Making a reservation in Japanese sounds like one of those tasks that should be simple until it absolutely is not.
On paper, you just need to call a restaurant, ask for a table, say the time, say the number of people, and somehow not accidentally reserve dinner for eleven instead of one. In real life, there is also the tiny detail that you may be doing all this in a language you are still learning, through a phone speaker that seems emotionally committed to bad audio.
That is exactly why this guide exists. If you have ever searched how to make a reservation in Japanese because your trip is getting real and your confidence is suddenly not, you are in the right place.
We are going to walk through the core vocabulary, the most useful polite phrases, the order restaurants usually ask for information, and the small details that make the whole exchange feel much less intimidating. By the end, you should be able to make a basic restaurant reservation in Japanese, survive the follow-up questions, and sound much more prepared than you feel.
If you still need more writing-system support before you start making calls, keep MochiKana, Japanese Alphabet for Beginner, and Japanese Writing System open in another tab. Reservation phrases are much easier to use when hiragana, katakana, and basic kanji stop feeling like decorative obstacles.
Featured snippet version:
To make a reservation in Japanese, start with a polite opening such as こんにちは、予約をしたいんですが… then give the date, time, and number of people one step at a time. Be ready to say your name, phone number, and any special requests. The key phrases beginners need most are 予約 (reservation), 空いていますか (is it available?), 何名様ですか (for how many people?), and 名前をお願いします (your name, please).
The short answer:
You do not need perfect Japanese to make a restaurant reservation. You need a small set of phrases, the right order of information, and enough calm to not treat every follow-up question like a personal attack.
Starting with the basics: 予約 (よやく)
The Japanese word for reservation is 予約 (よやく). It is the word you will hear, say, and quietly cling to throughout this process.
The most useful beginner phrase built from it is 予約をしたいんですが, which means something close to “I’d like to make a reservation…” It is polite, natural, and soft enough that you do not sound like you are issuing instructions to the entire building.
A few useful variants show up too, but this one is the safest place to start.
| Japanese | Reading | Meaning | When to use it |
| 予約 | よやく | reservation | Core noun you need to recognize |
| 予約する | よやくする | to make a reservation | Dictionary form / casual explanation |
| 予約をしたいです | よやくをしたいです | I want to make a reservation | Understandable, but a bit blunt |
| 予約をしたいんですが… | よやくをしたいんですが | I’d like to make a reservation… | Best beginner option for polite calls |
| 空いていますか？ | あいていますか | Is it available? | Use when asking if a slot is open |
A small but important point:
The 〜んですが ending matters. It softens the request and leaves space for the other person to respond. That is exactly the kind of polite vagueness Japanese loves.
How to start the phone call
If you are calling a restaurant, the beginning matters more than you might think. Restaurants in Japan are usually busy, and the cleaner your first line is, the easier the whole conversation becomes.
For a casual phone call, Japanese often starts with もしもし. However, when you are calling a restaurant or another business, a more neutral greeting such as こんにちは or こんばんは sounds better.
So the safest beginner opening is this:
| Japanese | Meaning |
| こんにちは。予約をしたいんですが… | Hello. I’d like to make a reservation… |
| こんばんは。予約をしたいんですが… | Good evening. I’d like to make a reservation… |
Read next: if polite phrasing still feels slippery, Japanese learning resource is a good place to zoom out and rebuild the bigger beginner roadmap before you throw yourself into restaurant audio under pressure.
What information do restaurants usually ask for?
Once you say you want to make a reservation, the restaurant usually needs the same basic set of information.
· The date
· The time
· The number of people
· Your name
· Your phone number
· Any special requests or dietary needs
That sounds like a lot until you notice that the conversation is usually built in exactly that order. In other words, you do not need to deliver everything in one heroic sentence. Avoiding a single long sentence is actually better. Giving details one by one makes it easier for the staff to understand and write down. Moreover, this approach ensures you can say everything correctly without feeling rushed.
Date and time: the part most likely to betray you
Date and time are where many reservation calls become unexpectedly exciting. Numbers already behave like troublemakers in every language, and phone audio does not help.
That is why it is worth getting the core forms straight before you ever make the call.
