Restaurant reservations Part 4 (Advanced): Asking about accessibility features for disabled guests.

💬 Said (iriguchi). The opposite is 出口 (deguchi) "exit".

🇯🇵 You'll see 段差注意 "watch your step" on signs all over Japan.

💬 だけ "only, just" goes right after the amount it limits: 一人だけ (hitori dake) "just one person".

🇯🇵 Even a single step at the entrance is very common in Japan, especially in older buildings and small restaurants. Staff will often mention it up front.

💬 〜のようなもの makes a request vague and soft: 毛布のようなもの (mōfu no yō na mono) "something like a blanket".

💬 お + verb stem + できますか is a humble way to ask "may I…?": お聞きできますか (okiki dekimasu ka) "may I ask?"

💬 簡易 (kan'i) means "simple, makeshift". You'll also see it in 簡易トイレ "portable toilet".

💬 〜の際に is a formal "at the time of…", common in staff speech and on signs: お会計の際に (o-kaikei no sai ni) "when paying".

🇯🇵 Staff use this to mean "just tell us when you arrive and we'll handle it." Taking them up on it is expected, not a bother.

🇯🇵 This is a warm, natural way to thank someone who has accommodated you. It sounds less stiff than a plain "thank you" and shows you appreciate the effort.

🇯🇵 This is a politer word than トイレ (toire), and the one restaurant staff will use. Either word is fine for you to say.

💬 Putting でしょうか in place of a plain ですか turns a direct question into a gentler, more polite one. You'll hear it constantly from staff: いかがでしょうか "How would that be?".

💬 でも after a noun means "even with/even by": 子供でも (kodomo demo) "even a child". でしょうか turns the question into a gentle "would it be…?"

💬 それと (sore to) "also, and another thing" is a handy way to add a second question in conversation.

🇯🇵 Staff use this formal apology before giving bad news, such as "we don't have parking". It doesn't mean they did anything wrong.

💬 The の here stands in for a noun already mentioned, so 店内の means "the one inside". Stopping on the て form 狭くて leaves the bad news hanging, which sounds softer.

🇯🇵 Staff often open with an apology before saying something isn't available. It's politeness, not a sign that the problem is serious.

🇯🇵 Many restaurants in Japan are inside multi-tenant buildings. The accessible toilet is often a shared one in the hallway rather than inside the restaurant.

🇯🇵 This is the usual sign for an accessible toilet in Japan, also used by parents with babies. You may also see だれでもトイレ "anyone's toilet".

💬 大丈夫 (daijōbu) is said with long vowels in both (jō) and (bu) isn't long. It covers "OK, fine, no problem" in almost any situation.

🇯🇵 Restaurants often offer テーブル席 versus 座敷 "tatami-floor seating" or カウンター席 "counter seats", so you may be asked which you prefer.

🇯🇵 Asking for a table matters because many Japanese restaurants have 座敷 "tatami floor seating" or counter seats, which don't work with a wheelchair.

🇯🇵 Staff use this very polite "understood" with customers. As a customer, you'd just say わかりました or はい.

💬 Put 近く right after a place to mean "near it": 駅近くのホテル (eki chikaku no hoteru) "a hotel near the station".

💬 〜ておきます means doing something ahead of time to get ready. 一脚 (ikkyaku) is the counting word for chairs.

🇯🇵 Removing a chair so the wheelchair can pull up to the table is a standard accommodation, and staff will often offer it unprompted.

💬 名 (mei) is the polite counter for people, and 様 (sama) adds respect toward the guest. When you answer, drop the 様 and just say 三名です (san-mei desu) "three people", because you never honor yourself.

💬 名 (mei) is the counter for people in formal settings, and 様 (sama) adds respect toward the customer. When you answer, drop the 様: 三名です "three people".

💬 名 (mei) is the polite counter for people used in reservations. 四名 is (yonmei), not (shimei).

🇯🇵 Staff will say 何名様ですか "how many people?" You can answer with 名 or the everyday 四人 (yonin).

💬 七時 is (shichiji). Four o'clock is (yoji) and nine o'clock is (kuji), so watch those two.

💬 で here marks "as a group of": 二人で (futari de) "as two people". Just list the details and finish with お願いします.

💬 申します (mōshimasu) is a humble "to be called", more polite than です for giving your own name.

🇯🇵 This is how you give your name on a booking call. Staff may write it in katakana, so say it slowly.

💬 おります replaces います when you speak humbly about yourself or your side. Staff use it about themselves, as in お待ちしております.

🇯🇵 Restaurants almost always close a reservation call with this. It's your cue that everything is settled, and you can reply with よろしくお願いします "thank you, I'm counting on you".

🇯🇵 This is a warm way to thank staff who went out of their way to explain things. It lands well at the end of a call like this.

🇯🇵 This is the standard polite way to end a phone call. さようなら would sound odd here, and it's polite to wait for the other side to hang up first.