Guide · What you will hear
Restaurant Ticket Machines in Japan: What Happens After You Pay?
7 situations · updated
Buying the ticket is usually the easy part. Many machines have pictures, and some have an English button.
The harder moment comes next: you’re holding a slip of paper and can’t tell who wants it. This guide is about that moment, and what staff may say next.
Quick answer
After the ticket comes out
Staff ask for your ticket or hold out a hand
give your ticket to them.
There’s a paper order form at your seat
fill in the form and give it to staff with your ticket.
Your ticket has a number, and there’s a number screen
your order may already be with the kitchen. If your number is on the screen, your order has probably reached the kitchen. If you can’t find it, ask a member of staff.
You’re not sure what to do
keep your ticket where staff can see it, and ask.
If nobody has taken your ticket, keep it until your meal reaches you. You may need to show it when you collect your food.
At a glance
1. Ticket first, or queue first?
In most ticket-machine restaurants, the machine is just inside the entrance, and you buy before you sit down.
A queue outside is less predictable. Some shops want you to buy first and then line up; others let you buy when you reach the door. Look for a sign by the queue or the door, and follow any instructions from staff. If there’s neither, ask: 食券は先ですか — shokken wa saki desu ka (“Ticket first?”).
Please buy your ticket first
You might hear (examples)
先に食券をお願いします
saki ni shokken o onegai shimasu
食券を先にお買い求めください
shokken o saki ni okaimotome kudasai
(more typical of a sign)
What it means
“Please buy your ticket first.”
What you need to notice
The key word is 食券 (shokken, meal ticket). Staff often gesture towards the machine.
What to do
- Go to the ticket machine and buy a ticket.
Do you need to respond to the staff?
You don’t need to say anything. Just go to the ticket machine and buy a ticket.
If you missed it
If staff point towards the machine or the entrance, they are probably asking you to buy a ticket first.
2. How to use the machine
Some machines have physical buttons, others touch screens, and they differ a lot. Treat these steps as a rough guide.
Food allergy? Ask staff before you pay — see section 7.
- Check how you can pay before you choose. Some machines take cash only, and some won’t take ¥5,000 or ¥10,000 notes. Others accept transit IC cards, credit cards or QR payments. Stickers on the machine or the screen usually show this.
- On a touch screen, look for a language button. You may also be asked to choose eat-in or takeaway.
- On many cash machines, you put the money in first, then press the button for your dish.
- Large portions and toppings may be separate. Each can have its own button, and sometimes its own ticket.
- Take your tickets and change. On some machines the change comes out by itself; on others you press a button or lever marked おつり (otsuri, change). Make sure you have every ticket and all your change before you walk away.
| On the machine | Means |
|---|---|
| 店内 / お持ち帰りtennai / omochikaeri | Eat in / takeaway |
| 並 / 大盛nami / oomori | Regular / large |
| 売切urikire | Sold out |
| おつりotsuri | Change |
| 返却henkyaku | Return unspent money |
| 取消torikeshi | Cancel |
| 現金 / 交通系ICgenkin / koutsuukei IC | Cash / transit IC card |
返却 (henkyaku) returns money you’ve put in but not used. This button does not refund a ticket that has already printed.
If the machine won’t take your note, show it to staff and ask: 両替できますか — ryougae dekimasu ka (“Could you change this?”). Not every shop can change money.
3. Should you hand over your ticket?
Depending on the shop, the ticket does one of three jobs. Some shops combine them.
The ticket is your order. In many ramen and soba shops and small restaurants, staff take the ticket — at the counter or at your seat — and that’s how the order reaches the kitchen.
The ticket is a receipt for an order that has already reached the kitchen. At some chains, the machine sends the order to the kitchen when you pay. Staff may still come and take or tear the ticket.
The ticket needs one more step. Some ramen shops put a paper form at each seat (noodle firmness, richness and so on) to hand over with the ticket. In others, staff ask a question as you hand it over (section 4).
How to tell which kind of shop you’re in:
- Staff hold out a hand, or a sign says where tickets go → give your ticket to staff.
- An order form at your seat → fill in the form, then give it to staff with your ticket.
- A number on the ticket and a number screen → the order may already be in, but a number alone doesn’t prove it. If your number appears under a heading like 調理中 (chouri-chuu, being made), that’s a strong sign your order is in — though screens and labels vary by shop. If you can’t find your number, or there’s no screen, ask a member of staff.
To ask, hold up the ticket: 食券、渡したほうがいいですか — shokken, watashita hou ga ii desu ka (“Should I hand over my ticket?”). If staff say hai or hold out a hand, they want the ticket.
4. What staff might say next
Wording varies from shop to shop. The lines below are examples, not fixed scripts — listen for the key word, and use what staff are doing as your guide.
Your ticket, please
You might hear (examples)
食券、お願いします
shokken, onegai shimasu
食券お預かりします
shokken oazukari shimasu
What it means
“Your ticket, please.” / “I’ll take your ticket.”
What you need to notice
The key word is shokken. Staff often hold out a hand at the same time.
What to do
- Give staff every ticket the machine printed.
Do you need to respond to the staff?
You don’t need to say anything. Just give your ticket to the member of staff.
If you missed it
If someone holds out a hand towards your ticket, give it to them.
Sit anywhere you like
You might hear (examples)
お好きな席へどうぞ
osuki na seki e douzo
こちらへどうぞ
kochira e douzo
What it means
“Sit anywhere you like.” / “This way, please.”
