(I put picky eater in quotes because it doesn’t totally describe the situation, but close enough).
I’ll be taking my teenage sister to Japan this summer. We’re both very excited, but a main point of apprehension is food – my sister is autistic and has some pretty severe food aversions. As a result, she primarily eats a rotation of “safe” foods in day-to-day life.
She is game to try some new things in Japan, but from past vacation experiences, I know this typically doesn’t go super well (we’ve often found ourselves driving around late at night in a foreign country looking for an open McDonald’s, because she wasn’t able to eat anything at dinner).
I’m hoping to bring some of her safe foods along from the US (honestly I’m sure I’ll appreciate the extra luggage space on the way home for souvenirs). But I have a few questions, if anyone has any relevant experience:
1. Will I have any trouble bringing food into the country? I’m thinking of dry things like cereal, granola bars, Easy Mac, etc. – nothing perishable. I know I can shop at grocery/convenience stores there too, but without knowing what brands we’d find, I’d want to bring at least some things she’s familiar with.
2. Should we expect any trouble with packing an electric kettle to prepare food at hotels? I tried to research this and am not seeing any immediate issues, but don’t know if this would raise a flag if our bag was searched or something.
3. I’m a big foodie myself – would it be a faux pas to occasionally go to a restaurant together but only order for myself? I know my sister won’t mind tagging along and not eating as she’s pretty used to doing so here in the US, but don’t know if this would be considered rude in Japan.
Thank you for any advice or opinions!
46 comments
I traveled to Japan a while ago with a friend who’s allergic to seemingly everything, including all seafood and any vegetables that haven’t been boiled to a near mush. I was very worried eating out would be impossible. However, virtually every restaurant we ate at seemed to have very mild chicken options like Yakitori or Karaage Chicken. I was eating all sorts of amazing dishes while he lived off of fried chicken with white rice (on a side note, his fried chicken was always delicious). We never had an issue and I ate at every restaurant I wanted to go to.
Can you have your sister try Japanese fried chicken from a local restaurant before you leave? If she likes Japanese fried chicken (I imagine she will; it’s very mild), your travels will be golden.
If McDonald’s is an option be assured they are easy to find and the food tastes basically the same.
There are different options at McDonald’s…as is to be expected.
Convenience stores (7/11, Lawsons, family mart) will have the basic baked goods, coffee / tea / pop /juice etc.., ice cream, bread , egg salad Sandwiches, ham and cheese sandwich, deep fried meat (chicken stock, deep fried chicken etc…)… You get the point.
I think you will be fine.
All to say, don’t overlook the convenience store options.
Can you list some more things she actually eats?
My sister also has autism and recently came to Japan. She had a great time and found some foods she did enjoy eating here but it was also a big concern of mine.
1) I think bringing a few safe foods is a great idea. Check that granola bars are okay though, I’m not sure about things with nuts/seeds/grains. But assuming they are like the Chewy kind, I bet that’s fine. And if you end up eating it all, more space for souvenirs!
Otherwise, convenience stores and McDonald’s (as well as other American chains) are common in bigger cities. Convenience stores are frequently 24 hour, however restaurants very rarely are. Trying the different snacks at the convenience stores can be fun and very low pressure, since you can take it back to the hotel and if you don’t end up liking it, no shame in throwing it away 😂
One thing I will say about Japanese fried chicken/karaage is that it tends to be dark meat, which if you have food aversions can be problematic. Lawson kuraage-kun is white meat chicken and very similar to chicken nugget though.
2) Most(at least of the hotels I’ve stayed at) have all had electric kettles in the room! Check the amenities list, I would bet your hotel already provides one. It’s very common for the hotels to provide for coffee and tea. If it’s not already available in the room, than it’s likely you can borrow one from the front desk I would imagine. Traveling with one might be tricky as depending on where you are coming from the outlets/voltage could be different.
3) I would say depends on the style of restaurant. We went to many “family style” restaurants and I would order a drink and maybe French fries or even a dessert for my sister to snack on while the rest of us ate our meal. So long as you ordered ~something~ I think it’s fine. However, we did go to some smaller/nicer restaurants where they required everyone seated to order their own meal.
