Clarifying some Japanese terms

Hi, I saw on YouTube that some Japanese called some grandmas & grandpas who are store owners as 'otousan' & 'okaasan'. As a foreigner is it ok to call them those terms too? Would 'obaasan' and ojiisan' be rude? And how bout middle age men and women as 'oniisan' & 'oneesan'? Usually how do Japanese people call restaurant waiters or store staffs?

it is difficult to generalize the usages of those words. it depends on many aspects, your age, your social position, the counterpart person's age and social position, and intimacies between them, the areas where they live, etc.

You should wait at least until you become a regular customer and they know you by name. Even if they are old enough to be your grandparents, may be you should �gplay safe�h and start by calling them ojisan (uncle) and obasan (aunty).

Usually how do Japanese people call restaurant waiters or store staffs?

Usually, we simply call out, "Sumimasen (excuse me)". And if we start engaging in a conversation, we can go on without addressing the other party as long as we're speaking in Japanese, because we have "keigo" (respected form). By using keigo, you'd automatically know if the subject of a verb is the speaker or the other party. And if you're speaking in English, all you have to do is to use the word "you" to address the waiters and staffs.

I saw on YouTube that some Japanese called some grandmas & grandpas who are store owners as 'otousan' & 'okaasan'. As a foreigner is it ok to call them those terms too? Would 'obaasan' and ojiisan' be rude? And how bout middle age men and women as 'oniisan' & 'oneesan'?

People like me, my parents and my grandparents always preferred not to be called 'otousan', 'okaasan', 'obaasan' or 'ojiisan' unless we're truly father, mother, grandmother or grandfather to that person.

My grandfather used to grumble and say that non-family should use the terms "danna-san" (for men) and "okami-san" (for women). My aunt and I are okay with being called 'oneesan', but my mother despises it. She prefers to be called "okusan" which I hate if the speaker were to address me. And if someone calls me 'okaasan', I'd smile while slapping the person's face in my mind. 'Obaasan' is out of the question. For the record, I'm 61.

At old-fashioned family-run establishments, I often use "oo-danna" for the father, "waka-danna" for his son, and "okami-san" for the mother. People hardly use those terms any more, and I'm not sure if the son would be comfortable with it, but that's my way of showing respect.

So, to sum up, just go with "sumimsen", and if you become a regular customer and notice that everybody else is calling the workers certain terms, then go with the flow. I notice that, typically, they are called by their real names if not their nicknames. In other words, you can even ask, "How may I call you?"