Ordering at Starbucks in Japanese: Sizes, Custom Orders and Phrases

To order at Starbucks in Japan, say whether you are staying or leaving, tennai de or mochikaeri de, then the drink, hot or iced, and the size: shōto, tōru, gurande or benti. Each answer is one word plus de.

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Ordering at Starbucks in Japanese: Sizes, Custom Orders and Phrases

A coffee chain counter is often the first place a visitor to Japan has to speak Japanese at speed, with a queue behind and a menu overhead. The good news is that the exchange is a script. The barista asks the same questions in nearly the same order every time, and nearly every answer is a single katakana word followed by the particle de. This guide lays the script out step by step: here or to go, the four sizes, hot or iced, the handful of words that build any custom order, the seasonal drinks marked kikan gentei, and what happens after you pay, when your drink is called by its name or by a receipt number.

Tennai de is for here; mochikaeri de is to go

Sizes are shōto, tōru, gurande and benti

Henkō changes, nuki removes, sukuname reduces, tsuika adds

Drinks are called by drink name or number, so listen for your order

The first question: here or to go, hot or iced

The barista greets you and asks, in very polite language, whether you will drink in the shop. Then come the drink, the temperature, the size, any changes, and payment. You answer each with a single word and de (で), the particle that marks a choice. Tennai de (店内で) means in the shop; mochikaeri de (持ち帰りで) means to take away.

The here-or-to-go question is not small talk. The consumption tax rate differs between eating in and taking out, so the till needs your answer before it can show a total.

Four picture cards: a seat for drinking in the shop, a takeaway cup, a steaming hot drink, and ice for an iced drink
Two choices you make at every coffee counter in Japan: stay or leave, hot or iced. Each is said with one short word.
JapaneseRomajiMeaning
店内でtennai defor here
持ち帰りでmochikaeri deto go
ホットhottohot
アイスaisuiced
店内でお召し上がりですか。Tennai de o-meshiagari desu ka.Will you be having it here?
持ち帰りでお願いします。Mochikaeri de onegai shimasu.To go, please.

Sizes: shōto, tōru, gurande, benti

The size names are the international ones in katakana, with one thing many visitors do not expect: shōto (ショート), short, the smallest cup, is a regular menu size in Japan. Above it come tōru (トール), gurande (グランデ) and benti (ベンティ). If you say nothing, the barista will ask. The long vowels matter: tōru, not toru, which is a different word.

JapaneseRomajiMeaning
ショートshōtoshort, the smallest size
トールtōrutall
グランデgurandegrande
ベンティbentiventi, the largest size
サイズはいかがなさいますか。Saizu wa ikaga nasaimasu ka.What size would you like?
トールでお願いします。Tōru de onegai shimasu.Tall, please.

Putting the order together

There is no single correct word order. Temperature, drink and size can come in any sequence, and the barista will ask for whatever is missing. A reliable pattern is the drink, then no, then the size: aisu rate no tōru. Add o hitotsu onegai shimasu for a complete polite sentence. If you are staying, staff may ask whether a mug is fine instead of a paper cup.

JapaneseRomajiMeaning
アイスラテのトールを一つお願いします。Aisu rate no tōru o hitotsu onegai shimasu.One tall iced latte, please.
ドリップコーヒーをショートで。Dorippu kōhī o shōto de.A short drip coffee.
ホットとアイス、どちらになさいますか。Hotto to aisu, dochira ni nasaimasu ka.Would you like it hot or iced?
アイスで。Aisu de.Iced.
マグカップでよろしいですか。Magukappu de yoroshii desu ka.Is a mug all right?

Customising: change, remove, less, add

Custom orders use a few small words. Henkō (変更) is a change, used with ni for the thing you want. Nuki (抜き) after a noun means without it. Sukuname (少なめ) is less and ōme (多め) is more. Tsuika (追加) is an addition. With these you can build almost any request, and the menu or the barista will tell you which changes cost extra.

JapaneseRomajiMeaning
ミルクを豆乳に変更できますか。Miruku o tōnyū ni henkō dekimasu ka.Can I change the milk to soy milk?
シロップ抜きでお願いします。Shiroppu-nuki de onegai shimasu.Without syrup, please.
氷少なめでお願いします。Kōri sukuname de onegai shimasu.Light ice, please.
エスプレッソショットを追加してください。Esupuresso shotto o tsuika shite kudasai.Please add an espresso shot.
ホイップ多めで。Hoippu ōme de.Extra whipped cream.
オーツミルクōtsu mirukuoat milk
ディカフェdikafedecaf

Furapechīno and kikan gentei: the seasonal menu

The loudest part of the menu board is the seasonal drink. Kikan gentei (期間限定) means for a limited period, and in Japan the chain is known for limited Frappuccino blended drinks, furapechīno (フラペチーノ), built around seasonal flavours such as cherry blossom in spring. They are widely talked about and can sell out.

