1. Buying Bento

This dialogue shows how to handle a full convenience store checkout, including responding to common questions, requesting items like utensils and bags, asking for food to be heated, and completing a payment in cash.


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(Customer is standing in line.)
Clerk: Next customer, please! …Thank you for waiting. Do you have a membership card?
1. There are a variety of ways to call a membership card depending on the store: 会員かいいん証しょう, メンバーカード, メンバーシップカード, ポイントカード, or a name unique to the shop.
Customer: No, I don’t have it.
Clerk: Would you like me to heat up the rice ball and the bento?
Customer: The rice ball is fine. Please heat up the bento.
2. Common ways to say “no thanks” or “it’s fine” are: 大丈夫だいじょうぶです, 結構けっこうです, and いいです. You can also say 要いりません (I don’t need it), but since it is direct, it can sound blunt, so some people avoid using this phrase.
Clerk: Certainly. Would you like chopsticks and a wet hand towel?
Customer: Not chopsticks, please give me two spoons and two forks. And three hand wipes, please.
3. ~ずつ: “of each”, “apiece”. AとBを二ふたつずつください means “Please give me A and B, two of each”.
Clerk: Shall I add a shopping bag?
Customer: Yes, please. And could you separate the warm items from the cold ones?
4. の works like “one” in English.
Clerk: Of course. Shopping bags are three yen each, is that okay?
Customer: Yes.
Clerk: Your total is 1,638 yen. How would you like to pay?
Customer: With cash. (places 2,000 yen on the counter)
Clerk: Out of 2,000 yen, is that correct?
5. “Is it okay if I start from ~?” is used when a cashier wants to confirm if they can start counting the bill. For example, something costs 1,230 yen and the customer gives 2,000 yen. The cashier checks if they can start counting, because the customer might add an extra 30 yen so that the change comes out to a round number (exactly 800 yen).
Customer: Yes.
Clerk: Thank you. Out of 2,000 yen, here’s 362 yen change. Thank you very much. (hands over change and receipt)
6. “I’ll keep ~” is said by a cashier when accepting money or an item. It doesn’t mean they are permanently keeping it; it’s a polite formula acknowledging that they are taking temporary custody (e.g. of the customer’s payment) before giving change back.
Customer: I don’t need the receipt.
Clerk: Understood. Thank you very much!

Vocabulary

  • customer, guest
  • line, queue
  • to be standing in line, lining up
  • next person
  • Please (go ahead, here you are)
  • Sorry to keep you waiting, Thank you for waiting
  • membership card (more details in note 1)
  • do you have ~
  • Don’t have it, There isn’t
  • rice ball
  • bento (boxed meal)
  • Shall I heat it up?, Would you like it heated up?
  • It’s fine, No thanks (more details in note 2)
  • Please heat it up
  • Understood, Certainly
  • chopsticks
  • wet hand towel
  • Shall I add ~?, Do you need ~?
  • not ~, but...
  • spoon
  • fork
  • two things
  • Please give me ~
  • plastic shopping bag (given at the cash register)
  • please
  • excuse me, sorry
  • warm
  • cold
  • Please separate
  • Is it okay?, May I?
  • yes
  • in total, altogether
  • Your payment method is...?, Wow would you like to pay?
  • with cash, using cash
  • counter (desk, like checkout counter, service counter)
  • to put, to place
  • I’ll return to you ~, Here is your change
  • Thank you very much
  • change
  • receipt
  • to hand ~
Complete and Continue