Global-Dining restaurant operator defies Tokyo government’s early closure request

Defy! Good on that restaurant. How many people pass through a typical restaurant in a day compared to the number of people who sit in a single car on the Yamanote line? How much closer do passengers sit near other passengers on those trains? Any plastic shields separating them? Everyone keeps their masks on correctly the entire time?

Paying about 400,000k a month in taxes myself, and know people paying much much more, so Blacklabel is entirely believable. And so I will go out and eat where I want, when I want, and if I am told the restaurant has to close early but they will stay open later if my party of four orders X amount minimum, will gladly do so. I am fully vaxxed so I feel safe, and rather than navigate through a crowded train station and sit in a packed train shoulder to should with who knows who, I will taxi home with just me and the driver, separated by our masks and the plastic shield.

Imagine if the common people of Japan had the courage of that restaurant owner, and refused to commute to work everyday. How much of an improvement would Japan see if the trains shut down for a week?

All businesses and jobs are essential. If businesses can't open then owners and employees cannot support themselves.

Good to see you having a 'Good Time' Thomas. Idiot.

Good for them! There is no point in making restaurants close early. If they really want to stop the spread of the virus, they should shut all train services. I’m entirely sure the packed trains are a bigger spreader of the virus than restaurants

Gonpachi 権八 as well as Oreryu Shio Ramen 俺流塩ラーメン. The two shops in Nakameguro is packed after 20:00 as the only restaurant in the area still open for seating at that time.

Cut off the power & water.

Problem Solved.

It doesn’t play a role, because the virus loads of you and the surrounding people have to be summed up and be taken into consideration. Where do you want the viruses placed that you breath out, and where do you want to be exposed to the virus loads all the other people breath out? Your decision only, not mine, not the government’s. Workplace, office, commuter train wagon, restaurants like those named above, your home? Decide for yourself. If those restaurants are all closed, then you have more viruses to stand when commuting or at home. If you are all the time at home, you are surrounded by less viruses, only your’s and family member’s, but for 24 hours and also collected in your air conditioner filters. And if you go to that restaurant, they’re collected there, in their air conditioning and consumed by other guests, at the cost that you are also exposed to some more persons than at home. Your decision. But on average, there’s not much risk to lose or advantage to gain.

Disgraceful.

Life is short folks.

And it's even shorter once you catch covid-19 and die from it! Ask Shimura Ken what he thinks about it. Wait, you can't, he's dead from covid. But obviously a lot of people would rather eat out and travel than think about vulnerable people around them, or how prolonging a pandemic is much worse on the economy than any short-term SOE or lockdown.

Which is why my spouse and I are traveling like crazy and supporting small restaurants with lights off outside but open on the inside. In Tottori now and zero cases of covid.

Life is short folks. Live it.

They can do whatever they want, however I will personally not go to such places with tons of people inside. I will rather go to small izakayas close to my house and support the ones who are the most affected with those measures than basically “industrial” izakaya.

Depends how small you are talking about. The really small individual or family ones actually benefit since they collect 6-man per day and nobody cares if they stick to the rules or not. In some cases the 6-man is more than they earn on a normal day.

They can do whatever they want, however I will personally not go to such places with tons of people inside. I will rather go to small izakayas close to my house and support the ones who are the most affected with those measures than basically “industrial” izakaya. Been to Gonpachi once, it is touristy place and nothing special. La Boheme, which is operated by the same group is similar thing.

Capitalists running wild because they can. This is what morons like to call "democracy".

On May 17, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government stated that at least 33 restaurants in the city had failed to comply with temporary business closures or shortened business hours

Ha I haven't left my East Tokyo station in ages and I know of at least 5 places that are open and selling alcohol. There must be hundreds, if not thousands, across the city.

Can't say I blame them - if office workers can't tear themselves away from their offices enough to reduce the crush on the trains, it's a bit unreasonable to ask restaurants to take all the responsibility.

How does it help for you to come to a restaurant once everything opens back up expecting a seat? They need you now. Don’t be a “fair weather” friend.

I know I have a table for life at a couple places now.

Certain specializations of IT, certain consulting roles, commission based employment based on product sales to clients, executive recruiting. all at the proper level of experience/certs/education with correct languages ability can get you to that horrible tax bracket.

I eat out as much as possible to support the local places that are struggling to stay open. I like the places and the people. Least I can do.

Huh? What the heck kind of job you in?

Cool, I might just hop on the Shinkansen and visit the place on the weekend. I will be proud to support a business that does not fall for the fearmongering and cares about their employees livelihoods.

I couldn't agree more, I might jot up there myself with the family to support this business.

It’s not really the government. It’s the patrons who frequent these places knowing full well there is a pandemic and they should be at home.

