Hungry in Japan? Food Vocabulary & Eating Out in Simple Japanese (A1)
You’re hungry, the ramen smells amazing, and the staff just said irasshaimase! With a few simple Japanese words and phrases, you can order confidently and enjoy your meal. In this A1 guide, you’ll learn core food vocabulary, easy restaurant expressions, and culture tips—plus short exercises to practice right away.
Core food words you’ll use every day
Start with these high-frequency items. They’ll appear on menus, in cafes, and daily conversations.
Tip: In Japanese, many food words are short and often in kana (hiragana/katakana). Practice saying them out loud.
コーヒーを 。
In the restaurant: simple phrases
These set phrases help you get attention, see the menu, and order smoothly.
Start with すみません to get attention
Pointing and asking price: これ・それ・あれ + いくらですか
Use demonstratives to point at items:
- これ = this (near me)
- それ = that (near you/the listener)
- あれ = that (over there)
To ask “How much is this?” say: これはいくらですか。
これは ですか。
Easy verbs for eating and drinking
The polite present form ends in ます.
- 食べます = eat
- 飲みます = drink
These forms are the same for all people (I/you/he/etc.).
| Pronoun | Conjugation |
|---|---|
| わたし | 食べます |
| あなた | 食べます |
| かれ | 食べます |
| かのじょ | 食べます |
| Pronoun | Conjugation |
|---|---|
| わたし | 飲みます |
| あなた | 飲みます |
| かれ | 飲みます |
| かのじょ | 飲みます |
私は が好きです。
メニューください。 → メニューをください。 Both appear in real life, but adding を is the standard textbook pattern for A1 learners.Quick quiz: ordering with confidence
Test yourself on common restaurant situations.
Culture bites: small habits that help
- No tipping in Japan. Service charge may be included; simply pay the bill.
- Before eating, people often say いただきます (I humbly receive). After eating: ごちそうさまでした (Thank you for the meal).
- Tap water or hot tea is often provided free. If you need it, say 水をください or お茶をください.
- To call staff, say すみません (not “hey!”). A small wave is okay.
Stay polite, speak clearly, and smile—communication will be smoother!
Mini practice: mix and match
Try making your own mini-dialog with these blocks:
- すみません、メニューをください。
- これをください。
- これはいくらですか。
- お会計お願いします。
If you can say these four lines, you can eat anywhere in Japan!
Wrap-up
You learned core food words (水, お茶, ラーメン, すし), polite ordering with を + ください, pointing with これ/それ/あれ, and basic verbs 食べます・飲みます. Keep practicing with short restaurant dialogs and try them on your next outing. いただきます！