsu was still a novelty, and it was genuinely good — that's how I remember it…
10年前の開業当初に行った時は、お手頃で当時は珍しい牛カツを美味しく食べれて良いお店だった記憶…
- @ままま-s7v👍 2,412
Seriously…? So this is what it's like now… I used to love this place.
まじか…今こんな感じなんだ…好きだったな昔
- @アルプス南-x5n👍 429
I feel this! I queued forever, and the meat had no taste… I'd been wondering if something was wrong with me, so honestly this is a relief. 😂
分かる！かなり並んで食べたのにお肉の味しなくて、、私がおかしいのかと思ってたけどすっきりしました😂
- @あられ1203👍 128
It's the owner's call, and they're actually making money — I'm not sure it's a third party's place to lecture them about “history.” If the old way had been sustainable, they'd still be doing it.
別に決めているのは店主だし、それで実際に儲かってもいるんだから第三者が歴史どうのこうの言うのはどうかと思うな… 昔のままで続けられてるなら今もやってるよ。
Where locals go instead
- @バーチャルボーイ👍 2,644
Watching all these small shops pander to foreign tourists lately, I'm beyond grateful for the Skylark-family chains and conveyor-belt sushi — the same consistent standard as ever, at nearly the same old prices, thanks to tablet ordering and honest cost discipline.
最近の外国人に媚びた個人店や小規模グループ見るとすかいらーく系や回転寿司の変わらず一定の水準をタブレット注文とかで人件費カットの企業努力で昔と大きく変わらない値段で提供してくれるのありがたすぎる
FAQ
- Is Gyukatsu Motomura worth it?
- The Japanese locals in this 2,163-comment thread say the version tourists queue for isn't the restaurant they loved: the top comment (28,150 likes) mourns a “proper restaurant” that pivoted to inbound tourism, and former regulars describe recent meals as unrecognizable. One dissenter argues it's the owner's call and the business is thriving — but nobody in the thread defends the food.
- What happened to Gyukatsu Motomura?
- Per a 353-like comment, the chain was acquired by the company that operates Saint Marc, so today's management is different from the shop early fans remember. Commenters date the golden era to around its opening a decade ago, when gyukatsu was still a novelty and the price was modest.
- Do Japanese locals blame the tourists?
- No — the anger is at the business decision, not the customers. The thread's sharpest coinage is “symbolic Japanese-ness”: a stage-set version of Japan aimed at people who can't compare it to the real thing. The locals' practical fallback (2,644 likes): the big, untrendy chains that kept quality and prices stable.
Is Toyosu's Senkyaku Banrai a Ripoff? A Staffer Answers Honestly — and Locals Name the One Stall Worth It
“Surprisingly, it's not all “RAAAH! Inbound prices on everything!” in there. That lean tuna skewer looks good.”
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