Kaigaikensyu reports in Minnesota and Japan

・Introduction・

Restaurants are important places for communicating with people. Everyone often goes to restaurants with their family or friends. Restaurants are perfect places way to kill time. We can enjoy eating or communicating face to face. I wanted to know the differences between Minnesota and again Kumamoto in regards to restaurants. I asked 5 questions before leaving Kumamoto and in Minnesota. I gave a Google questionnaire to both American and Japanese students. Japanese males are 23 in number and females are 65. On the other hand, American males were 30 and females are 55.

・How often do you go to restaurants?・

The next question was “What kind of restaurant do you most often go to?” Japanese students answered that they go to family restaurants. 49% of students answered, accounting for approximately half of the total. Japan has many good family restaurants. We can dine in a cozy atmosphere there. When they have a meal, they linger for hours in family restaurants. Family restaurants are perfect locations for spending time for Japanese people. The next largest answer (28% and 33%) was at the school or work cafeteria. Japanese students have many group activities. They enjoy talking with fellow members or friends at school. Japanese school cafeterias have many delicious meals or varied menus. Surprisingly, bar or drinking spot had the lowest percentage. In Japanese college, drinking is well-practiced, so I made the assumption that most students would go to drinking spots. However, I found that they don’t go there, against my expectations. 

・What kind of restaurant do you most often go to?・

 Family restaurants had the most number of answers in both American and Japanese. 35% of American students go to family restaurants. American and Japanese students are also very similar in reference to school or work cafeteria. In Minnesota, Bethel University has a good school cafeteria. A large difference was between family restaurants and fast food or food courts in malls. 28% of American students often go to fast food or food courts in malls more than Japanese students (11%.) Conversely, Japanese students (49%) often go to family restaurants more than American students (35%). America has better decent fast food than Japan because of the number of stores or more varied selection, and price.

・When do you most often go to a restaurant?・

The next question was “When do you most often go to restaurants?” The largest answer for Japanese is dinner time of 50% just as expected. Most Japanese students go to restaurants after school. Many college students have a lot of conversational topics, so they need conversation time with their friends at the day's end. For example, they talk about events. Breakfast time had low answers of 8% and 4%. Probably, this is most commonly due to sleeping late after a part time job. Lunch time’s percentage is a normal answer. They often have a meal in the lunch time intervals at school.American students most often go to restaurants at dinner time of 46%. However, more American students (33%) go to restaurants than Japanese students (28%) at lunch time. This may be because of the difference in the time of lunch break in America and Japan. In Japanese universities it is usually 50 minutes to 1 hours. In Minnesota, lunch break was longer than Japan, so students would often head out for a meal. Breakfast time is the lowest answer for both American of 4% and Japanese of 8%. Both countries people have to go to school early in the morning, so they have little time to eat outside. 

・Who do you often go to restaurants with?・

Next question was “Who do you often go to restaurants with?” This question’s answers from Japanese students were very different from American students. 44% of Japanese students answered family or friends. While on other hand, American students answered 26%. Japanese students are not that different from American students about friends. However, opinion is divided. 16% of Japanese students answered family. On the other hand, 32% of American students answered so. American people give families a good chance to spend quality time together. My host family told me to go out with the whole family or celebrate Christmas with our family in America when I stayed in Minnesota. Japanese students not have time family mealtime. Although Japanese students tend to get a lot of support from their family, they isolate themselves from their family. Japanese students should make an opportunity to communicate with families.Girlfriends or boyfriends also occur in connection with this question. 15% of Japanese students answered with girlfriends or boyfriends. 24% of American students answered so. American students spend time with family and their partner equally. 

・What is the name of your favorite restaurant?・

Japanese students often go to Joyfull which is a very popular restaurant, because it is very cheap and delicious. It is a real life-saver for students, and it is everywhere. Most American students chose Applebeef. When I stayed in Minnesota, my host family took me there. There are many good meals, so I become captivated by it. If I was an American person, I would go there every day. The The next highest response was MK in Japanese. MK is an all-you-can-eat-and-drink restaurant. Everyone says“I want to go MK, I want to go MK too!” Mk is loved by many Japanese students. In America, Chipotle is the second popular restaurant. It is a Mexican fast-food restaurant chain in the United States with nearly 1000 stores in the United States, the fastest growing. In Japan, next highest response is J-cafe. It is not only in Kumamoto. It has many good sweets and is popular with women. They always have full reservations so it is very popular. American students also chose Olive Garden. It is an Italian restaurant to suit Americans. The soup of the shop is the most popular： tomato-based soup with pasta, ground beef, vegetables and beans. All the restaurants that were chosen are all great.

 ・What's your favorite food at the restaurant?・

The next question was “What's your favorite food at the restaurant?” The highest response was Burrito in America. A burrito has ingredients in rolled tortillas made ​​with flour. It’s Mexican cuisine and American and Tex-Mex cuisine. It is a very interesting food. In Japan, pasta is the most popular. Japan has many pasta patios and routine meals. In America, Chicken Alfredo is the second most popular food. It is spaghetti. Japanese students chose Sushi. Japan has many conveyor-belt sushi bars. They attract consumers with low prices. In America, the next highest response was sandwich. I used to eat a sandwich at lunch time in Minnesota. Japanese students chose hamburger.　

                 ・Conclusion・

Through this report we see the difference between Japanese students and American students about restaurants. Some Japanese students go to restaurants once a month, but most American students go to restaurants less than half as often as Japanese. Japanese students go to family restaurants more than American students. However, American students go to fast food or food courts in malls more than Japanese. There is a difference in taste and price for each person.Also, Japanese students go to restaurants at dinner time rather than lunch time. On the other　hand, American students go to restaurants at lunch time rather than dinner time. The result is the difference of interest in saving time of free time. American students understand the importance of connecting with their family, so they have a happy time at home. However, the time Japanese students spend a lot less time with their family. I could notice a diversification of values among the Japanese and American students.

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