Japan is highly noted for its refined etiquette. Before you begin to gobble and chew, you must first learn the Japanese way of proper table manner.

Before and After the meal
There are two expressions which the Japanese need to say out loud before and after the meal. Before eating the meal, the Japanese will say "Itadakimasu!" which means appreciation for the meal prepared. When the meal is done they will say "Go-chiso-samadeshita!" which means gratitude for the wonderful meal and for the hospitality of the person who prepared them.

While Eating
A Japanese meal usually consists of a bowl of rice, miso-soup(suimono), and two or three dishes. The more the side dishes, the finer the meal is. When there is several dishes in front of you, it does become rather confusing to figure out what to eat first and so on. The proper order to eat these dishes is to sip a bit of the soup then the order you dig in does not matter. However, don't keep on eating the same dish until it's done and then moving on to a new one to do the same. Always eat in rotating circles and leave about the same portions left in each dish when you complete one rotation. Then you'll finish all the dishes at the same time.

The following diagrams show both the order in which the dishes are served and give an example of how they might be arranged on the table.

Since there are several dishes, some of them could be placed farther as the above diagram. In such case, you may pick up small plates and bowls including the one's for rice and soup but cannot remove flat plates or big bowls off the table.

Eating in a different way
Though the Japanese way of table manner seems to be rigid, for some menu, there lies just the right way to devour it, which is surprising to the people of other cultures. An example is sushi. When you eat this Japanese food celebrity, it is traditional not to use chopsticks but always your bare hands to dip in soy-sauce and bring it to your mouth.
Another example is noodle, they slurp them straight up from the sauce bowl and never hesitate to make some noise. According to their culture, making noise when eating noodle means it is delicious. They are in a way trying to tell the chef how delicious the food is and show their appreciation.

The Toast
An orthodox Japanese meal usually consists of sake, which is the Japanese white wine. The Japanese loves drinking sake at the meal. They always begin a meal with the toast of sake. It is held only once at the beginning of the meal, and you are expected to at least pretend to take a zip, even if you don't drink.

Japanese Tea
The Japanese adore drinking tea. Different tea serve at different time of the meal.
In general, sencha (green tea) is served before the meal. During and after the meal, hojicha (roasted tea) is served.

Though table manners are important, just relax and enjoy the flavors to the fullest.