Can You Share Food at a Japanese Restaurant? "Should Have Asked the Staff Right There": Japanese Diners on Splitting a Ramen Refill

What Japanese people said — picked from the top 200 of 5,145 comments

• Should have just checked with the staff right there.

  その場でスタッフに確認しとけば良かっただろう。

  — @yuta7187Most liked8,048 likes

• The shop's call is everything.

  店の判断が全てだろ

  — @人生前づけくん1,327 likes

• I don't get what's embarrassing about it. If anything, it's great that you're being considerate to the shop by not leaving anything.

  なんで恥ずかしいのか分からん。むしろ残さない様にお店に気を遣ってて素晴らしいと思う。

  — @808gmgw71,861 likes

• I'm a ramen shop person. From the very first bowl, obviously, to the kaedama, please don't share. Turnover is everything. Don't try to justify it.

  ラーメン屋の人間ですが 初っ端ラーメンはもちろん かえだま、 シェアはやめて 回転命です。 正当化しないで。

  — @tamurasandesu5 likes

• Nah, just order two kaedama.

  いや、替え玉二つ頼めよ

  — @あいあい-z2q15 likes

• I think sharing a kaedama after everyone has ordered their own ramen is fine!

  人数分ちゃんとラーメン頼んでからの替え玉分け合うのはいいと思う！

  — @ひな-u9p-m2s563 likes

• If you each order a bowl of ramen and then split a kaedama, that's no problem. Coming as two people, ordering just one bowl and sharing a kaedama is what I'd call not OK.

  お互い1杯づつラーメン頼んでから替え玉分け合うのは問題ないやろ 2人で来て、ラーメン１杯だけで替え玉頼んでシェアはダメだと思うけど。

  — @hakaishin36792 likes

• At places where a half kaedama is 100 yen and a full one is 150, common sense says no. It's no different from ordering a large and sharing it. If a full one is the only option, the shop doesn't lose anything, so that's OK, is how I see it.

  半玉が100円、普通が150円の所とかは常識に考えてダメやろうな 大盛り頼んでシェアと変わらんし 1玉だけしか選択肢ないなら店も損しないしOKって認識

  — @れお-v8k4 likes

• If the shop doesn't ban it, I think it's fine. Everyone gets why sharing a bowl of ramen is banned, but I've never heard of a ban on sharing a kaedama.

  別にお店が禁止してないならOKだと思うよ、ラーメンシェア禁止は一般的にわかると思うけど、替え玉シェア禁止は聞いたことない

  — @tanuki121156 likes

• A kaedama is entirely your own business! Whoever that was, how can he say something that leads to food waste?

  替え玉は全くの勝手でしょ！誰だか知らないけれど、フードロスに繋がる様な事をよく言えるな

  — @ダレモノガレラレナイワケ11 likes

• At a famous ramen shop in Kagoshima, when I was broke and split one bowl with a friend, they still served us with a smile.

  鹿児島の有名ラーメン店でお金なくて一杯友達と分けても笑顔で対応してくれました。

  — @カルマ-y2c5 likes

• If someone on the sidelines says something, just ask the staff.

  外野が何か言ってきたら店員に聞けばいい

  — @さくれついもだんご1,040 likes

• Checking with the staff first might have been better. About sharing too, and maybe they'd even do a half kaedama instead of a full serving. Well, bad luck running into a weird old guy.

  まずスタッフに確認するのがよかったかもね。シェアもそうだし、もしかしたら一人前の替え玉じゃなくて、半分の替え玉もしてくれる可能性もあるかもだしね。まぁ、変なオッサンにあたったのはドンマイ。

  — @dackt.946228 likes

Can you share food at a Japanese restaurant?

Usually yes, as long as everyone has ordered something of their own. Japanese commenters say splitting an extra, like a noodle refill at a ramen shop, is fine once each person has a bowl (563 likes). The shop's rule is the rule (1,327 likes for "The shop's call is everything"), so if you are unsure, ask the staff before you share.

Can two people share one bowl of ramen in Japan?

Generally no. The line Japanese diners draw is between ordering one bowl each and then splitting a refill, which is fine, and two people coming in and sharing a single bowl, which is not (6 likes). One reply from someone who works in a ramen shop asks people not to share at all: "Turnover is everything."

Is it rude to leave food unfinished in Japan?

Leftovers are the thing to avoid, so splitting what you cannot finish reads as the polite move. A reply with 1,861 likes calls sharing a refill "considerate to the shop" because nothing is left over. Another reply (28 likes) suggests asking the staff first, since some shops may serve a half portion.

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