Eating ,Drinking, Etiquette & Culture in Japan

To be completed, in development    

Link to sub page on Culture HERE 

Before moving on to details about Eating & Drinking in Japan let me deal with the prerequisite necessity of Currency. You will need plenty cash always on hand , so top up when ever you see the opportunity as ATMs/Cash Machines are sparse and can be expensive. Credit/Debit Cards are fairly widely accepted but not as much as at home. In short hard cash is king in Japan. Unlike the rest of Asia, bartering is not done in Japan. 

**Updated Euro to Japanese Yen conversion rate on 24th July 2019 is as follows:
1Euro = Y120.39 (JPY).  So Y601.96 = €5 
The JPY has steadily increased in value against the Euro, Pound Sterling and the Dollar since last Autumn due to world & European events. So now you get slightly less less yen for your euro, [previous rate the time of writing last October was 132.41 JPY or Y132.41=€1 euro. So €5 was about Y662. ] ----I will keep updated.
8th August 2019---- The yen is surging. I will be getting a major amount of yen as soon as possible, either in cash or loaded onto my dual currency debit card and credit card. I do not see currency trend reversing much before mid September, barring some catastrophe. I recommend something like the Revolut banking app or N26 banking app to load up and transfer currencies for free.

Here is a YouTube video that includes some instruction and hints on etiquette, travel, food & dining,money, toilets, hotels, etc.

EATING and DRINKING AROUND JAPAN

KOBE    

Here are is some advice and some recommendations from an Irishman living in the Kobe area. 

''The centre of Kobe is actually Sannomiya station not Kobe station so if you want to eat and drink go there (Kobe is more for sightseeing and shopping at the Harbour). 

For watching games around Sannomiya station:

Hub, The Harbour Tavern, Iznt and Avery's (a small Irish pub). There will be a fanzone at Merikan Park near Kobe station. A pint of local beer costs about 700 yen and Guinness about 900 yen. You can get a beer for as cheap as 300 at an izakaya but you will also be expected to order food. You can't bring in any drinks (even water) to the stadiums and your bags will be searched. You can buy alcohol in the stadium, the only beer will be Heineken (900 yen a pint).

Try the famous Kobe beef for lunch (dinner can be very expensive). A popular restaurant is Steakland near Sannomiya station, a set lunch of Kobe beef is about 4500 yen. 

If you are on a budget most restaurants offer good value lunch sets for about 1000 yen. if you want a really cheap lunch then go to a Japanese restaurant such as Yoshinoya, Sukiya or Matsuya. There is also a large Chinatown area in Kobe. You can also get a bowl of ramen for about 700 yen.''