Months
| English | Japanese | Reading |
| January | 1月 | いちがつ |
| February | 2月 | にがつ |
| March | 3月 | さんがつ |
| April | 4月 | しがつ |
| May | 5月 | ごがつ |
| June | 6月 | ろくがつ |
| July | 7月 | しちがつ / なながつ |
| August | 8月 | はちがつ |
| September | 9月 | くがつ |
| October | 10月 | じゅうがつ |
| November | 11月 | じゅういちがつ |
| December | 12月 | じゅうにがつ |
Days of the month you should know first
| Date | Japanese | Reading |
| 1st | 1日 | ついたち |
| 2nd | 2日 | ふつか |
| 3rd | 3日 | みっか |
| 4th | 4日 | よっか |
| 5th | 5日 | いつか |
| 6th | 6日 | むいか |
| 7th | 7日 | なのか |
| 8th | 8日 | ようか |
| 9th | 9日 | ここのか |
| 10th | 10日 | とおか |
| 14th | 14日 | じゅうよっか |
| 20th | 20日 | はつか |
| 24th | 24日 | にじゅうよっか |
Time
| Time | Japanese | Reading |
| 5:00 | 5時 | ごじ |
| 6:00 | 6時 | ろくじ |
| 7:00 | 7時 | しちじ / ななじ |
| 8:00 | 8時 | はちじ |
| 9:00 | 9時 | くじ |
| 7:30 | 7時半 | しちじはん / ななじはん |
| 8:30 | 8時半 | はちじはん |
A basic way to give the reservation details is:
| Japanese | Meaning |
| 6月14日の7時です。 | June 14th at 7:00. |
| 明日の7時です。 | Tomorrow at 7:00. |
| 今週の土曜日の8時です。 | This Saturday at 8:00. |
If Japanese numbers still feel unstable, go back and reinforce them with your own number resource or your kana routine first. Meanwhile, Learn Hiragana lessons and Writing game help a lot with fast recall when audio starts moving faster than your confidence.
How many people? 二人? 三名様?
Sooner or later, the restaurant is going to ask how many people are coming. This is one of the highest-frequency follow-up questions in the entire reservation call.
The easiest phrase to listen for is 何名様ですか, which means “For how many people?” You may also hear 何人ですか or similar variants, but 何名様ですか is very common in service settings because it is more polite.
| Japanese | Reading | Meaning |
| 何名様ですか？ | なんめいさまですか | For how many people? |
| 二名です。 | にめいです | For two people. |
| 三名です。 | さんめいです | For three people. |
| 四人です。 | よにんです | There are four people. |
For beginners, it helps to know both 人 and 名. 人 is the everyday counter for people. 名 is also used for counting people, especially in customer-service contexts, because it sounds more formal.
In other words, if the restaurant says 二名様, do not panic. They are still just talking about two people, not two mysterious VIP units.
Who are you? Name and phone number
After the restaurant has the date, time, and number of people, they will usually want your name and sometimes a phone number.
That means you should be ready for questions like 名前をお願いします or お名前は. The polite way to respond is simple: say your name and end with です.
| Japanese | Meaning |
| お名前をお願いします。 | Your name, please. |
| 名前はアレックスです。 | My name is Alex. |
| 電話番号をお願いします。 | Your phone number, please. |
| 電話番号は090-1234-5678です。 | My phone number is 090-1234-5678. |
If your name is not easy to catch on the phone, spell it slowly or repeat it once. That is not awkward. It is useful.
Phone call reality:
Even in your native language, names over the phone are not always graceful. You are allowed to repeat yourself. In fact, repeating important details is usually smart.
Special requests: the useful extra information
After the basic reservation is set, the restaurant may ask if you have any requests. This is where you can mention dietary restrictions, English menu support, seating preferences, or whether you are bringing children.
You do not need a giant vocabulary list to survive this section. You just need a few practical patterns.
| Japanese | Meaning |
| 質問があります。 | I have a question. |
| リクエストがあります。 | I have a request. |
| 英語のメニューはありますか？ | Do you have an English menu? |
| 子どもがいます。 | We have a child / children with us. |
| ベジタリアンです。 | I’m vegetarian. |
| アレルギーがあります。 | I have an allergy. |
Read: Japanese Writing System and Learn Kanji & Japanese Vocabulary. Restaurant Japanese gets much easier once common words stop looking like visual static.
