How to Avoid Tourist Traps in Japan: Local Tips You Need to Know!

[@TokyoFoodieSarah]

Hellooooo everyone!! Many thanks for watching 😊 Do you have your own tip for avoiding tourist traps?? Please let me know in the comments! 🔽

[@catalinacurio]

Absolutely, go where there are queues of Japanese people waiting to eat. This rule applies everywhere, go where the locals go and if you don’t know what to ask for, ask for what the locals are eating. 😊

[@Bakapooru]

@@catalinacurio Yuo.

[@AKRex]

Glad I have managed to avoid these traps when I was in Japan. I remember going into a sushi restaurant where no English writing was seen at all (only pictures and in Japanese). An elderly lady turned me away first saying "Sorry, only Japanese!", to which I replied "Sumimasen, nihongo daijobu desu!" and she immediately broadened her smile and showed me to the table (I was the only foreigner sitting in the hall among all other Japanese people who some of whom I think were trying to listen in on me speaking Japanese to the owner lol). I just asked her to order a nice set of different types and with a miso soup and an ice tea and she quickly took care of it. She then came back to me to talk more and apologised for turning me away at first and said that she turns the foreign tourists away because of previous incidents with them behaving too obnoxiously and irritating the regular local customers. Later on she bombarded me with questions about where I was from, how did I learn Japanese, do I like the places, do I like the food, are the girls beautiful etc etc hahaha So, learning the language basics is an absolute must imho!

[@TokyoFoodieSarah]

Thank you for sharing your story! I’m glad to hear that you had a nice experience because you could speak Japanese ☺️

[@CamiloMacaya]

100% agree. I was able to go to soooo many places that non-speaking tourists simply avoided even looking at. It definitely gave me and my small group an experience that sadly, many people do not get to enjoy. I was so happy to be able to answer the local’s questions. Japan for Japanese speaking tourists is a totally different Japan, one that makes you want to move there! Jajajaj I plan to make the move after I’ve gotten to a business level in communication. I fell in LOVE with Japan and it’s community focused culture.

[@AKRex]

@@CamiloMacaya I too would love to move there or if possible have a place to live there where I could go for regular trips etc (like a second home). I hope you pull it off though, best of luck and don't give up!

[@DominicHalsey-du2cr]

Sarah thank you for telling us on how to avoid tourist traps in Japan. I used to live in Okinawa, but Tokyo is a different world. Glad hearing this from you Sarah my favorite KZbinr.

[@TokyoFoodieSarah]

I’m so glad the video was helpful! 😊 People are less patient in Tokyo than Okinawa 😅

[@etherdog]

Your tip of using translate to search using terms in Japanese is very important! Thank you!

[@TokyoFoodieSarah]

I’m glad it helps! 😊

[@markvader8083]

Great advice(as usual from you).....Mahalo!

[@TokyoFoodieSarah]

Glad you found it helpful! 👋

[@bryansmaximaful]

Going in February, the off season. Thanks for the info. Much appreciated

[@raceace]

One street back always a good tip. You generally find more love in a dish prepared by a vendor who has to fight for the business that steps off the main street. Gochisousama deshita!!!

[@TokyoFoodieSarah]

So true!!

[@beitodesstrafe]

Your videos are always very helpful. Thank you so much. I'll be visiting Japan again in two days! I can't wait.

[@TokyoFoodieSarah]

So exciting! Enjoy your trip! 😊

[@cl0123]

Nice suggestions and tips. Mahalo!

[@TokyoFoodieSarah]

Aloha! Glad you found it helpful! 👋

[@AI-MusicPlanet]

Good info❤

[@TokyoFoodieSarah]

Thank you! 😊

[@quadratic123]

Congratulations on the sponsor! 🎉 These tips are quite good and very helpful. I’m sure a lot of first time travelers will make mistakes but that could also turn into a memorable story such as your Tout experience. Personally, my tip would be not to overly plan your food destinations. It can lead to disappointment. Sometimes the lines can just be too long or the shop/restaurant could unexpectedly be closed. I think being fluid with your plans can be less stressful and more enjoyable overall.

