# Japanese eat pizza with gloves? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [June 20, 2005, 11:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-eat-pizza-with-gloves/309025 "2005-06-20T11:51:58Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![BobT](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/8e8cbc/32.png) [@BobT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobT)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2005, 8:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-eat-pizza-with-gloves/309025/21 "2005-06-20T20:30:18Z")
I’ve never been pushed into a subway or train when in Japan. But I try not to travel during the rush hours. Nevertheless I’ve been on some pretty crowded trains or subways that I’ve squeezed on to or been squeezed into. ---
**Author:** ![scr4](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/59ef9b/32.png) [@scr4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scr4)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2005, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-eat-pizza-with-gloves/309025/22 "2005-06-20T20:31:13Z")
> [@alice\_in\_wonderland](#): > > A friend of mine told me a story about Japanese “gift apples” that he’d read about in some magazine or another. The story suggested that “gift apples” were all the rage in Japan and everyone, everywhere gave each other apples as gifts. > > So I asked my SIL - a native Japanese person - never seen it, never done it, may have heard about someone, once giving someone else an apple, but that was it. It’s quite common, actually. Perhaps your SIL didn’t have any co-workers and relatives in northern Japan (where apples are grown), or she wasn’t in Japan until she was old enough to have to exchange gifts with co-workers. My parents get apples sometimes rom their students, co-workers and relatives. High-quality fruits of all kinds are popular as gifts in Japan; the Japanese people give and receive so many gifts that non-consumable gifts would fill up their little houses in no time. We don’t pack and send them personally, of course. It’s all done by department stores and such. There are even US-based companies that deliver American oranges and cherries in Japan, mostly for Japanese-Americans to send to our friends and relatives back home. ---
**Author:** ![Catalyst](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e47774/32.png) [@Catalyst](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Catalyst)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2005, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-eat-pizza-with-gloves/309025/23 "2005-06-20T20:36:35Z")
> [@Mathochist](#): > > **Surreal**? Izzat you? Eh? Anyway, the fact that sushi is largely eaten bare-handed is what led me to doubt the story in the first place. That brings up a tangentially related question, though: which sushi are meant to be eaten bare-handed and which, if any, are meant to be eaten with chopsticks? For instance, what about rolls with roe on the outside? Also, I’m told that the pickled ginger that acompanies sushi is to be eaten with chopsticks. True? How 'bout the wasabi? ---
**Author:** ![cckerberos](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f0a364/32.png) [@cckerberos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cckerberos)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2005, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-eat-pizza-with-gloves/309025/24 "2005-06-20T20:43:51Z")
> [@Catalyst](#): > > Anyway, the fact that sushi is largely eaten bare-handed is what led me to doubt the story in the first place. That brings up a tangentially related question, though: which sushi are meant to be eaten bare-handed and which, if any, are meant to be eaten with chopsticks? For instance, what about rolls with roe on the outside? Also, I’m told that the pickled ginger that acompanies sushi is to be eaten with chopsticks. True? How 'bout the wasabi? Although I’ve heard that sushi is meant to be eaten bare-handed, I don’t think I’ve ever seen anyone actually do so. ---
**Author:** ![alice\_in\_wonderland](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alice_in_wonderland/32/176_2.png) [@alice\_in\_wonderland](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alice_in_wonderland)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2005, 8:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-eat-pizza-with-gloves/309025/25 "2005-06-20T20:48:04Z")
> [@scr4](#): > > It’s quite common, actually. Perhaps your SIL didn’t have any co-workers and relatives in northern Japan (where apples are grown), or she wasn’t in Japan until she was old enough to have to exchange gifts with co-workers. My parents get apples sometimes rom their students, co-workers and relatives. Her parent’s farm is in Northern Japan and she lived there until she was 26, so “No.” and “No.” Anyhow - what she actually said is that some people do give apples as gifts, but it’s no where near as wide-spread as the article suggested. FWIW, she lived and worked in Osaka, so perhaps it’s not popular there. ---
**Author:** ![MelCthefirst](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/eada6e/32.png) [@MelCthefirst](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MelCthefirst)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2005, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-eat-pizza-with-gloves/309025/26 "2005-06-20T20:49:33Z")
> [@scr4](#): > > It’s quite common, actually. Perhaps your SIL didn’t have any co-workers and relatives in northern Japan (where apples are grown), or she wasn’t in Japan until she was old enough to have to exchange gifts with co-workers. My parents get apples sometimes rom their students, co-workers and relatives. > > High-quality fruits of all kinds are popular as gifts in Japan; the Japanese people give and receive so many gifts that non-consumable gifts would fill up their little houses in no time. We don’t pack and send them personally, of course. It’s all done by department stores and such. There are even US-based companies that deliver American oranges and cherries in Japan, mostly for Japanese-Americans to send to our friends and relatives back home. Absolutely - I lived in Aomori prefecture for 7 years - (the Northern most prefecture on Honshu and the town of Fujisaki is in Aomori where Fuji apples were developed). Aomori produces something like 70% of all Japan’s apples. Sometimes, they put kanji stickers on the apples, so that when it grows red in the sun, the kanji stays yellow. These are used as gift fruit. There is always a section in the supermarket or fruit shops that have very expensive fruit - these are the gift fruits. ---
