When in Japan, do as the Japanese do
Strong Preference for Food
Many visitors to Japan enjoy local cuisine. That's good! I have met so many Americans, and they are really nice. However, some cases exist when people do not understand local circumstances and customs.
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Case 1.
Some foreign visitors to Japan, especially wealthy Americans, seem to have particularly high expectations when it comes to food.
One time, I was assisting an elderly couple, and they argued in the car over what to have for lunch. The wife had difficulty deciding, which frustrated the husband, so he suggested dim sum or soba noodles. At that moment, we happened to be in an old downtown area where high-end restaurants were scarce. I figured the Chinese restaurant inside the Dai-ichi Hotel would be a safe choice and took them there. However, the wife was still in a bad mood.
Since reservations weren’t possible, we found many customers waiting outside the restaurant. After looking at the menu, she rejected it. In a rush, I searched for a soba restaurant and found a Yabu Soba in Nihonbashi. When I called, they said they didn’t take reservations and asked us to come directly. We drove to the restaurant, a small, bustling place in the heart of Nihonbashi. It was lunchtime, and the place was crowded, but some Japanese customers kindly gave up their seats for the foreign guests. ➡
➡ The wife looked at the menu and said she would eat shrimp, so I ordered tempura soba. However, as soon as the dish arrived, she immediately peeled off all the tempura batter with her chopsticks, exclaiming, “What is this?” as if removing something dirty. The other customers looked on in surprise while the husband silently ate his meal. I felt sorry for causing the restaurant staff discomfort.
I explained that Yabu Soba was a well-respected establishment, but I couldn’t help thinking that people should respect other countries' traditions and culinary culture more.
Case 2:
Two American families with three children in town. After playing in Toyosu, they wanted to grab a quick bowl of ramen for lunch. I tried to take them to a local spot, but they refused, saying they didn’t want such a casual restaurant. So, I took them to a popular ramen shop in Omotesando, but they insisted, “This is not a ramen restaurant.” Many people were in line in front of the shop.
It seemed they had a specific image of what ramen should be, but in Japan, there are countless styles of ramen. On top of that, small ramen shops are almost always full, and long lines are the norm. Finding a place where seven people could be seated together was nearly impossible.
In addition, they insisted they do not want McDonald's and shops in a food court and the building. They wanted to go to a local ramen shop.
I understood their request, though.
After giving up on Omotesando, we headed to an izakaya street in Shibuya, where I somehow managed to satisfy the children with spicy ramen and gyoza. Crisis averted—for the time being.
However, they had booked a tempura restaurant for dinner and were unhappy that the menu only offered course meals. They insisted, “We don’t want to sit through a three-hour course meal with kids.”
I could understand their frustration. In the U.S., it’s common for restaurants to cater to every customer’s request in detail. However, in Japan, set meals and course menus are the norm. From the restaurant’s perspective, this allows for faster service and greater efficiency. However, this approach seems complicated for many Americans to accept.
Case 3.
We had to find a place to eat lunch in the crowded Nakameguro area on a busy weekend. The American couple firmly stated, “No McDonald’s or Western food.”
However, traditional Japanese restaurants in the area are limited, and Italian eateries and stylish cafés dominate trendy neighborhoods like Nakameguro and Daikanyama. I understood their desire to eat Japanese food since they had come all the way to Japan, but traveling abroad doesn’t always go exactly as planned.
I couldn’t help but sigh at their unwavering insistence on maintaining their American way, no matter where they went.😞