If there is anything else you are concerned about, I can try and answer more in depth! I live in Japan but had the similar case of a sister with autism visiting so can perhaps provide some insight!
What sort of food is safe?
1. Yes, bring some food you know she’ll like. Peace of mind!
2. Hotels usually have a kettle in the room. It will be listed on their website. Don’t bother bringing one as they will have a slightly different voltage. You can buy one here for about $20 if you decide you need one.
3. Everyone who sits down in a restaurant should order at least one thing. It doesn’t have to be a lot but it should be something. Maybe a drink and some fries or ice cream if nothing else appeals. You could order a couple things and ask for some side plates to “share” what you order and then she can put a few things on a plate and either eat or not. But I think sitting there with nothing would not be a good idea.
Have fun!
I just travelled to Japan in Oct of last year with my 13yr old daughter who is autistic and has ARFID. She is extremely ‘picky’ but we did survive.
To answer your questions first. I had no problem packing some basic food items in my luggage. I even brought a specific steak sauce carefully wrapped in plastic wrap and double zip lock bagged.
I don’t think you will need a kettle because most hotels have them. Or you could also buy an insulated bottle and grab some hot water from the 7-11 / Lawson if buying a Ramen pack. They have hot water dispensers just for this purpose.
As for eating in a restaurant with her, we didn’t have any problems. You could just order food for yourself and get her a drink. I don’t see any major issue with this.
Here’s some hopefully useful advice. The rest of our family enjoyed trying new food however with her it was difficult. Usually I ended up taking her to the restaurants she actually enjoyed.
Sizeria – for the bread stick and plain cheese pizza.
Denny’s – for their fries.
TGIF – for the chicken fingers and fries
Surprisingly she did not like McDonald’s or KFC in Japan. But she did like Burger King. This is the exact opposite her in Canada.
Ok that was a long post. Sorry. Feel free to DM me if you have other questions.
Hotels in Japan typically have electric kettles in the room. No need to pack one that way. Yes, you can bring in packaged food like granola bars, mac and cheese cups, etc but no meat products, fresh fruit/vegetables, or dairy/cheese.
Does she eat things like ramen noodles/cup noodle? If yes, you can find these at convenience stores in case she doesn’t like dinner. Its typical for hotel rooms to also have small fridges so you can get breakfast foods like yogurt, fruit, bread/pastries, and dairy (cheese/milk) at nearby grocery or convenience stores so you don’t have to worry about mornings.
There are also McDonald’s everywhere, often 24 hours, that will likely be within walking distance in major cities. So, worst comes to worst, that’s always an option. And Starbucks everywhere too.
Have her look through lists of types of Japanese food. Does she like salisbury steak/meatloaf – then Hamburg Steak might be an option. Does she like fried pork chops? Then pork tonkatsu might be an option. Lots of various cuisine including great Italian and pizza options in large cities. Try to think of what her safe foods are and find something close in Japan to try. Tons of great bakeries in Japan too!
Search Google Maps for the types of cuisine she is comfortable with. Do one safe meal a day and one trial meal. If she doesn’t like the trial meal – backup is the stash in your hotel room or walking to the nearest McDonald’s. Food Halls are also a good choice so you can all try different types of food. She can get something safe for her to eat and you something different.