And they have every single right to stay open, and people to go in there, not wear masks, drink alcohol, and be loud and have fun, so long as it is not against the law. And since the government won't MAKE laws and will just ask people to do something, they are perfectly within their right to simply say, "No, thank you," minus the thank you, if they choose as well. I said this on another thread, but a friend of mine, who runs a yakitori, said he still has not received any assistance money from the FIRST State of Emergency, in April 2020. He has complied this time as well but says he's thinking he won't be able to reopen this time, especially if it looks like it'll close again soon after.

I'm all for the government making legislation to enact strict measures, including punishments for offenders, but the also have to provide assistance in order that people comply and stay home. Maybe stop talking about expensive Aegis weapons systems, and cancel the Olympics to save what you can... for starters? The money is there, the government just needs to stop spending in on things no one needs or wants.

I pay over 1 million yen a month in taxes. I don't work..other people work for me.  I have 24 hours a day 7 days a week to do what I want...

Only salaried workers pay monthly taxes, deducted from their pay.

If you don't work, you don't have a salary, you get your accountant to sort your taxes and send in a tax return, and you settle once a year.

El Rato:

Cool, I might just hop on the Shinkansen and visit the place on the weekend. I will be proud to support a business that does not fall for the fearmongering and cares about their employees livelihoods.

Hey, where do you live? Because I hear they also have a branch on the other side of Japan.

LOL. This guy wants to be Mr. toughguy. I bet you back him in a corner he will cry like a littlr baby.

Good on them! I will be visiting and supporting their defiance!

That’s what the Government gets when they put half asked rules in place. I actually done blame this company, and I heard some businesses who are not abiding and get named and shamed, are getting free advertising like this article.

I went there for dinner, it was pretty good.

If contact tracing following a spike of infections leads directly to that restaurant, I know who will get the blame first and foremost.

Bars having to close at 8pm during an emergency is a small price to pay for not having a Kenpeitai equivalent sitting there ready to shut down all forms of dissent.

This. As much as the government shares a big chunk of the blame for various failures in dealing with this pandemic, it's also because of idiots like that owner that the problems will carry on and may well become bigger down the road.

In the province I live in, a gym owner defied public health's orders. The result of that defiance was a spike of new cases in the entire region, all tracable to that gym. The mayor of the city was not shy in ripping that gym owner a new one with some strong sarcasm in a press conference.

Only salaried workers pay high taxes

If your paying a million yen, I suggest you change accountants

It is inspiring to see a Japanese company bucking authoritarianism. #resist

The chain should double down and have the government charged for obstruction of business

Global-dining is only doing openly what many other places are doing "secretly". It will be interesting to see if actual consequences come or if the government accepts the measures its "suggesting" are meanigless.

Got 2 masks and 100,000 yen once though. While paying 10 times than in monthly tax. Thanks government!

Huh? What the heck kind of job you in?

You're paying 1 million yen a month in tax??

I smell bovine ordure.

Yeah, people who pay 1 million yen in tax per month usually have much, much better things to do than to hang out around comment boards on the internet.

@expat - A lot more people will end up topping themselves than dying from Covid if they can't work! It's not a sense of entitlement. Compensate properly and then fair enough.

I like that the Japanese government does not have emergency powers.

If businesses cannot cooperate during a pandemic and claim "private property rights" as the reason why, do not be surprised if the government decides to change the constitution to bring in lots of new powers.

I would expect these new powers to be very nasty and go way beyond not respecting "private property rights" of bar owners during a pandemic. Bars having to close at 8pm during an emergency is a small price to pay for not having a Kenpeitai equivalent sitting there ready to shut down all forms of dissent. We have been there before, so let's learn from history.

Good on him. I know other places open too. The compensation for complying with the 'request to comply' is derisory. To add insult to injury, not being able to serve Alcohol is crippling to many establishments in terms of profit.

If you pay the restaurants 75-80% of their average monthly average in the two years leading up to March 2020 and pay the same to their staff then that might be incentive to close.

In any case, anywhere that is serving Alcohol is full to the rafters. Not exactly the way to stop infection spreading.

So, the coronavirus transmission is higher after 8pm? Where is the science that backs up those theories?

Not just Japan, but the governments around the world are not basing much of the shutdown regulations on science. The US has seen lower transmission rates and deaths, the more the country has opened up. The governments around the world are really picking winners and losers with arbitrary shutdown measures only on certain businesses.

Let's just all agree that the government has lost support.

Operation Dinner Out’s a go!

If the government response were effective people would be more inclined to suck it up but there is still no end in sight here in Japan. Coronavirus isn’t the only thing that affects people’s lives

 Send the police around there and make them stop people entering and kick out all the patrons at curfew time.

My wife told me as the SOE is not a criminal law, police have no power to do as you suggest. I have actually seen the coppers walk past bars still open (in Roppongi) at 11pm, and they they just kept walking. I'm not sure if it because the bar has some type of "arrangement" with them or they just don't care.

 I would actually love to get my tax bill down to 1m/month.

