Mom and pop restaurants and paying the bill

Off to Japan shortly, am going to a lot of small places where is only a husband and wife team running the place, and only half a dozen people or so eating dinner. Have heard it was rude to ask for the bill at the table (at least at places with more staff so can walk to the front of the restaurant and talk to the person there). What is the polite way to pay at a mom and pop place?

Also, a number of these places seem to do 2 or 3 sittings a night and have set meals, so do all six people pay and then leave at the same time?

Thanks in advance.

The custom in Japan has been to simply pick up the bill (they leave a tab on the table when they've served you the food) and walk to the cashier toward the front of the restaurant, and pay there :).

If you go in a group of six, you mean? Or, do you mean those "half a dozen or so" people who happen to sit down at around the same time at one sitting?
- If you go in a group of six people and have their orders taken on one tab, you are supposed to pay together (and then leave together).
- If you mean you happen to go at 5 pm, for example, along with other 5 people who happen to be there around the same time, the six of you are not expected to leave all at once: It is not like they want to clear out the whole place once. But it's just a matter of courtesy - if it's a simple set meal place, where people are expected to just sit down, order, eat and then go, it would be nice if you didn't linger around too long. If it's more of a "sit around, relax with drinks" kind of place, you don't have to do that.
If it's really a place that gets packed and they want you to leave after a certain amount of time, maybe at a popular "izakaya" or something, when you book, they might tell you "sorry but may we ask you to vacate your table for others after 2 hours as it is the weekend and we expect it to be crowded" or something like that. If it's not a place you book, if they want you to leave after a while, they'll start refilling your glass of water more often, just as a reminder that you have finished your meal and have no more food coming :)

As anonymous guest above said, just pick up the check from your table, bring it to the cash register and pay there. If you can't find the check, just stand up and go to the cash register. (Places that want you to pay at the table will have signs indicating such.)

Have heard it was rude to ask for the bill at the table (at least at places with more staff so can walk to the front of the restaurant and talk to the person there).

Never heard about this being rude, but in a small mom and pop place they either leave the bill at your table, or will know you by sight when you get up to leave.

What is the polite way to pay at a mom and pop place?

If there is a register just get up and go over to pay (bring the bill if its at the table). At some places you just call for the bill and can pay right there. It's all pretty informal.

Also, a number of these places seem to do 2 or 3 sittings a night and have set meals, so do all six people pay and then leave at the same time?

At mom and pop restaurants? Never seen this before. Can you post more info on where you'll be going?

Well, it's more simple than that. Instead of gesturing for the bill, you say "gochisosama" (I'm done, thank you.) or "o-kan-jou onegaishimasu" (The payment, please.) and the owner will naturally assume you will meet him/her at the cashier.

At small establishments, they often don't leave "the tab" and the only two people working there might not notice you moving to the cashier. So it's best to say those few words as you hold your wallet.

And of course it's not "rude" to wait at the table. It's just that many people won't even imagine you'd pay there, and they're not going to ask if you want to pay now.

a number of these places seem to do 2 or 3 sittings a night and have set meals,

Most restaurants that follow that system do it only because they can't afford the time, money and energy to do more. But then, they may not be the "mom and pop" you'd imagine. Typically, those kind of places are run by wealthy retired intellectuals who do it more as a hobby than for a living and the atmosphere can be quite sophisticated, which is still cozy in its own way.

Thanks everyone for their knowledge. Will come in very handy on my trip.

For husband and wife team places, going to Sushi Sawada http://www.tinyurbankitchen.com/sushi-sawada/ and Rakuichi http://tokyofooddiary.com/2012/03/22/rakuichi-another-gem-of-a-restaur...

I see. When you said mom and pop I was thinking along the lines of shokudo or a diner. The restaurants that you linked to are more high end than that, but are still small enough they will probably anticipate when you are done without you needing to do anything special. In any case, I don't think it would be rude to ask for the bill at the table if it isn't obvious that you should go somewhere else to pay.

Also, a number of these places seem to do 2 or 3 sittings a night and have set meals, so do all six people pay and then leave at the same time?

If you are in the same group, then yes that would be normal.

I took a look at the link. Very fancy places. I too thought that normally "mom and pop" would mean home-style cooking unlike these places.

In any case, if you're sitting at such tiny bar counters with very few workers, you will either be saying the "gochisousama/o-kanjyou" at the end of your chat with the chef, or if you're not having a conversation with them, it would still be obvious that the minute you stand up you're either going to the toilet or paying for your meals, and someone would guide you where to go.