– [Japanese Food (more than just sushi)](https://www.japan-guide.com/e/e620.html)
– [JapanGuide: Popular Dishes](https://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2035.html)
– [International Supermarkets in Tokyo](https://www.japanlivingguide.com/dailylife/shopping/international-supermarkets/)
– [JapanGuide: Department Stores](https://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2072.html)
– [Department stores](https://www.tokyoweekender.com/2020/10/baby-tokyo-department-stores-take-your-children/ )
– [Tokyo Depachika (Department Store Food Halls)](https://www.timeout.com/tokyo/shopping/best-depachika-food-halls-in-tokyo)
– [Asakusa Food Hall Inspired by Japan Festivals in Tokyo](https://www.timeout.com/tokyo/news/asakusa-is-getting-a-new-matsuri-themed-yokocho-food-hall-060822)
– [New Yokocho Food Hall in Shinjuku, Tokyo](https://www.timeout.com/tokyo/news/shinjuku-has-a-new-yokocho-food-hall-with-17-eateries-110122)
– [8 Other Food Halls in Tokyo](https://www.timeout.com/tokyo/restaurants/best-restaurant-food-halls-in-tokyo)
– [Kyoto: Daimaru Dept Store Restaurant Floor](https://www.insidekyoto.com/daimaru-resutoran-gai)
– [Kyoto Station: CUBE Food Court](https://www.insidekyoto.com/the-cube-food-court-kyoto)
– [Kyoto Tower Food Hall](https://www.kyoto-tower-sando.jp/s/en/shop/floor/top)
– [Kyoto Ramen Kyoji Street](https://www.kyoto-ramen-koji.com/english/)
If you go to a Sushiro, they also have other items on their menu like a plate of french fries, and chicken. So if you are into Sushi and she doesn’t seem to like it, you can stil enjoy eating there with the options available.
I brought some granola bars with me when I went, as long as it’s in a sealed package it is fine.
Their condition is called Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder (ARFID) if you want a technical term in the DSM-5
I am high functioning autistic and I had an easier time finding something to eat than my two foodie friends who spent 30 minutes debating about the best resturuant nearby.
I didn’t bring anything with me to eat, I found junk food easily enough in any of the convenience stores of which you are never more than 100 feet away from in populated areas. There was also a place selling some sort of meat on a stick basically everywhere I went so I had a lot of that.
Also, I strongly discourage planning to drive much. Public transit was so easy. My group drove to a really remote hotel and while it was a blast driving through the mountains, I would not want to drive around Tokyo at all if I could avoid it. Just walk and take the train, so easy it made me hate the entire concept of driving to work everyday. I am now convinced that cars should be for remote destinations, hauling things and the track.
1. Probably, but you shouldn’t have a problem finding safe picks for your sister. There’s fried chicken and pork everywhere, and there’s a fastfood joint like McDonald’s/Wendy’s/beef bowls in every corner.
2. Hotels should have their own electric kettles but if you buy a convenience stores they should have hot water for instant foods.
3. Should not be a problem. I do this all the time with my gf cuz she doesn’t eat a lot so i usually order a lot for myself and we just share. Maybe she can at least order a drink or something to be safe.
Are you staying in Tokyo? If so I wouldn’t worry about a kettle to make food. Convenience stores and grocery stores sell a plethora of prepackaged food that every picky eater would like. It also would be pretty fun to try a bunch of fast food restauarants for your sister to try where they can try new foods there but still lean on classic burgers, fries etc. Lots of diner options like Dennys and Jonathans and Saizerya where she can get comfort food. Japan has a huge french and italian sub culture around food so finding non Japanese food is pretty easy and a lot of places will serve udon or some variation of chicken like karaage. When I studied abroad there I even ate fondue regularly! In terms of cereal there is only various brands of corn flakes including frosted flakes (my go too when I was homesick).
If you have a big appetite then you’ll be okay or if your sister can eat small amounts of food she likes it will be okay. Udon is pretty light and tasty and I cand definitely eat my own entree and udon if I needed to. Things like Okonomiyaki are meant to be shared so if she doesn’t like it then it won’t be awkward for you to eat and not her and she can always order drinks! Things to avoid would be small ramen bars or any seating where you buy a ticket then have your food delivered as space is very sacred in those establishments (seat = ticket = food = money).
Convenience stores have a lot of pasta and beef and rice dishes that can be heated up and eaten there or in your lodging which should be okay for your sister! Maybe poke around a few themed cafes to see if any would be interesting to your sister?
I’d also go to a Japanese restaurant and see if she would enjoy udon, curry or karaage.
Do a lot of Japanese restaurants have teriyaki beef? That is my favorite. Is it hard to find? What do you can that in Japanese?
If you bring her into restaurants. She will still get a table charge. Which will be a small dish like appy that’s a few bites. Something like a 1/3 cup of potato salad etc. So just keep that in mind. it will only be a couple hundred yen.
