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Food & drink7 min read

How to order food in Japanese: every line you'll say, and every line you'll hear back

ReviewAnswered out loud

At a restaurant · say it in Japanese

Order the dish you're pointing at on the menu.

You said

Understandable

Correct Japanese? Yes

Sounds natural? Not quite

Grammatical, but 〜がほしいです is how a child says what they want. To order, name it and add お願いします.

More natural

AgainHardGoodEasy

Kiko suggests a grade and brings the natural version back until it's the one you say.

Right, but not natural — the gap no textbook marks. Kiko catches it on every card you say out loud.

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To order food in Japanese, catch the staff's attention with , point or name what you want with or , and ask for the bill with . Below: what staff will say to you first, ticket machines and izakaya, allergies, and how paying works.

Updated · 27 phrases, each with its reading and JLPT level

What you'll learn

  • What staff say the moment you walk in, and how to answer
  • How ramen ticket machines and izakaya お通し work
  • How to explain an allergy before you order
  • How paying works — and why you never tip

What happens when you walk in

Staff will call out as you enter. It is a welcome, not a question — you don't need to reply, though a nod is nice.

Next comes : how many people? Answer with the number and — or — and holding up fingers helps. In a casual place you may just hear , sit anywhere.

Water or tea and a wet towel (おしぼり) usually arrive without asking, and both are free.

Spot the mistake

3 slips almost everyone makes here. Can you catch them before Kiko does?

This is how a practice conversation in Kiko goes. Each learner line below has one mistake in it — the kind you won't hear yourself make. Tap the part you'd fix, and watch how Kiko marks it without stopping the conversation.

At an izakayaKiko plays the staff

1 / 3

Welcome! How many of you?

Learner

Meant: Two people.

Something's off. Tap the part you'd fix.

Getting a table and ordering

To get attention, say a little louder than feels comfortable, or raise your hand — it is normal in Japan, not rude. Many restaurants also have a call button on the table.

  • JLPT N5

    Two people.

    Answer to . Alone: 一人です.

  • JLPT N5

    Could I have a menu?

    asks for an English one.

  • JLPT N4

    Can I order?

    Catch staff with first, then this.

  • JLPT N4

    What do you recommend?

    Narrow it with when looking at a menu page.

  • JLPT N5

    This one, please.

    Point at the menu. adds a count.

  • JLPT N5

    Two draft beers, please.

    Counter ふたつ works for most drinks and dishes.

  • JLPT N5

    One more, please.

    For drinks sounds more natural.

  • JLPT N4

    I'll have the same thing.

    Handy when someone next to you has something good.

  • JLPT N3

    I'll leave it up to you.

    Great at sushi counters and izakaya; be ready for anything.

Ticket machines, ramen counters and izakaya

Many ramen, soba and set-meal shops have a ticket machine (券売機) by the door. You pay at the machine, press the button for your dish and hand the ticket (食券) to the staff. If the buttons are only in Japanese, the pictures and the position of the button usually give it away: the top-left is often the house speciality.

At a ramen counter you may be asked how you want your noodles: (firm), (normal) or (soft). At a tonkotsu shop you can order more noodles for the last of your soup with .

At an izakaya, a small dish called お通し often arrives before you order anything. It comes with a small charge per person and is normally part of the deal rather than something you can refuse. Many people start with — a beer to be going on with — and order food a few dishes at a time.

Allergies and dietary needs

Say it before you order, not when the food arrives. Starting with tells the staff a list is coming, which gives them a moment to listen properly.

  • JLPT N3

    There are some things I can't eat.

    Opens the conversation before you list specifics.

  • JLPT N4

    I have an egg allergy.

    Say it before ordering, not after. Swap 卵 for そば, 乳製品, etc.

  • JLPT N4

    What's in this?

    Reply will list ingredients fast; follow up with .

  • JLPT N3

    Can you make it without meat?

