Honorific or Humble? / About Izakaya

Honorific or Humble
In polite speech, it is customary to refer to one’s own things or actions in the humble form, and to refer to others (especially people who should be treated with respect, such as customers) in the honorific form.
When you say, “I do something (for you)”, since the subject is “I”, it is your action, and you refer to your action using the humble form:
  • こちらを差さし上あげます。差さし上あげる is the humble form of あげる.
  • ご案内あんないします。ご案内あんないする is the humble form of 案内あんないする.
  • 今いま荷物にもつをお持もちします。お持もちする is the humble form of 持もつ or 持もってくる.
  • 今いますぐ参まいります。参まいります is the humble form of 来くる.
  • かしこまりました。かしこまる is the humble form of わかる.
On the other hand, you refer to someone else’s (such as a customer’s) action using the honorific form:
  • 少々しょうしょうお待まちください。お待まちください is the honorific form of 待まってください.
  • お客様きゃくさまがいらっしゃいます。いらっしゃる is the honorific form of いる / 来くる / 行いく.
  • またお越こしください。お越こしください is the honorific form of 来きてください.
  • メニューをご覧らんになってください。ご覧らんになる is the honorific form of 見みる.
These forms are typically used when one is required to speak very politely, such as when speaking to customers. However, overly polite speech can lose its sense of “closeness” or “friendliness,” so some people use more casual language with customers. These forms are mainly used to add a nuance of politeness to speech.
Izakaya
居酒屋いざかや literally means "staying liquor shop". It originally refers to a liquor shop that also served food. Customers who came to buy sake, sometimes taste it on the spot, and shopkeepers started offering some food to keep them around. Over time, this “staying and drinking at the sake shop” practice became institutionalized, giving rise to the word 居酒屋いざかや.
Today, an izakaya is no longer a liquor shop that sells bottles, but a dining establishment that serves both alcohol and dishes to accompany it. While the main focus of an izakaya is still the alcohol, it differs from what is called a “bar” in the West in that it offers a wide variety of food. Local specialties can also be enjoyed, and these days, many people who don’t drink alcohol visit izakaya simply to enjoy the food.
Izakaya come in different styles. Some are chain establishments that can accommodate over a hundred customers, while others are tiny, like a shop run by a grandmother with only eight seats. Many people prefer these small-scale izakaya because they create a homely atmosphere, where customers can chat with the owner and enjoy the owner’s homemade cooking.
Izakaya Food
Here are pictures of some food mentioned in the dialogues.
焼やき鳥とり literally means “grilled bird” and originally referred to chicken cooked on skewers, usually over a charcoal fire. Nowadays, the term yakitori is used more broadly, it generally refers to the traditional Japanese style of cooking meats and vegetables on sticks. In this sense, it’s used as a general term for this cooking method, not necessarily limited to chicken.
torimomo yakitori image
鶏とりもも焼やき鳥とり: Chicken thigh yakitori
butabara yakitori image
豚ぶたバラ焼やき鳥とり: Pork belly yakitori
tsukume yakitori image
つくね焼やき鳥とり: Chicken meatball yakitori
Caesar salad image
シーザーサラダ: Japanese style Caesar salad
gyoza image
焼やき餃子ぎょうざ: Japanese pan-fried dumplings
edamame image
枝豆えだまめ: Boiled green soybeans
oden image
おでん: Various ingredients simmered in a light broth)
oden image
卵焼たまごやき: Japanese style rolled omelette
oden image
おしぼり: Wet towel offered to customers, used to clean hands before eating (not food)
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