Howzitgarn, I went on a recent trip and I have ARFID (Avoidant Restrictive Food Intake Disorder) largely rooted in issues with smell/taste and textures (I can’t eat any fruit, all seafood save the plainest cooked fish and the vast majority of veg) so I feel uniquely qualified to talk about my experience – which was overwhelmingly positive!
I went last year for about 16 days with my partner who can eat anything and everything. We did Tokyo, Osaka, Kyoto then down to Miyazaki.
To answer your specific questions:
1. I can tell you quarrantine doesn’t like seeds, meats or dairy – stuff that could transfer diseases, germinate into invasive plants or stink real bad. Powdered cheese as in the case with easy Mac may be okay, I flew out with heaps of bikkies and cakes and was cool to keep them as I arrived home in Aus but they were all in professional sealed packages. Worst-case scenario, declare that you have food when you start the airport rigmarole and yes your bad will be searched but then you’ll know for sure whether what you brought is okay.
2. I wouldn’t bring a kettle because voltages and switches can differ between countries and it could be a huge risk and besides I didn’t find myself in any hotel without some kind of tea/coffee making facilities. I don’t think you would get in trouble – I also flew back with a heat-up coaster that plugs into the cigarette lighter in my car that also has a cooling mode and that was a-ok for Aus authorities, the US might have their own thoughts on that though.
3. So I had an experience where my partner wanted to try okonomiyaki, so we found this gloriously grimey place inside a building which was elbow-to-elbow, you had to fight for a stool, we finally sit down and first off I ask if it’s possible for me to have okonomiyaki…. without the cabbage. It is a credit to this man that he didn’t laugh me out of there but that he carefully explained to this lost tourist that no, I cannot have okonomiyaki without 1 of the 2 principle ingredients. I asked if I could just stay there with my partner while he ate okonomiyaki but in this busy place I would have been taking up a seat that otherwise a paying customer could be sitting at, so we left. The next night I just stocked up on snacks from a nearby 711 and had a night in while my partner went back and finally had the experience he wanted. It is very much a case-by-case basis thing, but 99% of the places you go that are dine-in where parties occupy entire tables? A-ok! But if your sister’s spot could otherwise be taken by someone who wants to pay and eat she might have to find an alternative.
Some things to know about Japan: they love plastic. This can be helpful for folks with ARFID because there is often an emphasis on presentation and thus you will be able to /see/ the contents of something even if you can’t read the packaging. You might buy a bag of a treat to discover that inside single pieces of said treat are all individually packaged. This can be handy – try one, if you don’t like it just throw the bag in your suitcase and give it to a friend when you get home! No open foods – quarrantine hate open goods.
They also have been slow to adopt systems like online ordering but there are more and more places where you can do that like CoCo Curry where I remember having a crazy amount on control over exactly what I wanted my meal to be. However, many places it is just ‘get what you are given’ where you will purchase a ticket for ramen at a vending machine and you are not allowed to modify your choice.
Konbini is king – you will see kore FamiMarts, 711s and Lawsons than Maccas, easy. But this is good! They have more variety and more facilities! There were many times during our visit where I struggled to find anywhere I wanted to eat, and just when I thought I would have to go to bed hungry, a konbini was there. Most of it is ready-to-eat and if not the staff will chuck it in the microwave, etc. I saw Milo in a 711! They had a crazy selection of iced lattes! I was always able to find something within my safe foods.
I would also advise you to, if you haven’t already, learn some key phrases to do with ordering. I had to learn how to ask for ‘no vegetables, please’ and ‘soy milk, please’ because as if god wasn’t petty enough he also gave me lactose intolerance.
I would also say the best thing I had was my partner, who would try things for me if I was unsure of what it contained or if I tried something and hated it he would finish it so I didn’t feel bad for wasting it. If you can help your sister like this, ‘vetting’ foods – if she’s cool with it – I think she’ll have a great time. I did!
Thanks for asking this! We are in the fence of taking our toddler with us, but he’s a super picky eater…now we think we could make it work.
