Topic · 4 tips
Ramen Rules: Japan Ramen Shop Etiquette
Ticket machines, queues and counter seats at a ramen shop. Each tip below comes with a short video starring Hako, the written version, a Japanese phrase to try, and links to the official sources we checked.
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At many ramen shops in Japan, you order and pay at a ticket vending machine near the entrance before you eat. Put your money in, press the button for your ramen, take the printed ticket and your change, then hand the ticket to the staff and take your seat as directed. At some shops you order from the staff instead.
Covers: Pay before you eat · Money first, then the button · Give the ticket to the staff · Decide in line
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Popular ramen shops in Japan often have a line outside, and a line is usually taken as a sign the food is good. If there's a line, join the queue as directed: lines in Japan move in order, so everyone gets their turn. At certain places your whole group needs to be there before you're seated, so wait together.
Covers: Expect a line at popular shops · Join the queue as directed · Wait together · Some shops use a sign-in sheet
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No. Ichiran, a ramen chain, calls its booth seating a ramen focus system: an environment where you can concentrate on enjoying your food without worrying about your surroundings. You circle your preferences on an order sheet, so there is no need to speak, and for extra noodles a metal plate set on the booth's sensor plays a melody that tells the staff.
Covers: The booth is for the taste · Circle your choices · Call button and order sheet · Extra noodles without a word
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At many shops serving Jiro-style ramen, you choose your own toppings, and the staff ask just before the bowl arrives, often with “Ninniku iremasu ka?” (Add garlic?). It's not a test: they are asking what you would like added. Not sure? Guides suggest one word for beginners: sonomama, which means as is, with nothing extra.
Covers: Listen for the garlic question · It is not a test · First visit? Say sonomama · Shops differ
