My husband and I had been walking around Fukuoka for a little while, and we were hungry. We saw this restaurant, and had a peek inside. We were checking if (a) there were pictures or food mock-ups, or (b) an English menu. Unfortunately, we could see neither (a) nor (b), so we were not sure how to place our orders.
We loved the atmosphere of people slurping their food and chatting, and enjoying second serves… But we had no idea what to do.
There was a machine at the front door that takes orders.
When a man approached the machine, I saw what he did. He pressed one of the red 400 yen button, and a 100 yen button. I guessed the 400 yen button (most expensive) must be a main meal, but I had no idea what the 100 yen button would buy us. But I chose the same options for each of us. So after we paid, the machine gave us 4 tickets.
We went into the restaurant and did what everyone did. We placed our 4 tickets on the table in front of us. A waiter came to have a look. A short while later, two bowls of hot steamy noodles were placed in front of us, in exchange for 2 of the 400 yen tickets.
There were slices of pork and scallions on top of the noodles, served in a delicious broth.
We helped ourselves to picked ginger (the red one) and tea, and enjoyed our noodles.
A little later, a waiter approached us to find out if all was well. He spoke a little English (yay!), so we enquired about the 2 remaining tickets. We had ordered 2 additional servings of noodles, each costing 100 yen. We did not want more noodles, so we exchanged our tickets for additional meat.
It was a memorable meal. We took a chance and got a delicious lunch here, plus a wonderful experience.
14 comments:
How fun! I was assistant to the president of a Japanese company here in the northwest until I retired and I got to enjoy a lot of great Japanese food, learn enough of the language to be able to converse with visitors from Japan, and I learned a great deal about the culture and the people which I enjoyed so much! One of my very best work experiences. This was was such a delightful post! Thanks for sharing! Hope you have a great week!
Sylvia
Interesting post.
that looks yummy. glad you enjoyed your meal. :)
That is interesting how you managed the meals. :)
Yummy shots.
Wonderful experience. Even though the language was a barrier, you had delicious food.
that is funny! i'm sure it was a fun experience for you and your husband--to pay for something and didn't know what to expect.:p
I just found your blog...wonderful drawings and visions of Japan....lovely,
You are very brave and adventurous and good things come to those sort of people. Well done.
Indeed memorable time here in this cute Japanese restaurant.
Thanks for explaining your wonderful experience and atmosphere Evelyn.
Isn't great to play for a fun treat meal!
That is so intriguing! I'm glad you shared this with us, I have never seen such a thing and would have been lost. Looks yummy! I would have eaten more noodles, I'm a noodle kinda person, lol.
You beat me to it, Evelyn! I've always wanted to go to Fukuoka and eat ramen! ;D
I love the story you told! I even got a 'uh oh!' feeling when I saw that you'd gotten a "Kaedama (additional)" ticket and wondered what would happen! Great post :-D
I love sashimi, give e lots of them,
Hey, I came to China before many other white folks in 1985... and I often traveled alone. To this day I don't mind walking into a food joint, low-brow or swanky, look around at what other people are eating and pointing! Looks like you got a super ramen meal out this adventure. Do people not look at you funny in Japan for not speaking Japanese? My Chinese-American friends get quite the razzing in China. When we travel together, people speak to them and are shocked when I answer... :-D (I see I haven't been here in AGES... blame the heavy workload and fighting the flu.)
Dear Evelyn,
...gee...I have no idea, too...
Thank you for the interesting post that will definitely help me how to survive there. Photos are so beautiful and I want to have one ramen!
Cheers, Sadami
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