Do restaurants in Japan have English menus?

JapanMust Guides · 4 min read

Short answer: sometimes, and it depends entirely on the type of place. Here's the honest breakdown so you know what to expect — and what to do when the answer is no.

Where you'll usually find English menus

• Chain restaurants (Yoshinoya, Sukiya, Coco Ichibanya, Jonathan's) — almost always have English, sometimes via QR code.
• Tourist-area restaurants — around Senso-ji, Dotonbori, Kyoto's Gion, etc. Many have English or picture menus.
• Department store restaurants — usually have English menus or models of every dish in the window.
• Conveyor-belt sushi chains — touch panels often have an English button.

Where you almost certainly won't

• Small ramen shops — ticket machines, Japanese only, often handwritten.
• Neighborhood izakaya — the wall menu is a handwritten scroll.
• Old kissaten (retro coffee shops) — Japanese only, and proud of it.
• Anywhere outside major cities — English menus drop off fast past the big stations.

The rule of thumb

The better and more local the food, the less likely the English menu. That's not a bug — the places with no English are often the places worth eating at. The trick is having a backup plan instead of avoiding them.

Your backup plan, in order

1. Picture menus / plastic food models — point and say "kore, onegai shimasu" （これ、お願いします — "this, please").
2. Ask for recommendations: "Osusume wa nan desu ka?" （おすすめは何ですか？— "What do you recommend?")
3. Show them your phone — pull up a photo of a dish and ask "kore wa arimasu ka?" （これはありますか？— "Do you have this?")
4. Embrace the mystery — order the daily special （日替わり higawari) and see what arrives. Some of the best meals work this way.

One phrase that solves half the problem

Staff will often produce one from under the counter that wasn't on display. Always ask before assuming.