EatHow: Food Etiquette in Japan – Sushi

To many, eating sliced fish may not seem like a big deal, but it really is.

Sushi is an art, with years of training to master it. Thus, eating it the right way is the best way to show respect towards the chefs' effort. At a real sushi restaurant in Japan, the following is proper sushi etiquette.

Sit at the counter, rather than a booth or table, and ask the chef (or concierge, in expensive restaurants) their recommendation of the day before picking up the menu - all decisions made in regards to the restaurant's "grocery" list are done directly by the chef, so he knows what's best and will appreciate you trusting in them. Afterwards, watch them work and don't chat with them so they may concentrate fully on the dish(es).

There will be a wet towel for your hands. Use it only for that and nothing else, putting it aside after. Originally, people used their fingers to eat sushi, so towels were placed to ensure hands were clean before dinning began. Pour a very tiny bit of soy sauce into the small dish provided for it so you won't leave any behind at the finish of your meal - pour more later, throughout the meal, if you need to. Keep chopsticks resting on their holder, parallel to the table, when not eating. If you place them in any different spot, you will be assumed finished.

Do not add wasabi to your soy sauce because the chef already knows to add the correct amounts of it beforehand to each piece for bringing out the perfect flavors. You will still receive extra wasabi on the side, but don't add too much so you don't insult the chef. Use a piece of ginger or your chopstick to brush the wasabi onto the sushi piece - don't suck remaining wasabi from your chopstick or leave ginger on top of your sushi either, because that is also rude. Only eat ginger by itself and as a way to cleanse your pallet between bites.

There is no particular order to eating sushi, but there are specific ways to eat each piece. A slice of fish without rice is eaten by placing wasabi, or ground ginger for some types, on the fish (if needed) then dipping it into soy sauce. A slice of fish on rice is eaten by turning the piece counterclockwise upside-down and dipping it into the soy sauce (placing soy sauce on top if it first if desired) - never leave rice in your soy sauce because the preparation of the sushi rice is part of the art. Sushi pieces already topped with sauces are never dipped in soy sauce. If the fish is rolled with rice, add a little soy sauce to the fish itself instead of dipping it. Lastly, all sushi should be eaten in one bite (at most two little bites -- placing the uneaten part back down on your plate inbetween -- if you can't break it in half with your chopsticks) with the fish touching your tongue, and savored before swallowed, so you may get the full flavor of the item.

Upon the completion of the meal, if you really enjoyed it you may offer the chef a shot with you (pouring it for him) or handing a small tip in a nicely decorated envelope to the concierge (never the chef) for them as a thank you - though offering a shot is probably best, since the bill will be high enough already...trust me.