Japanese custom: Sushi chef serves you small snacks you didn't order?
I've been to several restaurants, usually sushi oriented, where I will sit down and order a drink (alcoholic), then within a few minutes of receiving my drink, the chef will either walk out and personally serve me a dish I didn't order, or if I'm sitting at the (sushi) bar, he will plop a dish in front of me and explain to me what it is (even though I have demonstrated that I don't speak a lick of japanese).
The dish is what I would call an appetizer; it's like minced sushi fish with sauce, or a small sticky fungus dish, or like a soup with daikon and tofu and what the chef called "pudding".
Usually I smile and nod/half-bow and repeatedly say "arigato thank you" at any brief pause while he's talking.
Also, most times I don't actually order any food, I just get drinks. This situation exclusively happens for my after work drinks where I'm heading elsewhere to get actual dinner meal. Is it rude to get served the dish I didn't order, consume said dish, and then leave (having only ordered drinks)? I don't think I've ever been charged beyond the price of the drinks and tax and service charges.
So my question is, is this a common Japanese custom or practice? If so, what is the name of this custom? What is the meaning behind it? And what is the proper response?
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What is it called when the sushi chef serves you?
Omakase sushi usually serves up some of the best sushi. It is considered a form of respect and a compliment to the chef to order omakase style, especially in Japan. It means that you trust the chef to provide you with a great meal.How do you show respect to a sushi chef?
By the way, saying, "Kon\u2022banwa" (good evening) and "Arigato gozai\u2022masu" (thank you very much) doesn't hurt either. The best compliment you can give to any sushi chef is to ask for Omakase - a chef's recommendation. This action confirms the chef that you trust him to give you the best.What is omakase in Japanese?
Few formal dining experiences are as revered or as intimidating as omakase, a form of Japanese dining in which guests leave themselves in the hands of a chef and receive a meal which is seasonal, elegant, artistic and uses the finest ingredients available.What is served in omakase?
In the U.S., omakase usually refers to an extended sushi dinner, ideally eaten at the sushi counter, where the chef prepares one piece of fish at a time, announces its name and origin, answers your questions, and guesses what else you might enjoy and how much more you'd like to eat.Sources: Stack Exchange - This article follows the attribution requirements of Stack Exchange and is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.
Images: Kampus Production, Andrea Piacquadio, Andrea Piacquadio, Kampus Production