    Swap the noun: 卵なし, ネギ抜きで. Often the answer is 難しいです.

  • JLPT N3

    I'm not good with raw food.

    苦手 is softer and more polite than 嫌いです.

  • JLPT N5

    Is this spicy?

    asks whether you can pick the heat level.

Try it now · 30 seconds

Your turn. Answer Kiko.

Kiko speaks first. Answer out loud — really out loud — before you peek. Producing it cold is the skill a page can't train.

Welcome! How many of you?

You

Say: “Two people.”

A note for vegetarians

Asking for a dish without meat () is understood, but it may still come in a broth made with dashi, which is usually made from bonito fish flakes. If fish stock matters to you, ask about it by name: — is there fish in the stock? Be ready for the honest answer , which means it can't be done.

Paying the bill

In many restaurants you don't pay at the table: take the bill slip (伝票) to the register (レジ) by the door. There is no tipping in Japan — leave extra money and someone may run after you to give it back.

  • JLPT N4

    The bill, please.

    At the table; in cheap shops you often pay at the register instead.

  • JLPT N4

    Can I pay by card?

    Countryside answer is often 現金のみです — carry cash.

  • JLPT N3

    Could we pay separately?

    Many small shops refuse; expect .

  • JLPT N3

    Could I get a receipt?

    レシート is the till slip; 領収書 is the formal one.

  • JLPT N4

    To go, please.

    Staff will ask first.

  • JLPT N4

    I'll eat in.

    Konbini and cafes ask this at the register.

Before and after the meal

Two set phrases frame every Japanese meal, and saying them — even quietly, even alone — is one of the easiest ways to show you know how things are done.

  • JLPT N5

    Let's eat. / Thanks for the food.

    Said just before the first bite, even alone.

  • JLPT N5

    Thank you for the meal.

    Say it on the way out; it always earns a smile.

  • JLPT N5

    This is really delicious!

    Casual: among friends, never to a stranger.

  • JLPT N5

    Water, please.

    Water and tea are free; is the restaurant word.

  • JLPT N3

    What's the local specialty around here?

    Fantastic conversation opener outside the big cities.

  • JLPT N3

    Extra noodles, please.

    Tonkotsu ramen only. asks for them firm.

Practise it out loud

Reading a phrase and saying it with someone waiting are different things. In these scenes Kiko plays the other person and opens with the line below; you answer out loud, and Kiko marks what to fix without stopping the conversation.

Questions

Do you tip in restaurants in Japan?
No. Tipping isn't part of Japanese restaurant culture, and money left on the table is often treated as forgotten. Good service is included; a on the way out is the thank-you.
How do I call a waiter in Japan?
Say clearly and raise your hand, or press the call button if the table has one. Waiting to be noticed can take a long time: staff generally leave you alone until you call.
How do I say I'm vegetarian in Japanese?
is widely understood, but it is clearer to say what you don't eat: — I can't eat meat or fish. Ask separately about dashi, the fish stock in many soups and sauces.

Now you know what to say

Here's why it still won't come out — and how to fix that

  • You read the phrase, nod, and forget it by the time you land.

    Review you say out loud

    The phrases you practise come back in spaced review — and you answer by speaking, not by flipping a card.

  • You know the line, but go blank when someone's actually waiting.

    Voice roleplay

    Kiko plays the other person — the waiter, the station staff, the ryokan host — so you say it out loud, with a reply coming back, before it counts.

  • The guide can't tell you what you got wrong.

    Corrections that don't stop you

    Say it wrong and the conversation keeps going. Afterwards, Kiko shows the exact particle or ending to fix.

  • Real people don't follow the script.

    Replies you didn't expect

    Kiko answers in natural Japanese and asks the follow-up questions real staff ask, so the second line doesn't catch you out.

  • Practice feels like a chore you'll drop after a week.

    No streaks, no guilt

    No streaks to lose and no nagging reminders. Ten minutes when you have them, and everything is still there when you come back.

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