**Author:** ![alice\_in\_wonderland](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alice_in_wonderland/32/176_2.png) [@alice\_in\_wonderland](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alice_in_wonderland)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2005, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-eat-pizza-with-gloves/309025/27 "2005-06-20T20:50:08Z")
> [@Catalyst](#): > > Eh? > > Anyway, the fact that sushi is largely eaten bare-handed is what led me to doubt the story in the first place. That brings up a tangentially related question, though: which sushi are meant to be eaten bare-handed and which, if any, are meant to be eaten with chopsticks? For instance, what about rolls with roe on the outside? Also, I’m told that the pickled ginger that acompanies sushi is to be eaten with chopsticks. True? How 'bout the wasabi? Rolls, fish w/ rice, other items w/ rice - bare handed - dip the _fish_ side into the soy sauce. Sashimi - use chopsticks. Ditto for the ginger and the wasabi. That being said, most people use chopsticks for the whole shootin’ match, so in all except the most formal occasions either is fine. ---
**Author:** ![bizzwire](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/958977/32.png) [@bizzwire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bizzwire)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2005, 9:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-eat-pizza-with-gloves/309025/28 "2005-06-20T21:43:32Z")
> [@scr4](#): > > 😕 Are you suggesting that I am perpetuating an urban legend, even though I told you I grew up in Japan myself? > > Just walk into any pizza shop in Japan and order one of the seafood pizzas. It will have a mayonnaise-based sauce instead of tomato sauce. Or look at the menu at one of the pizza restaurant chains, like [Pizza Hut Japan](http://www.pizzahut.jp/menu/) or [Pizza-La](http://www.pizza-la.co.jp/menu/menu110_pub.html). If you can read Japanese, you’ll see many items which include “mayonnaise” as a topping/sauce. Don’t get yer panties in a bunch. I was responding to “The stories about the mayonnaise-topped pizzas.” I wasn’t accusing you of disseminating an UL. FWIW, I was a _sararii-man_ at Mitsubishi-Yuka (Iidabashi) in '81-83. ---
**Author:** ![scr4](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/59ef9b/32.png) [@scr4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scr4)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2005, 11:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-eat-pizza-with-gloves/309025/29 "2005-06-20T23:10:49Z")
> [@bizzwire](#): > > Don’t get yer panties in a bunch. I was responding to “The stories about the mayonnaise-topped pizzas.” I wasn’t accusing you of disseminating an UL. So even though mayonnaise-topped pizzas do exist and are common in Japan, you think the “stories” about mayonnaise-topped pizzas refer to something else? Whatever… 😕 ---
**Author:** ![rocking\_chair](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rocking_chair/32/2918_2.png) [@rocking\_chair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rocking_chair)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2005, 11:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-eat-pizza-with-gloves/309025/30 "2005-06-20T23:11:48Z")
i’m still lol over the term “gift fruits.” what would be written on them? happy birthday? thank you? fantastic host? ---
**Author:** ![scr4](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/59ef9b/32.png) [@scr4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scr4)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2005, 11:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-eat-pizza-with-gloves/309025/31 "2005-06-20T23:54:21Z")
> [@rocking chair](#): > > i’m still lol over the term “gift fruits.” > > what would be written on them? happy birthday? thank you? fantastic host? Americans never give fruit baskets as a gift? Fruits with writing on them are pretty rare. Usually it’s just plain but top-quality fruits in nice boxes. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2005, 12:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-eat-pizza-with-gloves/309025/32 "2005-06-21T00:04:41Z")
> [@Catalyst](#): > > How 'bout the wasabi? The wasabi should be picked up with chopsticks and dissolved in soy sauce in the little soy sauce dish/bowl. If the wasabi is already in that dish, then just pour the soy sauce over it and stir a bit of it in. Most people don’t dissolve the whole chunk of wasabi – just enough to suit their taste. ---
**Author:** ![bizzwire](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/958977/32.png) [@bizzwire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bizzwire)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2005, 12:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-eat-pizza-with-gloves/309025/33 "2005-06-21T00:19:03Z")
> [@scr4](#): > > So even though mayonnaise-topped pizzas do exist and are common in Japan, you think the “stories” about mayonnaise-topped pizzas refer to something else? Whatever… 😕 sigh… I’m not a big pizza eater, so I never encountered the pizza you described while I lived there. That is why, when you mentioned it, I opined as to how some people could, upon encountering _okonomiyaki_ for the first time, and being told that it was “Japanese Pizza,” (as I have had locals describe it) _could_ come away with such an impression. I cede my anitquated experience to your first-hand knowledge. BTW, You \* are\* familiar with _okonomiyaki_, right? ---