I think you would be pleasantly surprised by what’s available at most 7-11 in Japan. Seems like you can always find a fried chicken thigh (boneless ). It’s like a huge McNugget. Also French fries. Things like spaghetti etc is easy to get your hands on.
There also plenty of McDonald’s as well
My husband is pretty fussy, but managed to make it work. We had every type of cuisine I could get my hands on (other than just Japanese food) like pizza, pasta, burgers, mcdonald’s, butter chicken with naan, steak and chips, etc., even a ham and cheese toastie from Starbucks from time to time. A number of places we went to had basic items as well such as plain noodles or rice. He didn’t go hungry while I got to eat the things I wanted.
Lots a options at Lawson, 7 Eleven, etc. Sometimes I just got a plain chicken breast with lettuce for a snack.
All the hotels we stayed in had kettles so always access to boiling water. Maybe bring a Thermos so you can carry hot water around with you just in case.
My friend who’s allergic to almost everything ships a box of packaged food ahead of her. Might be helpful here!
You could take her to a Gusto (ガスト). It’s everywhere and they have a lot of safe options in my opinion (fried chicken, french fries, western style dishes, etc)
I live here so here’s my $0.02
1. Plenty of McDonalds here if all else fails. Some Japanese-only menu items may even be ‘adventurous’ enough for her to try too
2. You can bring food in as long as it’s _commercially packaged_. If it’s home made or you moved it into a personal Tupperware, it may be seized. Try not to bring fresh foods like cheese.
3. Pretty much all hotels come with a kettle, so no need to bring one. Even ‘cheap’ business hotels. Hell, even internet cafes will have hot water dispensers available.
4. No, it’s fine except for ‘nicer’ places. Some places require each person to order 1 drink, but that’s about it. Stick to normal restaurants and you’ll be fine.
All the best
ARFID-haver here. We had no problem. In fact, it was awesome. We stayed at a hotel which had a buffet-style breakfast included, so we always started the day off with opt-in meal complexity (often I had eggs, rice with soy sauce, salmon) and then we wandered.
Does she like ramen? Ichiran (a chain) has a menu where you can select exactly what you want in the bowl (and private dividers so no one can tell if you’re being selective about what you’re eating). Highly highly recommend (plus it’s fun to order via vending machine).
Plus what everyone else is saying…plenty of McDs and KFCs and junk food galore! Does she like pancakes? Are there any special sweets she might like to try?
The key is patience and no judgment. Practically everyone in my life judged me on my issues with food textures and my husband is the first person who didn’t. Now that I’m not being judged, I’ve (slowly over the years) expanded my palate! Maybe some of those places where you can grill your own meat/veggies would also be good so she can opt in. What does she like?
We had a blast at the Donki getting random junk food and trying it in our hotel room. The joy and freedom of being able to laugh and say “that is gross” was great.
Uh…I did get a pastry at a train station that looked and tasted delicious but then I found out it had shrimp in it and that sort of ruined my day but that was just the one time…
Send them to Minnesota and tell them it’s Japan
1 – most non-perishables will probably be fine, but depending on which country you are coming from, there may be restrictions on foods containing meat products. Even things like processed food may be affected so I would look into it further.
[https://livejapan.com/en/article-a0002825/](https://livejapan.com/en/article-a0002825/)
2 – electric kettles are common in Japanese hotels. Check with your hotels to see if they have one. If you bring your own, make sure it will work with Japan’s voltage.
3 – depends on the restaurant. I certainly wouldn’t do this in a fine dining restaurant. But even casual restaurants may get annoyed with this during busy times.
I understand it can be tough with a picky eater, and not sure how feasible this could be, but maybe between now and summer you can let her try various Japanese comfort foods. Ramen, udon, soba, curry rice, etc. If she ends up liking any of these, it might help with planning certain meals in Japan.
Aeon malls usually have grocery stores
No issue at all
Rather then bringing in food, try Japanese food here that you’ll be able to find anywhere in Japan. One pretty benign example is Japanese milk bread. They’re everywhere in Japan, at bakeries, convenience stores, grocery stores… You can find one at Asian bakeries, or you can bake it at home.
