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The story
When Matsuya released a mapo tofu set meal priced at ¥990, posters on the 5ch forum reacted with shock, with comments like “that’s expensive” and “this country is finished.” On the other hand, some praised the chain, saying “everything at Matsuya is delicious,” and the discussion expanded to include comparisons of meat toughness and other chains (Ohsho, Marumiya, Sukiya, etc.). The thread also touched on claims that Matsuya had switched its rice back from Calrose (American) rice to domestic rice, and an anecdote about a viral social media exchange over an order mistake — with opinions split not just on price but on quality as well.
What people said
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I think it's the pinnacle of what a diner can be.
If anything, it's full of people who barely have time to eat — lots of hard workers.
You don't need to come in, then.
Every bite turns into a chore of wrapping the leftover gristly bits in a napkin.
I figured the hamburger steak would be fine, but even that leaves some tough chunks in your mouth.
Losing the pork bowl (buta-meshi), which actually had tender meat, was a real blow.
The hamburger steak these days is mushy soft.
I want a bit more meaty bite to it.
This already got sorted out, but let me vent anyway… 💦
I ordered Matsuya's new black mapo tofu, and they brought me tofu curry instead… lol
I brought my receipt to the foreign staff member and said "this smells like curry, please swap it."
They insisted, "No, this is correct!"
I couldn't let it go, so I explained it to a Japanese staff member instead, and they swapped it right away 💦 lol
You don't need a side dish for the sanshō pepper, and the potato salad and the regular salad could just be combined…
It's all about the ingredients lol
Is ¥990 mapo tofu even any good when you're eating it with smelly white rice? 🤪
Is the potato salad on the receipt free? 😢
If I'm going to eat mapo tofu, I'd rather have the ginger pork or the pork loin yakiniku set.
I just checked, and the nearest one to me is 4.4 km away.
Meanwhile Yoshinoya and Sukiya are both right at the first traffic light.
Order just a little extra anywhere these days and you're over ¥1,000.
Granted, it's also just conveniently located for me. Did Sukiya have a ¥200 pass too, come to think of it?
Actually, my area is just packed with Sukiya locations.
I'll just go to a local independent place.
They keep rolling out all these weird new menu items, but that's really just to disguise how low-quality the ingredients are — a lot of them end up absurdly spicy or overly heavy-flavored as a cover.
The meat — beef, pork, chicken, all of it — is dry and tough.
It's not even good anymore, so I started cooking at home instead.
There's a markup there.
@ I ordered Matsuya's new black mapo tofu and they brought me tofu curry instead… lol
I brought my receipt to the foreign staff member and said "this smells like curry, please swap it."
They insisted, "No, this is correct!"
I couldn't let it go, so I explained it to a Japanese staff member instead, and they swapped it right away 💦 lol
26K likes
Background and Key Points of Debate
The trend of rising prices at restaurant chains has continued for several years now, and beef bowl chains are no exception. Matsuya has repeatedly changed its rice sourcing and rolled out new menu items in recent years — as pointed out in the thread, with claims that it “switched the rice back from Calrose to domestic rice” — reflecting a structure where fluctuating ingredient costs tend to feed directly into prices. The thread was split over whether ¥990 is expensive for a mapo tofu dish on its own, with some viewing it as relatively cheap compared to other beef bowl chains, and others feeling psychological resistance to paying ¥990 for a set meal at a chain known mainly for rice bowls. Opinions on how tough the meat is are also likely shaped by individual taste and quality differences between locations and times of day, so it’s worth noting the experience may not be the same at every branch. The order-mistake anecdote is one example that spread on social media, and is best read as a separate topic from the thread’s main subject — the new menu item itself.
※This article was excerpted and summarized from the 5ch (Hello! Project board) thread “[Good News] Matsuya’s Mapo Tofu Set Looks Delicious 🤤.”
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