What do you do with leftovers? The common sense of "taking it home" abroad🌭

Good morning, everyone. (ﾟﾟ)(｡｡) Bow

What do you do when you have leftovers after eating out?

In many Japanese restaurants, people often leave the food behind and go home. Even if taking it home is allowed, I think many people feel self-conscious about the eyes of others and can't bring themselves to ask.

But when you think about it, doesn't that lead to food waste?
It's a shame to throw away food that is still perfectly edible, isn't it?

So, how is it here?
In many restaurants, "taking it home" is the norm. As far as I know, almost every restaurant accommodates it. From the restaurant's perspective, they are grateful if you take it home and eat it rather than leaving it behind, as it reduces food waste.

This container for taking food home is called a "Doggy Bag".
"Doggy" is a childish term meaning "like a dog," and it seems it originally meant "taking it home to give to a dog." But nowadays, it is common to take it home "for yourself to eat later."

When you finish your meal and are paying the bill, just say, "
Can I get a doggy bag for this?
".
Sometimes the staff will pack it for you in the kitchen, and other times they will bring the container to the table for you to pack it yourself.

However, be careful with liquids like soup or dishes with a lot of sauce. It's a disaster if it spills (a friend of mine once had that happen in her bag...😅)
By the way, doggy bags are free at almost every restaurant. I have never once been charged for one.

And when you receive the container, you are always told, "
Please put it in the refrigerator as soon as you get home and eat it soon
". This is a measure against food poisoning.

Of course, there are some dishes that cannot be taken home, such as raw food or carpaccio, so the policy varies by restaurant.

One of the things that surprised my mother-in-law when she came here was this "doggy bag culture."
It was when we ordered pizza at an Italian restaurant. When I asked, "Do you want to take it home and eat it later?" she was surprised.
In Japan, it's often thought of as "embarrassing" or "unseemly," isn't it?

But when I explained the background of this culture to my mother-in-law, she understood, and we split the pizza and took it home together.
Since there was a microwave and a refrigerator in the hotel, she said it was delicious when she heated it up later, which made me happy✨

For two petite women like us, overseas-sized pizzas are just too big. If you order with a Japanese mindset, you might end up giving up halfway through...😅

Here, every single dish is truly voluminous, so it's understandable that the rate of leftovers is high.

Of course, because there is a risk of food poisoning, the restaurant also makes the location of responsibility clear.
Even if you get sick, if there is a problem with how it was stored, it is sometimes considered the responsibility of the person who took it home.

On the other hand, in Japan, there is a tendency for restaurants to be held responsible and forced to apologize immediately if something happens.
With that background, perhaps that is why many restaurants in Japan have a "no takeout" policy.

I hope you will also try asking for a doggy bag if you have leftovers when you come here.

Sometimes people come here and mistakenly use "takeout" for everything.

Actually, "Doggy Bag" is the term for when you take home leftovers, while "
takeout" is the term for when you order with the intention of taking it home from the start.

This difference is surprisingly not well known, so I hope this is helpful for something😊

Actually, Ru-chan asked me, "I want to know more about the cultural differences between overseas and Japan!" so this time, I chose a topic that is a bit more familiar to answer that request😊

It's irregular, but I'll try writing something again, so please look forward to it.

(Hikaru)