In my opinion, it is the service charge that creates the problem of bad service by killing incentive. However, in Japan there are two ways to overcome the problem of lackadaisical wait staff. a) Go to a place where the owner(s) serve you. Of course, they have a vested interest in ensuring you enjoy your visit. Obviously, this might be hard to discern the first time you pick a restaurant. b) Sit at the bar. Sitting at the bar puts you within arm's reach, or choking distance, of a server. Furthermore, Japanese have a long history of counter-type restaurants, such as ramen shops and sushi bars, and are completely at home with customers eating up-close and personal. Bar tenders, especially here in Japan, are a cut above your average waiter or waitress. They are skilled labor and typically not mere temporary Arubeito or part-time employees. As such, the bar tender is much more apt to ensure you don't die of thirst and that you get the check promptly. (By the way, assuming they're paying attention, an empty glass is something any red-blooded Japanese person simply can not abide looking at and they will feel compelled to fill it; I'm not kidding).
The other day, after the pizza fiasco, I stopped by an American-themed restaurant called Hummingbird's Hill. I sat at the bar and ordered their "Louisiana butter shrimp" as an appetizer, followed by a bacon cheeseburger. That meal was delicious and would stand up against any family restaurant in the US. While the shrimp had only a nodding acquaintance with the state of Louisiana (I think the chef waved a can of Zaterain's in their direction) they were spicy by Japanese standards and cooked perfectly. Since I sat at the bar, my enjoyment of the food was unspoiled by the comparatively crappy service that I noticed diners sat in the main restaurant seemed to be getting. The food was on time and on target and I got to wash it down with two excellent, cold Yebisu draft beers. Kampai!
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