Domino's: Japan-style

In order to teach English in Japan or just about anywhere else around the world, you have to hold a TOEFL certification (Teachers of English as a Foreign Language). To become a Spanish translator for medical services in Iowa, I had to be evaluated at a particular proficiency level.

But tonight I discovered the truest test for having learned a language sufficiently...

Could I, a Japanese language learner, successfully order pizza for delivery from Domino's?

Tonight, we had a few friends over to see our new place by the river and due to the fact that it's a "school night" we didn't want to go to a lot of effort cooking and cleaning. Rachael had the bright idea to order some pizza, an experience in itself in Japan. However, we hadn't ventured into the world of phone delivery order service before, so we had to do some research.

Not knowing enough to make the call myself, I called one of my "gaijin" (foreigner) friends named Jeff. With the help of his lovely Japanese wife Kimiko, Jeff coached me through the probable questions the Domino's people would ask me, and how I could respond to each of them. Then, he handed the phone to Kimiko and she graciously pretended to be the Domino's operator so that I could practice my new phrases.

Although I definitely don't have Japanese pinned down by any measure yet, I passed their test and they wished me good luck. The following video is a great record of what happened next:

All right, maybe ordering pizza isn't the be-all-end-all of language tests, but it was tough enough for me to get a passing grade tonight. The great thing is that since we're now on file, we just have to give them our phone number to order again. Amen to that.

Oh, the pizza! I almost forgot. The pizza here is really more of an estranged sibling of American pizza, making it a distant long-lost cousin of its original Italian version. The Japanese load up the toppings, like an entire sliced eggplant on the "Mega Veggie Pizza" or corn and potatoes on the "Triple Corn Potage." On my personal favorite, the "Chiki-Teri Pizza," comes chicken teriyaki, broccoli and various other veggies, with a sort of mayonnaise-mustard hybrid checkerboard grid delicately designed on top.

Being our first time to order pizza in Japan for ourselves, everything was delicious and definitely completed our night of Wii Mario Kart racing. Check out Rachael's food blog this week as she'll be writing about the joys of Japanese pizza as well.