Direct Anywhere - sorry, I should have clarified - I believe the NRT allowances are base on the mid-priced restaurant average or some such thing from the Tokyo Hotel, plus now it is adjusted by extra to factor in, that we dont stay in Tokyo.
I would have been much happier spending a couple of hours on a crew bus to slip in Tokyo than NRT, and had no bonus allowances paid too. (Provided toilets were fitted on the bus)
Sure we can all stuff our faces silly in NRT at the cheap eats places, but thats not what the allowances are designed for - dont you remember your intro days at the medical centre - about all the safe places to eat (ie the hotel, where the most frequent food poisoning occurs).
After you spend a bit of cash transporting yourself in and out of tokyo, and eating in tokyo, you can use up your allowances fairly easily.
From my point of view, I am happy with the allowances up there, unfortunately for QF you may be right, the amount is to much, and it attracts some of the most lazy, rude and senior QF cabin crew, who treat the customers like crap.