**Author:** ![guizot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guizot/32/3636_2.png) [@guizot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/guizot)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2005, 2:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-eat-pizza-with-gloves/309025/34 "2005-06-21T02:07:37Z")
> [@scr4](#): > > Americans never give fruit baskets as a gift? I know that for Christmas, people will send fresh fruit to family and friends in places like the Mid-west or Northeast. Of course, it’s not your typical, lousy, flavorless supermarket fruit; it’s usually from a special company, and guaranteed to taste the way fruit should–delicious, and better than any candy. ---
**Author:** ![Catalyst](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e47774/32.png) [@Catalyst](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Catalyst)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2005, 2:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-eat-pizza-with-gloves/309025/35 "2005-06-21T02:17:14Z")
> [@acsenray](#): > > The wasabi should be picked up with chopsticks and dissolved in soy sauce in the little soy sauce dish/bowl. If the wasabi is already in that dish, then just pour the soy sauce over it and stir a bit of it in. Most people don’t dissolve the whole chunk of wasabi – just enough to suit their taste. This is how I use wasabi, but I didn’t realize that it’s the “proper” way. I always figured I’d be considered somewhat uncouth for it. ---
**Author:** ![Shalmanese](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/45deac/32.png) [@Shalmanese](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shalmanese)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2005, 2:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-eat-pizza-with-gloves/309025/36 "2005-06-21T02:59:35Z")
There is an interesting discussion of gift fruit on another message board I read. You can read about it [here](http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?showtopic=68491) ---
**Author:** ![MelCthefirst](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/eada6e/32.png) [@MelCthefirst](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MelCthefirst)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2005, 3:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-eat-pizza-with-gloves/309025/37 "2005-06-21T03:28:44Z")
> [@Catalyst](#): > > This is how I use wasabi, but I didn’t realize that it’s the “proper” way. I always figured I’d be considered somewhat uncouth for it. I don’t think it is “the proper way” - it may even be a little more uncouth. I think the politest method (at least in Japan) is to put a little extra wasabi on top of your piece of sushi, dip the tip of the sushi into the soy sauce and then eat it. On the other hand, when you eat tempura, you need to put the grated daikon into the dipping sauce. ---
**Author:** ![Catalyst](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e47774/32.png) [@Catalyst](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Catalyst)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2005, 3:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-eat-pizza-with-gloves/309025/38 "2005-06-21T03:52:02Z")
> [@MelCthefirst](#): > > On the other hand, when you eat tempura, you need to put the grated daikon into the dipping sauce. Thank you! I had no idea what that was or what it was for. It tastes pretty bland on its own, so I always just ignored it. I’ll have to try it next time. ---
**Author:** ![HMS\_Irruncible](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hms_irruncible/32/7394_2.png) [@HMS\_Irruncible](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HMS_Irruncible)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2005, 4:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-eat-pizza-with-gloves/309025/39 "2005-06-21T04:19:28Z")
I am 100% certain that there is at least one Japanese who has eaten pizza with gloves. The weird things these people think up never ceases to amaze me. But to directly answer the OP’s question, eating pizza with gloves is not a normal Japanese habit. Come to think of it, eating pizza is not a normal Japanese habit, at least not pizza as we know it in the US. It’s too heavy, spicy, and oily for mainstream Japanese tastes. But they do have Pizza Hut here, so apparently a few people go for it. ---
**Author:** ![scr4](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/59ef9b/32.png) [@scr4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scr4)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2005, 4:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-eat-pizza-with-gloves/309025/40 "2005-06-21T04:54:30Z")
> [@Brain Wreck](#): > > Come to think of it, eating pizza is not a normal Japanese habit, at least not pizza as we know it in the US. It is now. When I lived in Japan I got more flyers in my mailbox for pizza delivery than any other type of business. > [@](#): > > It’s too heavy, spicy, and oily for mainstream Japanese tastes. The Japanese love heavy, spicy, oily food. Curry restaurants are everywhere, and curry with fried pork cutlets is a very common cheap meal. Ramen, okonomiyaki and other semi-traditional food tend to be very oily as well. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-eat-pizza-with-gloves/309025.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-eat-pizza-with-gloves/309025.md?page=3)