The Difference in Demand for Japanese Cuisine

Finally back after a week worth of break. I thought it would be great to start with something light and at the same time could stimulate your appetite: food. Well, if you live in Singapore, you will realize that almost all the shopping centres have at least 1 Japanese restaurant/café/etc. I like Japanese cuisine so it’s really great to be able to consume such food wherever you are in Singapore. Jakarta, on the other hand, is a stark contrast to Singapore. It’s not easy to stumble upon Japanese restaurants and even if you manage to find a couple from the yellow pages, you will find that most aren’t located in shopping centres (this consequently removes the convenience for consuming them). The scarcity of Japanese restaurants in Jakarta is perhaps due to the low demand for Japanese cuisine there as compared to Singapore.

There are probably 3 main reasons for the difference in demand. Firstly, it is the degree of exposure of the population to external culture. Being well traveled and all, Singaporeans has definitely tried Japanese cuisine at some point of their lives and consider Japanese diet as just one of the many varieties of food they can have for their daily consumption. Indonesians, however, are not as well traveled and thus have a high probability of not trying Japanese cuisine before. When they come across Japanese restaurants, they have a high tendency of walking past these restaurants and selecting others that are deemed as safe choices.

Secondly, it is the difference in preference among the population. Majority of Singaporeans are Chinese and hence find Japanese cuisine which is light palatable. Indonesians on the other hand prefer spicy food and find Japanese cuisine too bland for their tongues.

Thirdly, it is the income level of the population. In Singapore, the income of the working population would not in any way hinder their abilities to consume Japanese cuisine i.e. they are considered affordable by most of the working population. But for a considerable percentage of the working population in Indonesia, consuming Japanese foods is a luxury. For these people, if they forgo Japanese cuisine, they may be able to support their family for another week.

These 3 reasons effectively make the Japanese cuisine market in Indonesia a very niche market, in a sense that it is only sustained by a small number of people. And if the economy of scale remains at current level, I am afraid Japanese cuisine will only become more expensive and that essentially will result in even more people being unable to afford them. As for me, it seems that my dream of consuming authentic Japanese cuisine in Jakarta at affordable price will not turn into reality anytime soon.