Hundreds of Taiwanese Legally Changed Their Names to ‘Salmon’ for Free Sushi

Akindo Sushiro is a Japan-based multinational specialty store that serves sushi on a conveyor belt. In March of this year, they ran a two-day promotion rewarding individuals whose name included the Chinese characters for salmon, or “gui yu,” with all-you-can-eat sushi. 

In Taiwan, the promotion gained traction beyond Sushiro’s expectations as 331 participants paid to legally have salmon added to their name. Soon dubbed “salmon chaos,” the promotion inspired nicknames that ranged from funny to downright absurd. Dancing Salmon and Salmon Dream are two examples of the hilarious submissions. 

Urging participants to be rational, the Taiwanese government was suddenly overcome with additional paperwork, all with the name ‘Salmon’ on it. One participant donning a new ‘Salmon’ moniker claimed to have visited his nearby Sushiro 15 times during the promotion.

After the smoke and sushi cleared, participants were in for a major surprise, finding that they were unable to change their names back until a year had passed. Some lucky sushi lovers chose to use the name change to their advantage, accepting small fees from friends to take them to the restaurant for the AYCE experience or using the attention to grow a social media following.

As of now, the Taiwanese government is debating whether to amend the name rule and allow people to change their name back.