Eating Etiquette in Japan

As with all countries, there are plenty of eating faux pas that can be made in Japan by people unaware of the differences.
I will point some of them out to you in this article, but also give some of my thoughts on the Japanese eating style in general.

General table manners

Before every meal, it's generally polite to say "Itadekimasu" (ETAH-DEKEE-MASS) which is a kind of "Bon Appetite" equivalent, but I'd more compare it with how Christians would say grace, it's a kind of appreciation of the food/cook.

Similarly, at the end of the meal "Gochisosamadeshita" (GOH-CHEE-SO-SAMA-DE-SHEE-TAH) should be said, which is like "compliments to the chef", but again, culturally it's more similar to giving thanks, e.g to the animals that died to make your food (vegetarians conscious' are clear though!) or the effort that the chef went through to prepare your food.

If you master those two phrases, you'll do well at social gatherings with Japanese people, I'd say it's especially important if you are doing a home stay in a Japanese family home.



Chopstick Etiquette

OK now this could easily turn into "the 1001 don'ts and 5 dos of using chopsticks in Japan", there are that many things you're not supposed to do it's exhausting thinking about it, but here are a few of the main ones:

*Don't stab food with a singular chopstick. I have however seen Japanese people slyly do it with both sticks if it's something large they want to transfer to their plate.

*Don't pass food into the grasp of another persons chopsticks using your own. This is probably the worst thing you can do as it is what is done at a Shinto funeral. A couple of ex-colleauges of mine did this in front of an elderly lady once, she freaked out, shouted at them and left the table in disgust! (they had no idea what they'd done wrong at the time)

*Don't stick your chopsticks vertically in your rice. Again, it's a funeral thing, it looks like what they do with incense sticks during the ceremony.

There are loads more like; don't move plates with them, don't lick them, don't wash food off them in your soup, don't tap your glass to get peoples attention, don't do a walrus impression with them etc etc.
Most are pretty obvious and as long as you don't act like a 5-year-old, you'll be all right!

Other things to note, Japanese people eat everything with chopsticks, especially in a Japanese restaurant. It's not unusual for people to cut and eat pizza, eat spaghetti, soup, beans, salad and of course rice with chopsticks - get practising if you're not good with them!

On that not I should tell you that in many instances, Japanese people will assume that western face = spoon and fork. Personally I was quite offended when given a spoon to eat with when everyone else was using chopsticks, when I refused and starting eating as everyone else it was greeted with gasps and the occasional round of applause.
OK, so slight exaggeration, but you get the point - it's not that they are looking down on you, they are trying to be culturally sensitive, and they assume no one uses chopsticks outside of Asia...

Eating manners

OK, now this is where things start to differ a bit and may be surprising to the uninitiated.

Noodles: When eating some delicious Soba, Somen or Udon noodles, it will be either in a hot soup, or if cold - served with a small pot of black sauce. (Fish or Seaweed based stock, vegetarians should ask for the latter - KOMBU-DASHI)
The Japanese at your table will no doubt either crane their necks down to their bowl or bring the pot very close to their mouth and start slurping their noodles with incredible speed and noise.
In western culture, a child doing this will be scolded and told to stop being so disgusting and rude, but in Japan this is considered polite as it is showing you are enjoying the food.

Personally, even after all my time in Japan, I'm still not used to it and I refuse to bow to this particular tradition. If asked about it, I kindly explain the differences in culture and most people understand. In fact a lot of Japanese already know of this difference and would understand if you didn't slurp loudly.
The main reason I don't do this is that it is only Japan and a few other Asian countries that practice this, and I feel they should be aware that if they eat with westerners either here or abroad, more often than not they are going to gross people out with the sounds and actions they make while eating certain foods.
I know a lot of foreigners here who do "go Japanese" in this regard, but I just fear the day when you go back home and you forget your manners!
I bow to many traditions in Japan, but I have to draw the line sometimes!

I should mention that eating soup, rice (served in a small separate bowl) spaghetti, sandwiches and pretty much any other moist foods are slurped or sucked ferociously by many Japanese.
I honestly feel that some guys here think that they are either part of some eating contest, or that someone will steal their food if they don't eat everything within 5 minutes!
Men are the loudest of course, but I've seen plenty of women do it too.
Also, to be fair, there are many Japanese who aren't so loud and understand/sympathise with the western mentality.

