Dinner guest ettiquete

I am visiting Japan with some family members, and have gotten in touch with a Japanese coworker who I have entertained when she visited the US. She is making a dinner reservation for our group and will be joining us for dinner.

I'm wondering what the "rules" are for such an occasion. Is it polite to bring a small gift (perhaps some local item from Chicago) as a thank you for her help, and for taking time out of her day?

Also, obviously there is just one of her and several of us, so I do not expect her to pay (and in fact would be honored to treat her as a thank you for organizing the evening) but will it be rude if I try to pick up the check?

Thanks in advance!
Andrew

It will be to bring a small gift of your country or town but is not necessary.

I don't think she will expect to pay for your dinner as she invites you. It's not a smart way you to pay for the dinner. You can be treated this time and as she visit your town or some occasion you will meet her again, you do the same thing for her, that will do.

- Bringing a small gift would be nice :)

- How did the whole dinner thing come up? Did she find out you were visiting, and invited you (and the group), or you contacted her and asked for assistance in reserving the place for you and your group and asked her also to join as this is a good opportunity to meet up?
If she invited you, then she would probably try to pick up the whole check, or definitely will pay her part at least.
If you asked for her assistance in reserving a place for all of you, and to join her, you can try to pick up the check for her too, saying that is in appreciation for the reservation she made for you.

Thanks for the responses!

When she came to the US, I offered to take her sightseeing, and while we were out, I mentioned my upcoming vacation to Japan, and she said I should let her know when I visited. But then I contacted her, and asked if she have a favorite restaurant that we should try and said we would be honored if she joined us.

I certainly don't want her to try and pay for the group of us tourists when there's just 1 of her, so my instinct would be to take care of the check as a thank you, but I also wanted to make sure I didn't make a cultural mistake.

Thanks again!

I don't think it's impolite for you to pick up the bill. But then, it's not uncommon for one working adult to pay for a whole small group of visitors. So either is fine.

By the way, I hope you are aware that restaurants in Japan rarely accept "table check." You need to go to the cashier or stand up and talk to the waiter to do the payment. A common way to treat others is to discreatly pay when you stand up for the rest room towards the end of the dinner. And then sometimes you end up being told by the waiter that your bill has already been taken care of.