I'm not sure the first Japanese example (4 courses) jibes with the other examples -- they all seemed much more upscale, much more into the gastronomy scene, and

I'm not sure the first Japanese example (4 courses) jibes with the other examples -- they all seemed much more upscale, much more into the gastronomy scene, and thus much more expensive to urn. I think the former has potential to be much more profitable than the latter. To monetize the latter you probably need to bid for tables or similar -- if there is so much unserved demand you should be able to make that work. Anyway, interesting article. I like this kind of stuff where they break down the economics of an industry.