Complimenting: In many western countries it's customary to thank the chef or compliment on the food at the end of a meal, "That was delicious" or "I loved the potatoes" etc.
In Japanese custom though, I've noticed that people tend to comment on the food from their first bite of it, rather than their last.
I've seen many a host wait patiently and nervously for a comment from their foreign guest, not to receive one until the end of the meal or sometimes just as they are leaving. (Waving goodbye: "That was great thanks, see you later!")
This is bad game in Japan, I'd recommend you say something at the first opportunity.
A very common and important word to learn in Japan is "Oishii" (OI-SHEE) meaning delicious. I survived my first year in Japan by only knowing 2 words "Oishii" and "Sugoi" (SOO-GO-EE) which means "great"!
In one day in a Japanese person's life, I bet they say those 2 words about 100 times each.
Anyway, the main point is - compliment a lot and do it as early as possible, your host will be beaming from ear to ear and they'll feel relaxed and secure for the rest of the meal.

Final Word:

Now this might be rude of me to be "reviewing" another peoples culture, but this blog is all about foreigners being in Japan and how it feels to live here.

With that in mind, while I love the idea of complimenting more at mealtimes and appreciating the chef and the food, there are so many other things about Japanese etiquette that is difficult to witness (or hear!) and annoying to abide to.

I've seen many a Japanese person be offended at the mistakes foreigners have made concerning chopstick manners, many of which are only known in Japan, yet many are blissfully unaware that slurping food and shovelling it in your mouth (by bringing the bowl to your face) is considered rude and even disgusting by many more cultures around the world.
This blog is all about preparing you for your stay in Japan, so whether you decide to "be Japanese" or not whilst here, the rest of the people certainly will be, so prepare yourself for some noisy meal times!
VERDICT - LOW POINT

Attitudes Towards Vegetarians in Japan

Before I came to Japan I had slight reservations about if I was going to be able to eat well as a vegetarian. The only Japanese food I knew of was sushi, which to the best of my knowledge back then was just raw fish.
I thought to myself, well there must be vegetarians in Japan, so I'll just eat what they eat! Plus if the worst comes to the worst, I can just make pasta or other simple things like that.

Well, all I can say is - I wish I'd done more research before coming here!

In the UK, almost 5% of the population is vegetarian, that accounts to millions of people. In the USA and other countries there are similar figures. Taiwan is leading the pack with almost 30% of people being veggie!
However, so far in Japan, I have only met one, singular Japanese vegetarian, that was the owner of "It's Vegetable" a specialised vegetarian restaurant in Kinshicho.

So the figures aren't good. The number in Japan is one of the smallest in the world, probably in the thousands rather than millions. (In a country of 120 million people)
There is a Japanese Vegetarian Society, but they don't have as much power as the British one does. They couldn't force a chocolate manufacturer to stop putting gelatine in their products or anything like that!

There are no concessions for vegetarians, you will not find any "V" symbols on products or "suitable for vegetarians" labels, you will have to learn kanji or at the very least katakana and read the ingredients yourself to know if it's suitable. (gelatine for example is ゼラチン, ZERACHIN)

If you go to a Japanese persons house for dinner and announce you are vegetarian, you may either get less meat/fish than everyone else or a few more vegetables added to your plate. (with the meat still there!)

I can't count how many times I've been told "but there's only a little bit of meat in it", "they are just small fish" or "it's only shellfish, not fish" etc etc
Another popular response is "oh, but I love meat", as if to say "why the hell are you a vegetarian?".
I find this is the most common response from older people.

Fact is, there is no real easy way to explain your vegetarianism to Japanese people, you may end up getting tired of explaining and just have to lie and say you are allergic, otherwise they may just assume you just don't like it or being fussy.

Tip: You can say "I'm a vegetarian" - watashi wa bejitarian desu" (Japanese people can't pronounce the V sound, so it becomes a B)
However, you may be hit with the problems I mentioned before if you just say this, as most Japanese people (and I really mean most, like 99%) don't really know what that means.

Pro tip! There is an old fashioned, but still understood way to call someone who only eats vegetables. This would exclude eggs and milk etc, so in essence it's a kind of veganism - better than eating "tiny" bits of meat, yes?
"watashi wa saishoku shugi sha desu"
A bit hard to say, but it will save your life! However, if the person/restaurant is not equipped to feed you, you may be simply told they don't have anything for you to eat!

In searching for restaurants, "SHOJIN RYORI" is the safest and most delicious option for veggies in Japan. It is an old Buddhist way of eating, where no animal products are used at all. (basically vegan)
I know you must be thinking, well why don't you just to to those restaurants then and stop your complaining...
Well, unfortunately they are among the rarest restaurants in Japan. Kyoto is famous for them, Kamakura has some and there are other dotted around Japan, but good luck finding them!!