[@TokyoFoodieSarah]

Thank you so much! That’s true, being flexible with your plan would make the trip less stressful too 😂

[@RoZioNoiR]

This has always been my tip for anybody going to Japan. You can't ask something in perfect English, most Japanese in my experience (although alot has changed after the Olympics 2020 efforts) seem to feel embarrassed to speak English. BUT, if you try to say something in Japanese (usually with a pretty horrible accent) you are much more likely to find a common ground and help.

[@TokyoFoodieSarah]

That is so true!! If you speak in broken English with emphasized vowels, Japanese people would understand that better 😆

[@madtitan-va]

Agreed! Ichiran is good just for the experience ONCE. Small, local shops are miles above Ichiran

[@TokyoFoodieSarah]

Glad you agree!

[@teamds]

Love your tips. makes good sense. I plan to use a mobile phone voice and text translation app.

[@TokyoFoodieSarah]

Thank you! Yup that would be super handy too!

[@dinicti]

Thank you for video, as a fan of many aspects of Japanese dining what are your thoughts on teppanyaki dining, which inevitably seem located in touristy areas? Can be a separate video, but would love to hear your thoughts!

[@TokyoFoodieSarah]

I was actually gonna make a video on more hyped up food overseas than Japan! Teppanyaki is definitely one of them. As a Japanese I never go there to be honest. it’s just not in the local’s culture. I think you would only go as a business dinner etc.

[@asfinland]

"When in Rome, do as the Romans do" applies everywhere. If one spots a place full of locals, it must be good.

[@TokyoFoodieSarah]

I cannot agree more!

[@AlanVByrnes]

👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍

[@tmclbnk]

Sarah, just wanted to say that you share amazing stories on Instagram. 🙏

[@TokyoFoodieSarah]

So glad you enjoyed them!! Ehime and Kouchi videos are coming soon 😊

[@vitoandolini7400]

Hi Sarah! Congrats on your marriage. I'm glad to see you back. My son is interested in traveling to Japan and the Rosetta Stone offer sounds great. Is there a code to receive the 60% off?

[@TokyoFoodieSarah]

Thank you very much! There isn't a code, but you can use this link (same one as in the description box): partners.rosettastone.com/tokyofoodiesarah I hope that your son enjoys learning Japanese!

[@Bakapooru]

I never follow touts, but chains are (mostly) okay. Food from chains will still (more likely than not) taste better than the equivalent from your home country. Torikizoku is awesome compared to typical "izakaya" in the US. I saw a video about Tabelog and their scoring/ranking system. The most frequent reviewers' rankings are given more weight than the occasional reviewer.. In the US, I wouldn't trust anything on Google or Yelp if it has less than 4.2 stars. I agree with you that 3.5 on Tabelog is generally awesome.

[@TokyoFoodieSarah]

There are so many more nicer Izakayas in Japan so I would really love it if tourists enjoy these places! 😆

[@Bakapooru]

@ it took me several trips to realize which places are chains. Unless there is English, every sign looks different.

[@kauaiboy5o]

Just got back from a trip to Tokyo and Kyoto, first time and enjoyed it. However as far as food is concern, being a diabetic, I have to watch what I eat because the food appears to be heavy on carbohydrates and low in proteins and vegetables. Maybe I went to the wrong places to eat😐.

[@TokyoFoodieSarah]

Oh no you’re right. Japanese food is very high in carbs! It’s difficult to find lunch places but for dinner I highly recommend you to go to an Izakaya. There you can get more veggie and meat/fish products without consuming carbs!

[@Justinjale]

I tried asking some Japanese people, "好きなレストランは何ですか？," but they usually gave me soft answers like "CoCo Ichibanya" or "Ichiran." Is that the wrong way to ask for someone's favorite restaurant? Do people just genuinely love those restaurants?

[@TokyoFoodieSarah]

Ohhh maybe because the term レストラン is super broad and makes them imagine more western food / fast food restaurants. Because it’s so broad, they probably thought it’s best to let you know the more common ones. As a local I would ask “美味しいお店を知ってますか？“ and specify the area because there are dozens of restaurants in Tokyo! I would even specify the type of restaurant like Izakaya, ramen, Tonkatsu, etc!

[@the_hiroman]

Make a local friend, ask him/her for recommendations.

[@TokyoFoodieSarah]

True!!