What you need to notice
douzo, said with an open hand, is an invitation, not a question.
What to do
- Sit in any free seat, or go where staff are pointing.
If you missed it
Go where staff are pointing.
Any preferences?
You might hear (examples)
お好みは?
okonomi wa?
麺のかたさはどうしますか
men no katasa wa dou shimasu ka
What it means
“Any preferences?” — often how firm you want the noodles, how strong the flavour, or how much oil.
What you need to notice
Often comes as you hand over a ramen ticket. For noodles, listen for katame (firm), futsuu (regular), yawarakame (soft).
What to do
- Tell staff your choice. If you have no preference, say futsuu de (regular).
Do you need to respond to the staff?
Staff are waiting for your choice.
普通で
futsuu de
“Regular, please.”
かためで
katame de
“Firm noodles, please.”
全部普通で
zenbu futsuu de
“Regular for all of them (when you’re asked about several things at once).”
If you missed it
Ask staff to say it again. If you still don’t understand, tell them so rather than guessing (see section 7).
Varies / context
Mainly certain ramen styles. Many shops never ask, and some use a paper form instead.
Reading your order back
You might hear (examples)
◯◯ですね
[item] desu ne
What it means
They’re reading your order back to check it: “That’s …, right?”
What you need to notice
It ends in desu ne, and staff usually have your ticket in their hand.
What to do
- If it matches what you bought, nod.
Do you need to respond to the staff?
A nod is enough.
はい
hai
“Yes.”
If you missed it
Don’t nod if you’re not sure what was said. Point at the item printed on your ticket, or ask: mou ichido onegai shimasu.
If you miss something that isn’t on this list, the six ways to recover work here too.
5. Wait for your number — or your food?
How your food reaches you is separate from how your order reached the kitchen.
| Set-up | What you do |
|---|---|
| Brought to you | Stay in your seat. Staff bring your food to you. |
| Number called | Watch the number screen, then collect your food from the pick-up counter. |
| Handed across the counter | Wait at the counter. Staff hand your food across to you. |
On number screens, two words are worth knowing: 調理中 (chouri-chuu, being made) and 出来上がり (dekiagari, ready). The pick-up counter may be marked 提供口 (teikyou-guchi) or 受取口 (uketori-guchi).
Your order is ready
You might hear (examples)
◯番のお客様、お待たせしました
[number]-ban no okyaku-sama, omatase shimashita
◯番でお待ちのお客様
[number]-ban de omachi no okyaku-sama
What it means
“Customer number …, your order is ready.”
What you need to notice
Listen for -ban, which means “number”. The announcement may be a recorded voice.
What to do
- Check the number on your ticket, then go to the pick-up counter.
Do you need to respond to the staff?
You don’t need to say anything. Just collect your food from the pick-up counter.
If you missed it
Check the number screen rather than relying on what you hear. If you’re unsure, show your ticket at the pick-up counter.
If the food is brought to you instead, see Your First 90 Seconds at a Japanese Restaurant for what’s said as it arrives.
6. Picking up your meal and returning the tray
Self-service places — where you collected the tray yourself — usually expect you to take your tray back. Look for 返却口 (henkyaku-guchi, tray return). Some ask you to sort cups, chopsticks and leftovers. Water and tea may be self-service too, from a dispenser.
Don’t confuse 返却口 with 返却 (henkyaku) on the ticket machine, which returns unspent money — it isn’t a refund for a ticket you’ve bought.
Where staff brought your food, leaving everything on the table is usually fine.
You can leave it as it is
You might hear (examples)
そのままで大丈夫です
sono mama de daijoubu desu
What it means
“You can leave it as it is.”
What you need to notice
Staff usually say this as you start to stack your dishes or pick up your tray.
What to do
- You can leave your tray where it is.
Do you need to respond to the staff?
ありがとうございます
arigatou gozaimasu
“Thank you.”
If you missed it
If staff point at your tray as you pick it up, you can leave it where it is.
You usually don’t pay on the way out — you paid at the machine. Saying ごちそうさまでした (gochisousama deshita, “thank you for the meal”) as you leave is welcome but optional.
7. If something goes wrong
You have a food allergy. Check before you order and pay — a ticket can’t tell the kitchen about your allergy. Show staff a written note, or ask: ◯◯アレルギーがあります — [x] arerugii ga arimasu (“I have a … allergy”), and これに◯◯は入っていますか — kore ni [x] wa haitte imasu ka (“Does this contain …?”). Shared pots, fryers, broth and utensils can carry traces even when an ingredient isn’t in the dish. If you can’t get a clear answer, don’t buy it.
You pressed the wrong button. Show the ticket to staff as soon as you notice: すみません、間違えました — sumimasen, machigaemashita (“Sorry, I pressed the wrong one”). Whether it can be swapped or refunded is up to the shop, and on some machines the order is already in.
The ticket or change didn’t come out. Don’t keep pressing buttons. Check the ticket slot and the change tray, then tell staff: 食券が出ません — shokken ga demasen (“The ticket didn’t come out”), or おつりが出ません — otsuri ga demasen (“My change didn’t come out”).
You didn’t catch what staff said. Start with sumimasen, mou ichido onegai shimasu (“Sorry, once more please”). More ways to recover.
You don’t know where the ticket goes. Hold up your ticket and ask: shokken, watashita hou ga ii desu ka. If no one is free, wait where staff can see you.
Once the ticket is in your hand, there are three things to work out: who takes it, how the food reaches you, and where the tray goes. Signs and staff come first; watching other diners can help too.