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Indian curry restaurant worker in Tokyo warms our heart with amazingly sweet customer service

Casey Baseel Jul 23, 2023
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”Hey, mister, you were here the other day too, weren’t you?”

Our Japanese-language reporter Yuichiro Wasai moved into a new apartment a few months ago, and while the transition hasn’t been 100-percent smooth, there are some very nice things about his new neighborhood. For example, he’s found a great Indian curry restaurant near his new place that offers takeout.

The takeout part is especially important because Yuichiro’s daughter is still only one and a half years old, which can be a tough age for in-restaurant dining. Yuichiro doesn’t want to sneak out for a meal at the restaurant by himself either since his wife is also a fan of their curry, and so when they’re both craving it, Yuichiro goes and picks some up, then brings it back to the apartment for them to eat together.

Oh, and the curry at the restaurant, which is called Jai Hind, isn’t just tasty, it’s also very easy on the wallet. The standard set of curry and nan bread is just 550 yen (US$4), and even when Yuichiro feels like splurging for garlic nan with his curry, it’s still only 700 yen.

So it’s easy to understand why Yuichiro became a fan…but the amazing customer service they showed him on his last visit has made him love the place even more.

When Yuichiro stopped by, the Indian staff member working the register recognized him. “Hey, mister, you were here the other day too, weren’t you?” he asked. “Yeah, that’s right, I was,” Yuichiro replied. It had been about two weeks since he’d been there, though, so Yuichiro was surprised that the employee remembered him, and then he was even more surprised when the guy remembered exactly what Yuichiro had ordered then too.

“I knew it! You’re the same guy from that time,” the employee said. “What do you mean?” Yuichiro asked, only for the man to say “We’re terribly sorry.” Seeing Yuichiro’s puzzled expression, he went on to explain:

“The last time you came, we took to much of your money. We didn’t give you the correct amount of change when you paid. We’ll repay you that amount now. We’re very sorry.”

As he apologized, he handed a few hundred yen coins to Yuichiro.

Yuichiro felt a twinge of embarrassment at himself for not having properly checked the amount of change he’d received last time. As a customer, he feels like that’s his responsibility. But more so than that, he was deeply moved that once the staff had noticed the mistake, they’d made a point of remembering so that they could set things right the next time Yuichiro came in.

The gesture is even more moving when you take into consideration a few more things about the situation. First, if the staff remembering one small-time customer half a month later has you imagining that Jai Hind isn’t a particularly busy restaurant, that’s not the case at all. Whenever Yuichiro goes there at lunch time, the place is full of other customers. As a matter of fact, after the change-repaying incident, Yuichiro did some online research and found that Jai Hind is actually pretty famous among curry fans, so much so that they were even part of a recent “curry fair” event in conjunction with Keio, one of the Tokyo area’s major railway companies.

▼ ジャイヒンド = Jai Hind

When Yuichiro comes in to order takeout, his bill is always under 1,500 yen. He isn’t a high-roller customer, and it’s not like keeping his individual business is making a huge difference to Jai Hind’s bottom line, but they still treated him with VIP-level kindness, and though their curry itself is spicy, that extra touch of sweetness in their customer service is another reason he’ll be going back again and again.

Restaurant information
Jai Hind (Sasazuka branch) / ジャイヒンド笹塚店
Address: Tokyo-to, Shibuya-ku, 1-56-6 Crescent Plaza Sasazuka 2nd floor
東京都渋谷区笹塚1-56-6クレセントプラザ笹塚2Ｆ
Open 11 a.m.-3 p.m., 5 p.m.-10:30 p.m.

Photos ©SoraNews24
Curry Fair images: Keio
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[ Read in Japanese ]