Food & Drink

Japanese slang related to eating, drinking, and food culture

Introduction

Food is central to Japanese culture, and the slang reflects it. From 飯テロ (food terrorism = posting delicious-looking food photos) to 別腹 (a separate stomach for dessert), food slang is everywhere.

This chapter covers the slang Japanese people use when talking about food, eating out, and drinking.

Themes

All Japanese Slang in This Chapter (80)

• 飯テロ Posting mouthwatering food photos on social media at night or other inconveni...
• 別腹 The concept of having a 'separate stomach' for dessert — always having room f...
• 映え Photogenic or Instagram-worthy — used to describe food, scenery, or anything ...
• グルメ Fine food or gourmet cuisine; also used to describe a person who appreciates ...
• 食レポ A food review or tasting report, especially on TV, YouTube, or social media w...
• 食い倒れ Eating yourself into financial ruin through excessive spending on food; used ...
• 爆食 Binge eating; consuming a massive amount of food in one sitting, often used h...
• チル飲み A relaxed, low-key drinking session with friends, emphasizing a calm and easy...
• 宅飲み Drinking at home instead of going out to bars or izakayas, often with friends...
• 飲みニケーション Building relationships and rapport with coworkers through after-work drinking...
• ワンオペ Running an entire operation single-handedly, originally describing lone worke...
• ガッツリ Hearty, filling, and substantial — used to describe a big, satisfying meal th...
• 大盛り A large or extra-large portion size at a restaurant, usually available for fr...
• 替え玉 An extra serving of noodles added to your remaining ramen broth — a refill sy...
• ドカ食い Stress eating or binge eating; wolfing down huge amounts of food, often as an...
• チェーン店 A chain restaurant or franchise store — a familiar nationwide brand like Yosh...
• 食べ放題 All-you-can-eat buffet or unlimited eating deal at a restaurant, typically wi...
• 飲み放題 All-you-can-drink deal at an izakaya or restaurant, usually with a time limit...
• コンビニ飯 A meal bought at a convenience store — a perfectly acceptable and often surpr...
• シメ The final meal eaten to cap off a night of drinking — typically ramen, ochazu...
• ハシゴ酒 Bar hopping; going from one bar or izakaya to the next in a single night, lik...
• ほろ酔い Pleasantly tipsy; the nice buzz stage of drinking where you feel warm and hap...
• 二日酔い Hangover — the unpleasant physical aftermath of drinking too much alcohol the...
• ヘルシー Healthy food or lifestyle choice — a trendy, positive descriptor for nutritio...
• ジャンク Junk food — greasy, unhealthy but delicious comfort food like burgers, fried ...
• スイーツ Sweets, desserts, and trendy confections — a fashionable term that carries a ...
• ランチ難民 A person wandering around during lunch hour unable to find an available resta...
• ぼっち飯 Eating alone, especially at school or work — can carry a lonely nuance, thoug...
• ギルティフリー Guilt-free food or snack — marketed as healthy, low-calorie, or virtuous so y...
• ヌン活 The hobby of visiting hotels and cafes to enjoy elaborate afternoon tea sets ...
• 推し活グルメ Themed food and drinks tied to fan activities — character cafe menus, collabo...
• 無限ピーマン A viral easy recipe for seasoned green peppers that you can eat endlessly — t...
• ずぼら飯 A lazy person's quick and easy meal made with minimal effort and simple ingre...
• 時短レシピ Time-saving shortcut recipe designed for busy people — featuring quick cookin...
• 作り置き Meal prep or batch cooking done in advance — typically preparing multiple sid...
• お取り寄せ Ordering specialty or artisanal food from other regions of Japan for home del...
• ご当地グルメ Local specialty food unique to a specific region of Japan — a major draw for ...
• B級グルメ Cheap but delicious local street food and casual fare — unpretentious, afford...
• モーニング A breakfast set deal at a cafe where ordering a drink comes with free or chea...
• 推しメニュー Your personal go-to or favorite menu item at a restaurant — the dish you alwa...
• ワンコイン A meal or item that costs just one coin — specifically 500 yen or less. Used ...
• 食テロ Posting mouthwatering food photos late at night on social media, torturing hu...
• 夜食 A late-night snack or midnight meal eaten after dinner, often associated with...
• 居酒屋 A Japanese-style pub or tavern serving drinks alongside a wide variety of sma...
• カフェ巡り Café hopping — visiting multiple cafés as a hobby, often to enjoy different a...
• 味変 Changing a dish's flavor partway through eating by adding condiments, topping...
• 背徳飯 A sinfully indulgent guilty-pleasure meal — the kind of food you know is terr...
• 飯ウマ Delicious food; an exclamation that the food tastes amazing. Short for 飯がうまい ...
• 激辛 Extremely spicy — used to describe food that is intensely hot, or spice chall...
• 激うま Insanely delicious — an emphatic way to say something tastes incredibly good.
• 鬼リピ Obsessively reordering or repurchasing the same item — repeat-buying somethin...
• ペロリ Devouring a meal effortlessly and quickly — polishing off a dish in no time a...
• パ活 Bread-baking or bakery-hopping as a hobby — actively seeking out and enjoying...
• ラー活 Ramen-shop hopping as a hobby — actively visiting different ramen restaurants...
• サク飲み A quick, casual drink — grabbing one or two drinks before heading home, witho...
• 角打ち Drinking at a liquor shop's standing bar — buying a drink at a bottle shop an...
• センベロ Getting pleasantly drunk for just 1,000 yen — describes ultra-cheap bars and ...
• ネオ居酒屋 A trendy, modern-style izakaya with stylish interiors, creative dishes, and a...
• ペアリング Food and drink pairing — a curated dining experience where each course is mat...
• 映えスイーツ Instagrammable photogenic desserts — sweets designed to look stunning in phot...
• 罪悪感ゼロ Zero guilt — used to describe healthy or low-calorie snacks and desserts that...
• 完飲 Drinking every last drop — finishing a bowl of ramen soup or a beverage compl...
• 完食 Finishing every last bite of a dish — eating absolutely everything on your pl...
• チートデイ Cheat day — a planned break from dieting where you eat freely and guilt-free.
• フードコート A food court — the communal dining area in a shopping mall or commercial faci...
• テイクアウト Takeout — getting food to go rather than eating at the restaurant.
• UberEats勢 People who constantly order food delivery through Uber Eats — the 'Uber Eats ...
• 冷凍食品ガチ勢 A serious frozen food connoisseur — someone who is deeply knowledgeable about...
• 夜パフェ Late-night parfait — the trend of enjoying elaborate parfaits after dinner or...
• モグモグタイム Munching time or snacking time — a playful way to describe a snack break, pop...
• エナドリ Energy drink — the abbreviated slang for エナジードリンク, referring to drinks like M...
• ストゼロ Strong Zero — Suntory's popular high-alcohol (9%) canned chuhai, infamous for...
• レモサワ Lemon sour — a hugely popular lemon-flavored shochu cocktail that has become ...
• つまみ Snacks or small bites eaten alongside alcoholic drinks — bar food, drinking n...
• お一人様 Solo dining or being a solo customer — eating out, going to karaoke, or enjoy...
• モッパン Mukbang — an eating broadcast where someone eats large amounts of food on cam...
• ASMR飯 ASMR eating content — food videos that focus on satisfying crunchy, slurpy, o...
• バズ飯 A viral recipe or dish that blew up on social media — food that went viral an...
• コンカフェ A concept café — a themed café such as a maid café, anime-themed café, or oth...
• サ飯 The post-sauna meal — food eaten after a sauna session, considered the ultima...