You can pack a kettle but a space-friendly alternative is an immersion coil. It’s the heating coil you can use with a mug or a bowl. My wife packed one because she drinks a lot of tea.
In general, you’re expected to order an entree per person, and not linger after a meal. Restaurants in Japan are usually very compact, and they need to cycle a lot of customers in order to make money. An exception would be Starbucks or similar cafe and the representative example would be a ramen shop where you’re expected to order and eat and leave. You can play it by ear to some degree. If there’s no one else, or a plenty of empty seats, you can stay a while. But if it’s busy and there are people waiting (you’ll see quite a lot of that), eat and leave.
If you go to a restaurant every party member is required to buy at least one food item off of the menu.
Most restaurants don’t have many tables, so taking up a seat without paying for it is considered rude.
I’d suggest bringing along a set of cutleries and plates, since hotels are small and don’t generally offer these. You’ll find a convenience store every few minutes and they offer a large cereal selection, so don’t need to prepack too much!
Edit to add: If egg sandwiches are okay, every convenience store has nice looking egg sandwiches too!
Hotels here have an electric kettle in the room in my experience, worth checking if yours does
Before you pack food to take, check Amazon Japan. They have a wide range of US brands and why pack something to take that you can easily buy. A few days before travelling, you can put your order in and it’ll be waiting at the hotel. I’ve taken muesli bars into Japan, no worries at all because the Japanese brands are pretty shitty.
Japanese hotels will have a kettle. I’ve never stayed at hotel without one. If you are really worried about it, you can buy like a heating coil thing that you put in water. I’d check Amazon Japan for that as well.
There are a lot of people recommending karaage chicken in the comments. Which is great except sometimes when you order it at an izakaya, the chicken isn’t fully cooked and is still very pink. I don’t know if your sister would have an issue with that (I do and it’s making me sick just thinking about it).
some shops (ichiran) go by per order, others ippudo are more open. the same applies for sushi (omakase joints) vs conveyor belt
also places like ichiran tend to serve exclusively pork except in certain stores and periods.
McDonald’s is very available as others have said.
My picky eating daughter happens to like white rice which is of course available all over the place so that worked out well too
As a not-in-quotes picky eater I definitely had to push my boundaries in Japan. Traditional meals are served with miso soup and pickled vegetables, things I would never go near normally. Being in Japan really did remove some mental blocks. That said I got to re-confirm many times that I do not like miso… really gave it a proper chance but nope.
Also worth noting, airplane meals will probably not be to her liking.
There’s a lot of fast food options and japanrse foods that are more simple and “safe”. Most hotels usually have kettles so don’t worry about bringing your own, and you shouldn’t have problems with bringing your own unperishable foods. No problems with having her not eating anything at a restaurant either. One problem that you may run into is moreso with customizing food, which is not very common in Japan and they may be confused by the very idea of it, but they tend to be very accommodating so it usually is possible, but tend to be a lot more trouble than it’s worth unless it’s more of a fast food place where it’s more common.
Hey from a fellow aspire with ARFID, my issues are widespread, things like meat, fish, onions, leeks, peppers, anything spicy and more are all no-go for me, I’ve been over 5 times now so I’m well used to being the picky bugger on tour, I always assumed before I went I’d have difficulty with food but actually the reality was that even for an incredibly limited person like me there are tons of options
You shouldn’t need to bring a kettle, even places I stayed at for less than £5 a night had kettles in.
You should be fine bringing dried foods with you, ideally they should be in your checked bags but I’m not aware of anything that’d prevent you from bringing anything like that
As for being the only one eating again I’ve never found an issue with this, 3 of my trips were with other people, I’ve been to several places before where I only had drinks and whoever I was with had a meal, I can’t say I’ve ever been anywhere it’s a problem
I have food allergies and can’t digest beef and pork. This being said I do fine. The conbinis have so many good options even for the picky. You will also run into American fast food often in the bigger cities. Is she on the spectrum by some chance ?
The onigiri was my go to as a self proclaimed picky eater. Most convenience stores have them, and they come with a wide variety of fillings. My personal go-to was the salmon ones, they were quite delicious to be honest. Also the famichiki was really good. It’s basically a big piece of fried chicken and most convenience stores have them fresh as well.
