The Meal Ticket Before the Meal in Japan

Many Japanese standing-soba and ramen shops ask customers to buy a meal ticket from a vending machine near the entrance, hand it to staff and then wait for preparation and pickup. Sapporo’s official visitor guidance explains that diners should purchase the ticket before taking a seat at restaurants using these machines.

Payment and the order are compressed into one slip of paper. The customer moves from the machine’s sequence into the kitchen’s sequence. Even a quick meal passes through a small chain of turns.