Japanese symbol for “cafeteria”
食堂
しょくどう
Romaji: shokudou
dining room; dining hall; cafeteria; canteen
In Japanese, cafeteria is 食堂, read しょくどう (shokudou).
Before using these characters for a tattoo, check them with a native speaker. Dictionary words often have several meanings, and the right choice depends on context.
Meanings
- n dining room; dining hall; cafeteria; canteen; messroom
- n restaurant; eatery; snack bar; diner
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “cafeteria”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| カフェテリア | カフェテリア kafeteria | cafeteria |
| 簡易食堂 | かんいしょくどう kan'ishokudou | cafeteria; snack bar; lunch counter |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 食事 | しょくじ shokuji | meal (e.g. lunch, dinner) |
| 食品 | しょくひん shokuhin | food; food products; foodstuffs |
| 食べ物 | たべもの tabemono | food |
| 食料 | しょくりょう shokuryou | food |
| 食べる | たべる taberu | to eat |
| 食う | くう kuu | to eat |
| 堂々 | どうどう doudou | magnificent; grand; impressive |
| 講堂 | こうどう koudou | auditorium; lecture hall |
See also: Chinese symbol for “cafeteria”.
Data: JMdict (CC BY-SA 4.0); KANJIDIC2 (CC BY-SA 4.0); KanjiVG (CC BY-SA 3.0); wordfreq (CC BY-SA 4.0 (data)). Retrieved 2026-10-22.