# Virtual Dining Companions At the Sasayama Restaurant, People Eat Alongside VR Videos By Laura McQuarrie | Published 2016-08-25 | Marketing Source: Trend Hunter, https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/dining-companion References: [refinery29](http://www.refinery29.com/2016/08/121175/virtual-reality-dates-ramen-restaurant-sasayama?utm_source=feed&utm_medium=rss) & [en.rocketnews24](http://en.rocketnews24.com/2016/08/21/japanese-ramen-restaurant-offering-customers-virtual-dates-with-idol-singers【video】/) Until the end of the month, people who go to dine at the 'Sasayama' restaurant in Osaka, Japan, have the chance to enjoy their meal in the company of an unusual dining companion. Patrons at Sasayama are provided [QR codes](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/historic-ar-experience), which they can scan in order to bring up a [virtual date on their smartphone](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/flipped-chat). The [virtual dining companions](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/man-vs-fries) that appear in one of the five videos are women from the 'Hamburgirls Z' music group, a band that centers its songs around hamburgers. Throughout the video, the virtual diner offers a taste of her own food and asks for a sample of the customer's food as well. Throughout the promotion, it is likely that consumers will return to Sasayama more than once in the hopes of having a dining experience with their favorite member of Hamburgirls Z. ## Trend Insights (Trend Hunter) - Score: 4.5/10 - Popularity: 38% | Activity: 89% | Freshness: 8% - Audience gender: 50% men, 50% women - Primary generations: Gen Z, Millennial, Gen X - Top markets: Asia ## Categories [Trend Hunter](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends) > [Marketing](https://www.trendhunter.com/marketing) > [Interactive](https://www.trendhunter.com/interactive) ## Key Themes ### Key Themes Behind This Trend - **Virtual Dining Experiences:** Disruptive innovation opportunities include creating immersive virtual dining experiences that allow customers to dine with virtual companions of their choice. - **QR Code Integrations:** Disruptive innovation opportunities include integrating QR codes into restaurant experiences to enhance customer engagement and provide unique digital interactions. - **Virtual Celebrity Interactions:** Disruptive innovation opportunities include leveraging virtual reality technology to enable customers to interact with virtual celebrities during their dining experiences. ### Where This Applies - **Restaurant Industry:** Disruptive innovation opportunities include incorporating virtual dining companions and interactive experiences to attract and retain customers in the restaurant industry. - **Entertainment Industry:** Disruptive innovation opportunities include collaborating with virtual reality content creators to offer unique virtual celebrity dining experiences and entertainment options. - **Technology Industry:** Disruptive innovation opportunities include developing advanced virtual reality technologies and QR code integrations to enhance customer experiences across various industries, including dining. ## Related on Trend Hunter - [VR Burger Restaurants](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/wendyverse.md) - [Augmented Reality Dining Experiences](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/awaken-your-senses.md) - [Interactive Gamified Restaurant Apps](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/baoverse-app.md) - [Interactive Digital QSR Experiences](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/mcdonaldland-vr.md) - [Rewarding Restaurant Metaverses](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/dim-sum-palace.md) - [Virtual Dining Platform Expansions](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/virtual-dining-platform.md) - [Personalized Digital Dating Rooms](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/virtual-spaces-for-singles.md) - [Augmented Reality Menu Items](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/mac-n-brisket-sizzlin-skillet.md) - [Virtual Restaurant Drive-Thrus](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/virtual-drivethru.md)