Podcast 09: Just the dialogues

These are the dialogues for podcast #09 ““How to order Sushi at a Japanese Restaurant”

In this week’s podcast Yoshiko and Alex discuss useful Japanese vocabulary and cultural points and advice for ordering sushi at a Japanese restaurant like a native.

The good news is you don’t have to learn a huge amount of vocabulary to order your your favorite dishes if you learn just a few useful key phrases.

Sushi Vocabulary

大将 Taishō – (Sushi) chef

サーモン Saamon – Salmon

マグロ Maguro – Tuna

たまご Tamago – Egg

雲丹 Uni – Sea urchin

いくら Ikura – Salmon roe

貫 Kan – Counter for sushi

一貫 Ikkan – 1 piece of sushi

二貫 Nikan – 2 pieces

三貫 Sankan – 3 pieces

一貫ずつ Ikkan zutsu – One piece of each

お願いします Onegaishimasu – Please

さび抜き Sabinuki – Without wasabi

あがり一丁 Agari ichō – Tea

できますか Dekimasu ka – Can you make it?

お冷や Ohiya – Cold water

お椀 Owan – Soup

茶碗蒸し Chawan Mushi – Egg and custard dish

えんがわ Engawa – Fin of flounder (flatfish)

ごちそうさまでした Gochisōsama deshita – That was delicious

回転寿し Kaitenzushi – Conveyor belt sushi

お腹いっぱい Onaka ippai – I’m full

刺身 Sashimi – Slices of fish

寿司 Sushi – Slices of fish on rice

つまみ Tsumami – Used when ordering just the meat of the fish rather than sushi

ガリ Gari – Slices of ginger in sweet vinegar

Main Dialogue

A: 大将！サーモン２貫ください Taishō! Saamon Ni Kan Kudasai – Chef, 2 pieces of salmon please.

B: はいよ Hai yo – Yes

A: 雲丹といくら１貫ずつできますか Uni to ikura Ikkan zutsu dekimasu ka – Can you do 1 sea urchin and 1 salmon roe?

B: はいよ Hai yo – Yes

A: さび抜きでお願いします Sabi nuki de onegaishimasu – Without wasabi please.

B: はいよ Hai yo – Yes

A: お腹いっぱい。大将あがり一丁 Onaka ippai. Taishō agari ichō – I’m full. Chef, 1 tea please.

B: はいよ Hai yo – Yes

10 Cultural Tips for Ordering Sushi

Here are 10 useful cultural points that will really help you when ordering sushi in Japan.

1. Call the Sushi chef “Taishō”

When you order from a sushi chef it is custom to refer to them as 大将 – Taishō. This means various things including general, boss, cheif etc. but in this context is used specifically to adress a sushi chef.

2. Use “Kan” counter to order sushi.

When counting pieces of Sushi you usually use the counter “kan”. For example:

一貫 – Ikkan – One piece of sushi

二貫 – Nikan – Two pieces of sushi

三貫 – Sankan – Three pieces of sushi

四貫 – Yonkan – Four pieces of sushi







Japanese

Pronunciation

English





大将サーモンを一貫下さい

Taishō saamon o ikkan kudasai

One piece of salmon please chef





 大将マグロを二貫ください

 Taishō maguro o nikan kudasai

Two pieces of tuna please chef





 大将たまごを三貫ください

 Taishō tamago o sankan kudasai

Three piece of egg please chef





 大将雲丹を四貫ください

 Taishō uni o yonkan kudasai

Four pieces of sea urchin please chef







An important thing to remember is it is not so common to order more than 2 or 3 pieces of the same type of sushi at the same time. The most common is ２貫 Nikan – two pieces of sushi. It is possible to say something like this:

たまごを二貫、サーモンを二貫、マグロを二貫ください

Tamago o nikan, saamon o nikan, maguro o nikan kudasai

2 pieces of egg, 2 salmon and 2 tuna please.

5) Use the word “agari” to order green tea

When you want to order tea say あがり一丁 agari ichō. This is a special way to order green tea that is particular to sushi restaurants. When you order, they usually bring it to you in a cup. However, in many conveyor belt sushi restaurants it’s common to make your own tea by putting green ...