Japan’s Cheap Curry Lunch Faces an Impossible Trinity

The “Indian curry” lunch is a Japanese salaryman’s treat. Two or three mildly spiced dishes, paired with unlimited quantities of slightly sweet and extra fluffy naan, typically with a small salad and drink — a steal at only 1,000 yen ($6.40) or so.

This isn’t Japanese curry rice but another variation, one that, like its British equivalent, has been entirely adapted to the local market. Indeed, most “Indian” places — thought to be north of 4,000, more than the number of McDonald’s — are actually run by Nepalese.