Question
I am heading to a local izakaya in Tokyo for the first time and want to ensure I’m being polite when asking for recommendations. How do I ask the staff, “What do you recommend?” in Japanese?
Japango Editor Team
おすすめは何（なん）ですか。
Osusume wa nan desuka?
What do you recommend?
This is a simple and polite way to ask for recommendations, commonly used in restaurants and shops across Japan. Osusume means “recommendation”, and nan desuka is “what is?”. Use this phrase to get the best suggestions from the staff to enhance your dining experience.
Additionally, you can specify what you’re interested in by adding it at the start of the sentence. For example, if you want a drink recommendation, you could say, “Nomimono no osusume wa nan desuka?” (What do you recommend for drinks?).