You rarely need the full name. Kikan gentei no furapechīno, or pointing at the poster and saying kore o hitotsu, is enough. Many seasonal drinks are made in one size only, and the barista will tell you so.

JapaneseRomajiMeaning
期間限定kikan genteifor a limited time
新作shinsakunew release
これを一つお願いします。Kore o hitotsu onegai shimasu.One of these, please.
トールサイズのみです。Tōru saizu nomi desu.It comes in tall size only.

Paying and listening for your drink

Payment is another one-word answer with de. Transit cards are accepted at most branches, and the phrase is kōtsūkei IC de (交通系ICで), by transit IC card. After paying you move along to the pick-up counter. Baristas in Japan do not usually write your name on the cup. They call the drink itself, or the number printed on your receipt, so keep the receipt and listen for your order, not your name.

JapaneseRomajiMeaning
お支払いはいかがなさいますか。O-shiharai wa ikaga nasaimasu ka.How would you like to pay?
交通系ICで。Kōtsūkei aishī de.By transit IC card.
カードでお願いします。Kādo de onegai shimasu.By card, please.
あちらのカウンターでお待ちください。Achira no kauntā de o-machi kudasai.Please wait at the counter over there.
トールのアイスラテでお待ちのお客様。Tōru no aisu rate de o-machi no o-kyaku-sama.The customer waiting for a tall iced latte.

Mobile order in brief

The chain's app lets you order and pay ahead, called mobairu ōdā (モバイルオーダー). You choose a branch, build the drink on screen with the same customisations, and enter a nickname. At the shop you skip the queue and wait near the pick-up counter until your nickname or order number is called. It removes the speaking, which is useful on a tired day and a missed chance on any other. If your drink does not appear, show the screen and use the lines below.

JapaneseRomajiMeaning
モバイルオーダーです。Mobairu ōdā desu.It is a mobile order.
注文した飲み物がまだなんですが。Chūmon shita nomimono ga mada na n desu ga.The drink I ordered has not come yet.
Key points

A practical way to improve

This script is short enough to learn whole. First, say a complete order five times, changing one word each time: aisu rate no tōru o hitotsu onegai shimasu, then hotto, then shōto, then a different drink. Hold the long vowels in tōru and shōto. Second, drill the custom words as answers: tōnyū ni henkō de, shiroppu-nuki de, kōri sukuname de. Third, in Unihongo's immersive 3D classroom, run the Order at a Café mission, or ask your AI Sensei to play a barista at a busy coffee chain who asks here or to go, size, and how you will pay, at natural speed. Order a customised drink, then read the corrections in the session report.

  1. 1

    Choose one clear goal

    Focus each session on a situation or skill you can actually use.

  2. 2

    Practice actively

    Say complete answers aloud instead of only reading or recognizing Japanese.

  3. 3

    Review and repeat

    Keep useful corrections and revisit the same skill until it feels natural.

FAQ

Frequently asked questions

How do I say for here or to go in Japanese?

For here is tennai de, in the shop, and to go is mochikaeri de, taking it home. The barista usually asks first with tennai de o-meshiagari desu ka, will you be having it here. Answer hai, tennai de, or mochikaeri de onegai shimasu. Teikuauto de is also understood.

What are the Starbucks sizes called in Japan?

They are shōto, tōru, gurande and benti: short, tall, grande and venti written in katakana. Short is a regular menu size in Japan. To choose, say the size with de, for example tōru de onegai shimasu.

How do I order soy milk or oat milk in Japanese?

Use henkō, change. Say miruku o tōnyū ni henkō dekimasu ka for soy milk, or swap in ōtsu miruku for oat milk. A shorter spoken form is tōnyū de onegai shimasu after you have named the drink.

Do baristas in Japan ask for your name?

Usually not at the counter. Drinks are generally called by what they are, such as a tall iced latte, or by the number on your receipt. Mobile orders are the exception: the app has you enter a nickname, and that is what appears on the label.

Can I pay with a transit card at Starbucks in Japan?

At most branches, yes. Tell the barista kōtsūkei IC de, by transit IC card, or simply name your card, and touch it to the reader. Cash, credit cards and the chain's own prepaid card and app are also widely accepted.

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