Japan can be a very busy place to live, work, and even travel. In order to keep up with the pace of life in Japan, you’ll notice that you almost always eat at a fast food restaurant. However, the truth is that Japanese food, even in sit-down establishments, is served quickly. In Japan, I don’t recall ever having to wait more than ten to fifteen minutes for my food. Even though there are a lot of McDonald’s-style burgers, Japanese fast food isn’t exactly the same. There are a lot of laid-back, inviting eateries where you can get great food at great prices in an incredibly short amount of time.

The beef bowl, or “Gyudon,” restaurants are the most well-known fast food establishments in Japan—and now also in the United States. These include fast-food chains like “Yoshinoya,” “Matsuya,” and “Sukiya” that are open 24/7. The largest beef bowl restaurant chain in Japan is Yoshinoya. In 1899, the first one opened in the fish market in Tokyo. The intense competition between these chains for customers has resulted in price wars that have brought the cost of a beef bowl down to approximately $3. Even though the beef bowls are mostly made with American beef, production was slowed down from 2004 to 2006 due to an import ban, so Australian or Japanese beef was used instead. Fans of beef bowls can once more relish the original flavor today. There’s a lot more to beef bowl chains than just rice and beef; you can browse an assortment of meat bowls ready with various sauces and fixings, or you can go for something else entirely like curry-rice. Everything is included in the price of using the automatic ticket machines at the entrance.

Burgers have begun to dominate Japan’s fast food industry due to Western culture’s influence. However, McDonald’s does not hold a monopoly on the market for burgers and fries, as chains like “Mos Burger” provide very respectable food. The originally American delicacies are served with a distinctive Japanese twist at both McDonald’s and the Japanese chains. At Mos, the chicken teriyaki burger is delectable.

Another fast food joint in Japan is “First Kitchen,” where you can get burgers, soups, pizza, pasta, floats, and ice cream. Fries from this chain come in eight different flavors!

“soba,” or buckwheat noodle stands, can be found at almost every train station in Japan if you use the trains to get around. These eateries serve straightforward noodle-soup dishes with a variety of toppings. Typically, orders and payments are settled at the entrance, where there are also automatic vending machines. Even though they aren’t always close to train stations, ramen noodle restaurants are just as quick and delicious.

Noodles, burgers, and hamburger bowls have been for quite some time perceived as cheap food things, however the new inexpensive food frenzy in Japan is “Takoyaki,” which are round barbecued octopus dumplings. The food itself is not new; it is typically consumed at festivals and other events. However, numerous Takoyaki specialty stores have begun to appear across the nation, including the “Gindaco” chain.