About 3. As someone mentioned, restaurants expect each customer to order at least one item. Maybe you could order a meal for yourself and a dessert for your sister?
If she likes Wendy’s there’s one in Tokyo that I personally found very tasty. It was my first time of Wendy’s tho so can’t compare. The food came out within 15sec of ordering so quick if you’re on the verge of a meltdown.
Japan has lots of crazy awesome food, but it also has some of the most bland unspiced food I’ve had in my life. Your sister shouldn’t have a problem finding food she can eat. Convenience store sandwiches are amazing and have made many easy meals for me here.
1. Dry things are fine, but don’t bring jerky or dairy or anything like that. My brother is currently visiting me and brought in 20 protein bars with no issue.
2. I wouldn’t say you need to pack a kettle – most hotels have Japanese-style electric kettles (slower to heat up because you keep them on) and microwaves. Look up where you’re staying to see if they have one. If you need to bring one it won’t be a problem at all.
3. It isn’t really ok for one person to not eat at a restaurant. It is also quite rude to leave large amounts of food behind (and you likely cannot take it home). It is probably best that you go on your own or order her something that she pretends to eat, and then you
swap meals and eat it for her. A bit of a hack but better than the alternative.
Or maybe she’ll fall in love with Japanese food and all will be okay!
Restaurants in Japan often required all people to order a main dish, so it could be a problem if you are the only one ordering
For #2 – Pretty common to have electric kettles in Japan accommodations + in Asia in general. Try asking your booking if they already have one so you can save yourselves the hassle. Otherwise, shouldn’t be an issue. I know people who have brought rice cookers and all sorts of electrical appliances with them on travels lol.
For #3 – Regular restaurants can be particular about the number of orders. The trendier the place, I think the stricter they’ll be. From my experience, a table of two people = two mains, for cafés it’d be two people = two drinks. I went to a Japanese pancake place in Tokyo, and they required 2 pancake orders. It couldn’t be one drink and one pancake order.
Something to look out for, but honestly OP, you could always just order something your sister is curious about, or just order more for yourself. There’s so much good food to try!
I don’t think they’d mind if she didn’t eat, they’re just particular about the orders since spaces have such limited seats. I hope you two have a great time! I will also be doing a sister trip to Japan this year as well. 🙂
I took my son (8) to Japan a few months ago. He is an extremely picky eater and won’t even eat most things that are staple kid food. I was pretty worried about how the food thing would turn out but I would take him again in a heartbeat. Here are my tips/experiences if it helps and I’d be happy to send you photos of the food we did have if you think that would help (we were in Tokyo and Kyoto).
1. I got him to ‘rate’ every food he tried – he actually did try everything. So it took the emphasis off eating the thing, rather it was just to try it so he could give it his rating. We did that for both meals and snacks. He’s actually come back and is more willing to try stuff compared with before the trip.
2. If you do go for sushi such as plain cucumber, be sure to ask for no wasabi.
3. Lots of places that do the meat skewers (eg. chicken, beef, pork) you can order to be seasoned with just salt rather than spices. And they are amazing just with salt.
4. As a lot of people have mentioned, convenience stores – we would grab a packaged bread each for breakfast and sometimes deep fried chicken for lunch. Note that there seems to be some etiquette about where you can eat.
5. Had some amazing pastries, especially in Kyoto if you happen to be going there. Like equivalent to fancy French bakeries back home but very inexpensive.
6. A lot of places have fried chicken. Fried pork was also pretty common. Plain rice. Even ordered a kids meal that was Japanese style set but with fries. There was always something he would eat.
7. There are lots of really good foods to try that aren’t your typical Japanese. Like those little custard pastry things. And soufflé style pancakes. And really good savoury snacks. I took some of those long plastic clip things so I could fasten snack packages closed while on the go. Made trying a variety of things so easy.
Lastly, if this isn’t convincing enough, my son actually talked in his sleep one night on the trip, saying the Japanese words for thank you. When I told him about it the next day he was convinced he was dreaming about karaage dumplings.