Using a ramen ticket machine
Read queue signs, find the bowl, pay and collect the meal ticket and change.
Check whether the shop asks you to buy first or queue first. Ticket machines vary, and this diagram represents no specific restaurant.
食券 Meal tickets
A historical machine photograph
This photograph illustrates menu-button labels only. It does not show today’s prices, a complete payment interface or the current procedure at a named branch.
- Read queue instructions before approaching the machine. Ask 食券を先に買いますか？ — Do I buy the meal ticket first?
- Find the bowl and payment symbols. Carry ¥1,000 notes and coins: some compact machines accept only ¥1,000 notes; other models accept larger notes or cashless payment.
- On a button machine, insert money then press the dish button. On a touchscreen, follow its order/payment sequence. Look for an English option if present.
- Collect every ticket and your change. Use the change/return control if cash remains.
- Hand tickets to staff when directed and wait for seating instructions. A receipt is separate from the meal ticket.
- If you chose wrongly, stop and ask staff. Do not buy another ticket to fix an uncertain first order.
Official sources checked 11 October 2026 (JST), online; no visit. JNTO ordering sequence · GLORY example model specification
Button, touchscreen or cashless?
A cash slot does not establish card support. A transit IC logo does not establish every IC or credit card. Follow the current payment symbols. AFURI Harajuku lists cashless-only service; ICHIRAN Shibuya lists several methods. Read branch evidence rather than assuming all shops use the same model.
これをお願いします。
This one, please. Point to a complete bowl.
Keep topping tickets with your bowl ticket. Sold-out and limited-item labels may change during service.