What is aniki used by sushi restaurants?
This time, I would like to introduce the term “aniki” used at sushi restaurants.
Aniki is the material used first.
Aniki is a word that refers to ingredients that have been purchased or prepared in advance. Ingredients purchased later are expressed as “otouto”. Aniki is a Japanese word that means older brother. Otouto means younger brother. This seems to indicate the order of the ingredients.
So why is such industry terminology used?
In restaurants, ingredients are basically first-in, first-out, and they are used in the order they are purchased. In order to improve the taste of the fish, we sometimes let it sit for a day, so we call it “aniki” in slang to avoid confusion from customers who are concerned about freshness.
Other industry terms used at sushi restaurants
Sushi restaurants have a variety of industry terms other than Aniki. Here is an example of this.
- Yama(Mountain): Running out of ingredients
- Agari: About tea. Originally, “Agari” meant “the end” in the Hanayagi world, and it is also used at sushi restaurants because tea is drunk at the end of a meal.
- Gari: Ginger. It comes from the crunchy sound “garigari”.
- Geta: A board on which sushi is placed. They got their name because they look like geta when viewed from the side.
- Murasaki（purple）: Soy sauce. It is so called because the soy sauce looks purple.
- Oaiiso: About accounting. It is also used in other restaurants. It seems to have come from the expression “guests leaving” = “having been treated with affection.”
Is it better not to use sushi restaurant industry terminology?
Most of the terms used at sushi restaurants are slang terms used by the restaurant staff, so it is generally better for customers not to use them. However, if you know about it, you will be able to understand the content of the conversation between the chefs behind the counter, and you may enjoy your meal even more. If you are interested, why not look up other terms?
