How to tell if there are non-smoking seats

I will be going to Hokkaido next month & I like to know from the outside of the restaurant/shop/cafe, how do I tell if the eatery sets up a SEPARATE section for NON-smoking seats???

I have been to a few restaurant/shop/cafe that have non-smoking seats. Unfortunately, this meant nothing more than putting smoking tables on the extreme left & non-smoking tables on the other side, so the whole restaurant was still filled with smoke. And I had to endure all that poison while eating which meant I could not enjoy my meal.

Does anyone have any idea on how to tell, from the outside, if there are non-smoking seats available? Japanese natives may know from just one look (''Oh, such an eatery certainly does not provide non-smoking tables, so let's go elsewhere'') but to a non-native, he/she may look silly asking the waitress if there are any non-smoking seats.

And I don't think standing outside the eatery first to sniff if there is any cigarette smoke before I go in is a practical suggestion as there could be could no smokers at that time, but while I am eating, smokers come in.

And are there eateries that completely ban smoking on their premises??? If so, what kind of eateries are they? And where do they tend to be located? City? Suburb?

Some places do indeed ban smoking completely, but they are not very common. Most places have both smoking and non-smoking areas, but there is no way to tell without going into the restaurant unless you have prior knowledge of the restaurant itself.

Usually a waitress will ask both how many people and whether you prefer smoking or non-smoking, however drinking places such as bars or izakaya are almost always smoking. If you don't get asked and there are no No Smoking signs posted, it is smoking.

The best advice I can give you is to go in and see if the smell bothers you. Some restaurants (my local Mos Burger comes to mind) has a completely closed off section reserved for smokers, so unless you sit near that door, you don't smell any smoke. However I was recently in Shinjuku station where a cafe had such a closed off area, but the door was constantly open and the entire cafe smelled of smoke. So it is really a toss up.

If your Japanese is okay, you can always explain to the waitress and ask for a table far from the smoking area, but if not it is one of those things you just have to deal with. Sorry!

BTW, Japanese can understand "NON-SMOKING", if you say it only, slowly and clearly.

Some cafes and restaurants may also have a non-smoking policy for lunch time - maybe 11:30-14:00, but time vary but there will be signs. If you are worried about smoking sections - look for out ashtrays on the table as well as the notices. But it is fairly common to have non-smoking areas filled with smoke from nearby smoking areas. Some chains like Starbucks are all non-smoking.

Separation of smoking areas, which is called "bun'en" (pronounced bun en) in Japanese, is not very common in Japan. It is likely that a waiter/waitress does not know this word, while a word "kin'en" is known well, which means prohibiting or quitting smoking.

I suppose that if a lower floor is offered for non-smoking customers and an upper floor is offered for smoking customers, you can expect that the eatery is doing the separation, even though it is not perfect.
Generally, if you find on an eatery's entrance door a no-smoking icon and/or a "kin'en" kanji logo, the eatery may be either completely banning smoking or offering a separate no-smoking area or offering a no-smoking but non-separate area.

I have found a set of two images of no-smoking and smoking signs, each of which consists of an icon, a logo of Japanese kanji and a logo in English. I hope it can help you on this problem.
- http://ivyboy.exblog.jp/18372161

And are there eateries that completely ban smoking on their premises??? If so, what kind of eateries are they? And where do they tend to be located? City? Suburb?

These days there are many family restaurant chains that have gone completely non-smoking. They can be found both in the cities and suburbs.

Also, look for the international non-smoking symbol on the door. If you see that then the entire restaurant/cafe is non-smoking. Its not super common but you'll find it more and more these days especially among the bigger restaurant chains.

hey omotenashi san,

i did not know there is such a thing called "bun en".

and yes i agree more and more females are picking up this bad habit. it could be due to females wanting to be an impressionist. smoking is being portrayed as 'cool' in media. and since for a long part of history, there has been so many male smokers that should they been seen smoking in public, it is less of a statement because it is so common. but for females, it is different. it is a relatively new phenomenon. they want to be seen smoking because it is empowering n it ups their status, whatever that means. duh.

hi lady kodaira,

yes, if only eateries implement a no smoking policy during dinner too! we non-smokers do not wish to be poisoned. we want fresh air! this is our appeal. onegaishimasu.

more and more females are picking up this bad habit.

Not in Japan, though. In 2012, only 10.4% of women smoked, which is the lowest figure since the start of statistics in 1965:
http://www.health-net.or.jp/tobacco/product/pd090000.html

Hi, everyone:

I am a Japanese male who do not smoke at all. I was a little surprised that Japan is classified into "smoking country".

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_cigarette_consumptio...

But as Uji wrote, Japan is going to be more non-smoking side these days. As for the restaurants, non-smoking policy is prevailing more and more, because many guests do not want get smoke from other person.

There is a site introducing restaurants that have non-smoking policy. This is the page for Hokkaido restaurants.

http://www.kinen-style.com/area/1-hokkaido/

Hey frog1954,

Thanks for your helpful link. I am going to find non-smoking eateries near my hotel using your link.

Yes, I am petrified at the amount of cigarettes a Japanese consume annually. 2,028?! Oh my gosh, that is a sure ticket to long-term hospitalization.

When you wonder why Japan is slow to catch on to the anti-smoking movement, & reluctant to implement laws, just google to find out who the major shareholder is in Japan Tobacco.

Hi JT,

I am totally flabbergasted. Oh my gosh. This is totally unbelievable.


http://www.japantimes.co.jp/text/nn20120520b5.html

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/16/business/16views.html?_r=0

http://www.glocom.org/debates/20030619_dolan_tabacco/index.html

I am totally flabbergasted.

None of the three seems to be mentioning two historical facts. One is that tobacco business in Japan was monopolized by the government or a public corporation since late 1890s until 1985, and another is that the predecessor of Japan Tobacco was a public corporation monopolizing businesses of tobacco and salt.
When this public corporation was legally privatized in 1985, monopoly in tobacco sales was ended, but the succeeding company continued to monopolize tobacco manufacturing in Japan.

I do not smoke but I feel the Japanese society has been becoming stern against smokers.
In family dramas on TV I seldom see an adult is smoking before children, of course never see a child is smoking.
If it is reported that a small child under 10 was hurt by a cigarette, I first imagine that the child was abused by someone, not that the child was abusing a cigarette.