Is this okay? How to ask if a time is available
Sometimes the restaurant will tell you a time is full. Other times, you will ask whether a slot is available before giving the rest of the details.
This is where 空いていますか becomes one of the most useful phrases in the entire article.
| Japanese | Meaning |
| 7時は空いていますか？ | Is 7:00 available? |
| 明日の夜は空いていますか？ | Is tomorrow evening available? |
| その時間は大丈夫です。 | That time is fine. |
| 別の時間でも大丈夫です。 | Another time is also okay. |
This matters because flexibility makes the call much easier. If you only have one possible time and your audio comprehension is still fragile, the conversation gets stressful fast. A little room to adjust helps a lot.
Canceling a reservation or running late
This is the section nobody wants to need and everybody should still have.
Plans change. Trains misbehave. Google Maps decides a ten-minute walk is actually an emotional event. So it is worth knowing the most useful phrases before you need them.
| Japanese | Meaning |
| 予約をキャンセルしたいんですが… | I’d like to cancel my reservation… |
| 少し遅れそうです。 | It looks like I’m going to be a little late. |
| 10分ほど遅れます。 | I’ll be about 10 minutes late. |
| すみません、遅れます。 | I’m sorry, I’ll be late. |
Small courtesy, big payoff:
Calling when you are running late is one of the easiest ways to sound considerate, even if your Japanese is still beginner-level.
A simple model conversation
Here is a beginner-safe version of what a basic reservation call can sound like.
| Speaker | Japanese | English |
| You | こんにちは。予約をしたいんですが… | Hello. I’d like to make a reservation… |
| Restaurant | はい、いつですか？ | Sure, for when? |
| You | 6月14日の7時です。 | June 14th at 7:00. |
| Restaurant | 何名様ですか？ | For how many people? |
| You | 二名です。 | For two people. |
| Restaurant | お名前をお願いします。 | Your name, please. |
| You | 名前はアレックスです。 | My name is Alex. |
| Restaurant | ありがとうございます。 | Thank you very much. |
That is not the only way the conversation can go. However, it is a clean, realistic beginner pattern to practice.
For broader listening and beginner survival Japanese, go back through Japanese learning resource and your kana resources so speaking on the phone stops feeling like a boss battle.
What beginners usually get wrong
· Trying to say the entire reservation request in one long sentence
· Starting too bluntly instead of using a softer request phrase
· Panicking when the restaurant uses polite language like 名様
· Skipping number practice before attempting date and time over the phone
· Forgetting to prepare a name and phone number line in advance
A better approach is calmer and more practical. Prepare the core phrases, say the details one at a time, and let the conversation unfold instead of trying to win it in the first sentence.
Final thoughts
f you have been searching how to make a reservation in Japanese because you are worried your Japanese is not ready, here is the reassuring version: perfection is not required.
Prioritizing the right phrases in the correct order, along with a little patience, matters much more than flawless grammar. View the need to repeat yourself not as a failure, but simply as a natural part of phone Japanese.
So yes, learn how to make a reservation in Japanese. But do it the smart way: practice the opening line, prepare your date, time, and group size, and keep your beginner tools close. Start with MochiKana, reinforce vocabulary with MochiKanji, and use Kanji123 when you want quick reality checks on the words and kanji you keep meeting.
Then go make the reservation. The restaurant is not waiting for perfect Japanese. It is waiting for enough information to hold your table.
FAQ
How do you say reservation in Japanese?
The word for reservation in Japanese is 予約, read よやく.
What is the easiest way to ask for a reservation in Japanese?
Try using the natural, beginner-friendly phrase 予約をしたいんですが…, which translates to “I’d like to make a reservation…”
How do restaurants ask how many people are coming?
A common polite question is 何名様ですか, which means “For how many people?”
What should I say if I’m running late to my reservation?
One simple, useful phrase to remember is 少し遅れそうです, meaning “It looks like I’m going to be a little late.”
Do I need perfect Japanese to make a reservation in Japan?
No. You just need a few practical phrases, clear numbers, and enough confidence to answer the basic follow-up questions.
