Lesson #12 - Restaurant 1
June 27th, 2007Learn Japanese travel phrases with SurvivalPhrases.com! A little Japanese can go such a long way! Whether you’re traveling to Japan for business or pleasure, these phrases will help make your trip much more pleasant and meaningful!
Today, we’ll go over the first thing you say when entering an eatery. We’ll learn to say how many people are in your party. What’s the question you’ll be asked? How big a party warrants a reservation? Tune in to find out. And be sure to comb through SurvivalPhrases.com to learn more about Japanese customs and phrases. When you do, leave us a post!
Audio: 
Premium PDF Guide: 
Tags: 
I’m pretty new to counters in Japanese, but I have a quick question regarding people counters:
一名＆二名と一人＆二人はどう違いますか？
いちめい＆にめいとひとり＆ふたりはどうちがいますか？
How does “ichi mei” and “ni mei” differ from hitori and futari respectively?
Hey Daniel
Thanks for your comments.
The two terms are used in different situations.
ichimei is used for polite situations and in written form:
Ex. Waitresses asking how many people are in your party.
Ex. Menus stating that a dinner course is for two people.
Ex. Hotel receptionists asking you how many people are staying.
hitori or hutari is for casual, colloquial situations:
Ex. “I went shopping alone” “Hitori de kaimono ni itta.”
Ex. “Why don’t the two of us go eat” “Hutari de gohan o tabeni ikou”
I hope that answers your question. Keep those comments coming!
Sachiko