Well I would love to get my tax bill up to 1m/month and much much more

Under the laws of a SOE the government can (and should) close all these businesses. However, they do not have the power to penalize those who disregard the orders. That has to be passed through the diet which could take six months. You have all these people protesting the Olympics, but these rat bags that refused to follow the guidelines are much worse. Send the police around there and make them stop people entering and kick out all the patrons at curfew time.

I'm with you Blacklabel, it's sad that we have to pay so much. I would actually love to get my tax bill down to 1m/month. But we have to give back, an I like your idea of feeding the less fortunate, I might try that myself.

@rainyday: Interesting to note that your main concern in this regard is the inconvenience of having to order dinner out before 7PM.

This is not my main concern.

All of the measures Japan has ever thrown against COVID19 are theater - and lame, at that.

@rainyday

I was under the impression that most healthcare workers in Japan were getting sick and tired of desperately trying to take care of thousands of people sick or dying from Covid 19 in overstretched hospitals. 

Interesting to note that your main concern in this regard is the inconvenience of having to order dinner out before 7PM.

A person can be concerned about both, you know? And why would you want to deny someone a proper meal? Even in healthcare people take turns, it’s called “shifts”, ever heard of that? Just because there are sick people to take care of 24/7, doesn’t mean that any given worker has to work 24/7. Think a little before you post.

Yes I am paying that much income tax, sadly. It’s one of those plus minus type situations for which I feel blessed but angry when my tax payments are misused.

So in return I have been feeding all my favorite bar and restaurant employees at my house for a change. Not like they can work or eat now thanks to these nonsensical government regulations.

Test case, let's see what happens

Blacklabel - You're paying 1 million yen a month in tax??

I smell bovine ordure.

Got 2 masks and 100,000 yen once though. While paying 10 times than in monthly tax. Thanks government!

If you are doing well enough that you are paying 1 million Yen a month in tax then yeah, you should be thankful.

and this how covid variants emerge ...

agree 100%.

But in all fairness, if the gov is just targeting restaurants and bars, NOT closing schools and pushing for home schooling, NOT pressuring companies to let people work from home, NOT rolling out the vaccine in a timely manner, and finally still going ahead with the deadly Olympics, can we honestly blame these businesses when they claim that they are being unfairly targeted and begin to push back?

Because a swift and proper lockdown and then a strict border control policy making sure that incoming travellers (especially those of Japanese nationality who have, until now, been allowed in willy nilly with zero true controls/tracking on their movement) should have been enacted from the very beginning. Short pain for long term gain.

Instead we have these hand wringing ineffective measures that hold businesses back over a long period of time.

I see quite a few places that are open past 8pm - some of them just openly flaunt, while others just close the door and turn down the lights once 8pm hits. I'm still confused myself as to whether these directives have to be followed or not, and if not, apart from not being eligible for compensation, is there any other punishment?

Which is better then the zero wage that people get paid to not work at a closed restaurant.

yet strangely, the rent and utilities are still due whether people get paid or not.

Got 2 masks and 100,000 yen once though. While paying 10 times than in monthly tax. Thanks government!

 I will be proud to support a business that does not fall for the fearmongering and cares about their employees livelihoods.

Its not the employees livelihoods this guy cares about, it’s his own bank balance.

I highly doubt they pay their workers any higher than the absolute bare minimum wage they’re legally required to pay them.

Cheers! Everyone who's not afraid should do the same, not everyday you encounter a business that's willing to stand against this nonsense that's driving average people into poverty.

and this how covid variants emerge ...

Enjoy Gonpachi!

Cheers! Everyone who's not afraid should do the same, not everyday you encounter a business that's willing to stand against this nonsense that's driving average people into poverty.

@El Rata

Enjoy Gonpachi!

I am one of the few fully-vax'd healthcare workers. I am happy to patronize this company, as I am sick and tired (pun?) of scurrying to feed before "last order" at 7pm!

I was under the impression that most healthcare workers in Japan were getting sick and tired of desperately trying to take care of thousands of people sick or dying from Covid 19 in overstretched hospitals.

Interesting to note that your main concern in this regard is the inconvenience of having to order dinner out before 7PM.

I am one of the few fully-vax'd healthcare workers. I am happy to patronize this company, as I am sick and tired (pun?) of scurrying to feed before "last order" at 7pm!

Good on 'em.

This government (and most others) continues to lie about everything to do with this virus (and pretty much everything else as well), so why listen to a thing they say or follow any of their orders/urges/requests/gentle nudges/veiled threats?

Restaurants in Tokyo have been asked to comply with early closure orders 

How can you be "asked" to comply with an "order"? You are ordered to comply with an order. You are asked to comply with a request.

Cool, I might just hop on the Shinkansen and visit the place on the weekend. I will be proud to support a business that does not fall for the fearmongering and cares about their employees livelihoods.

This is why the virus is so persistent here.