The next safest option is Indian food, if the owner is Indian they will definitely have at least a couple of veggie options and will understand vegetarianism way better than any other regular Japanese restaurant.
The last option is Italian food and sticking to safe options like Margarita Pizza and tomato sauce spaghetti (although with that last one be careful it doesn't have "little" bits of meat in it).

Other useful phrases:
niku wa haitemasu ka? (is there meat in it?)
sakana wa haitemasu ka? (is there fish in it?)

My advice before living here is research nearby vegetarian restaurants, learn how to cook simple dishes at home, learn katakana at the very least and if possible get a Japanese friend asap to help show you which foods are suitable!

Of course if you are not vegetarian (why are you reading this entry then?) you will no doubt enjoy the vast quantities of meat that Japanese people eat these days.

Also if you are a "vegetarian" that eats fish, gelatine and doesn't mind that your vegetable soup is made with chicken stock, you may also find life is easier. (PS: Please stop calling yourself a vegetarian, you make life more difficult for actual vegetarians - you are a Pescatarian, got it?)

Thanks to the rising popularity of American style fast food and increasing amounts of meat in their diets, Japanese are quickly losing their title for "healthiest country in the world" and getting more and more obese.
Personally I think it's a shame they are turning their backs on their roots, which is basically vegetable based with some fish.

Final Word:
As vegetarianism simply isn't understood or known about, it makes life a daily struggle for veggies living in Japan.
Confusion, resentment and irritation are often the reactions of learning you are a vegetarian.
The best you could hope for is a peculiar fascination of why you became one, when there is so much "lovely meat" to be eaten.
Be aware - you wont be able to be a lazy vegetarian here, every meal is a battle!
Japan has a long way to go before it even reaches 1940's-England level of awareness!
VERDICT: LOW POINT

Useful links:
Making safe veggie choices in Japan

Happy Cow - Veggie Restaurant Guide

iHerb - Import shop that ships all sorts of international brands to Japan

Smoking Attitudes in Japan

Attitudes towards smoking in Japan are at best, strange and at worse - frightening.

Most Japanese smokers I have met here seem to be blissfully unaware of the dangers.

I feel this is different from attitudes back home in the UK where smokers generally say "I don't care, it's my health I can do what I want, it's my choice" etc etc.

Whereas in the West people know the dangers (but do it anyway), in Japan it feels like we're in the 1950's again, I half expect to see a TV commercial showing a doctor recommending a healthy pack of cigs everyday to keep fit!

A common (pessimistic) statement I often hear from foreigners is how Japan is "50 years ahead" in many regards such as technology and transport but "50 years behind" in much simpler things we would take for granted as common knowledge/practice in the West.

I think smoking attitudes is one of the latter.

Some examples in everyday life:

*People can smoke in most hotels, smoking and non-smoking rooms are generally the same thing, just with a quick airing out of the room beforehand.

*Smoking carriages on the Shinkansen (Bullet Train). If you are unfortunate enough to sit in an adjacent carriage, you will stink of smoke.

*Non-Smoking sections in restaurants are a joke. The difference between smoking and non-smoking? A half-metre wall.

Of course there are some Japanese people against smoking, and there have been some goverment regulations against it too.

Recently for example all JR Train Stations have become smoke free. Before April 1st 2009, there was a confusing time schedule of when and where you could smoke, usually near the end of the platform between 9.00am-4.00pm (non rush hour times).

This is one of the few successes for the relatively small anti-smoking group in Japan.

Scarily, there is an even larger movement called "Anti-Smoking Fascists" who actually appose any forms of anti-smoking laws!

Most anti-smoking signs seen in Japan are more aimed at etiquette and littering, rather than health reasons: "A cigarette is at the exact height of a child's eye" and "if you drop a cigarette butt, someone else has to clean it up" are the strongest worded signs you'll see.

Remember it is a country where cigarettes cost about 200Yen, (£1.40/$2) and 29% of the population smokes, that's nearly 30 million people. (Among the highest in the industrialised world)

If you are a non-smoker coming to Japan, be prepared to feel like a minority.

Final Word:

Of course, if you are a smoker sick of being told where you can or cannot smoke, you are probably booking your ticket to Japan right now!

But for ex-smokers or non-smokers like me, Japan is a nightmare. You often feel like there isn't a single place you can go to escape cigarette smoke, and the attitudes that Japanese smokers have are frustrating and antiquated.

If you are used to a smoke-free lifestyle in your home country, be prepared to be an ignored minority with seemingly no rights in Japan.

VERDICT: LOW POINT

More on smoking in Japan at Wikipedia