Taking orders at a restaurant as a waiter: Taking menu orders

🇯🇵 [いらっしゃいませ] is the standard store and restaurant welcome in Japan. Staff say it to greet you, but customers normally do not answer with the same phrase.

💬 [どうぞ] is very flexible: it can mean "please," "go ahead," or "here you are," depending on the situation. You'll hear it with lots of nouns and directions, like [お入りください、どうぞ] or [お水をどうぞ].

💬 [こちら] is a polite way to say "this way" or "here," more polished than [こっち]. Add [へ] when you're guiding someone toward a place: [お席へ] or [あちらへ].

💬 [をどうぞ] is a handy pattern for offering something: item + [をどうぞ]. Swap in other things the same way, like [おしぼりをどうぞ] or [お水をどうぞ].

💬 In [メニューをどうぞ], the [を] marks what you're handing over, even though English just says "Here is the menu." The same pattern works with many items: [おしぼりをどうぞ] or [お茶をどうぞ].

💬 [おすすめ] is often used like "recommended item" or "special recommendation," not just the abstract idea of a recommendation. You'll see it in phrases like [本日のおすすめ] for "today's recommendation."