There are several places on Okinawa to go out and get some "after dinner sniffers". First lets try to get some quick cultural ground rules out of the way.
When I say the "exclusion of foreigners" I mean that some establishments here do not want foreign customers and if you go in will they tell you either Japanese only "Nihonjin dake!" or no foreigners "Gaijin dame". Many have signs on the entrances. For the most part, bars and nightclubs are the types of places that exclude foreigners.
There is nothing you can do about this form of discrimination. Businesses in Japan have the right to refuse any customer they want. If you raise hell and complain about it you will just be proving to them that they are right and you are not the kind of customer they want.
There are many reasonable explanations behind this decision. Here are a few.
a) Nobody in the place speaks English. To avoid any situations that may develope from that they will not allow foreigners in. In most cases if you go there with a local friend he is expected to take respondsibility for you and your actions and they may allow you in.
b) They only take yen and most foreigners always bring dollars.
c) The place is in a area already populated with lots of bars that cater to foreign customers and the customers who go there are trying to avoid those types of places intentionally. For instance up in Kin Village there is the area populated with bars that cater to the foreign population but there is another little party area just up the street form there called Ushino and that place is wall to wall snacks they generally don't allow outsiders in that area.
d) They have had a bad experience with foreign customers and prefer to avoid the chances of it happening again.
e) There is a small minority of locals that don't like foreigners and this attitude is only escalated when you mix "women and wine". Any smart mama san (term of endearment) or hostess will recognize this and attempt to avoid any confrontations before it begins.
A system refered to in Japanese is called the "mizu shobai", which literally translated means "the water trade". This water trade is usually the Nightlife, single's entertainment, drinking establishments, nightclubs, and many other forms of business that involve drinking and entertainment. There are a few key elements of the mizu shobai that demand a clear understanding before "the bottom line" can be understood.
Tatemae is a Japanese behavioral characteristic that can be defined as face, official stance, public position or attitude (as opposed to private thoughts or your personal views). Anyone who speaks Japanese or Hogan (the local dialect) should have some knowledge of this. Tateme is not a behavior that is limited to the bars and clubs. It is integrated into all Japanese behavior that is in the presence of "non-family" or some one who is not in the "nakama". For those who do not know about it I'll try to give you a brief summary and how it pertains to the bar or nightclub. Tatemae is an attitude people take in their daily lives, in business, and in relationships that says tells them it is not nice to be direct, abrupt, or tell the whole truth with people if it will lead to hard feelings. In this sense tatemae is very similar to the old saying that it is sometimes better to tell a white lie.
The opposite of tatemae is honne (bone) this is what you really feel. A very important thing about tatemae is that all the Japanese are fully aware of it and with every passing comment that is said in the spirit of tatemae is considered to be just a nice thing to say. This has many important implications especially in the bar. In fact, bars use the tatemae approach to make the customers feel happy, relaxed or good about themselves by telling them exactly what they would like to hear. Things a hostess says in a bar should never be taken to heart.
A very important aspect of mizu shobai is companionship specifically, companionship that is offered by a hostess, who is an employee of the bar, to a customer. What is the hostess's job? To make customers feel good about coming and drinking at the bar. It is as simple as that. What exactly does that include? A lot! Let's start with the obvious such as greeting customers, making them comfortable, taking orders, keeping their ash trays clean, etc. On top of that, the "skilled" hostess knows how to talk to a customer by complementing them and saying things to make them feel good about themselves. Compliments like how handsome he is, how smart he is, how important a job he has, how much other women (even herself) would like to marry (or have sex with) him, how sexy he is, or literally anything that causes him to have a good time. As foreigner we often hear how good we sing, how well we speak Japanese etc. This doesn't make them bad or people to be avoided, it is very important to remember that this is exactly what the Japanese customers have come to expect. If tatemae is not there the service is considered to be poor. A hostess's behavior is not limited to what she says it also applies to what she may or may not do. But remember, it is an act. This act has defined rules and if a girl wants to work in one of these places she is expected and must follow the rules. Okinawa's snacks are filled with thousands of perfectly honest, hard-working, respectable young ladies. It is not unusual to find college graduates working in bars because they frequently find they can make a lot more money telling "little white lies" to strangers, than fighting the male dominated Japanese business system. College graduates can expect to spend the first couple of years of in a profession serving tea, coffee and rice crackers to the "boss".
There are no legal brothels in Japan. As with most other countries, that is not to say they do not exist. Nor will we deny that some bars offer these services. If offered it is illegal. The mamasan or hostess of a bar is free to offer whatever services she wants legal or illegal and accepts the consequences.
Services are generally offered on a case-by-case basis dependent upon the relationship to each individual customer. The more important any given customer is to the bar the greater the services offered.
This is a true statement for all bars regardless of the type. All customers can expect basic friendly services for the price of a drink. However, you cannot expect to walk into a bar the first time and buy one drink and get treated as well as a 5 or 6 month long customer who buys a 10,000 yen bottle of liquor a month. The livelihood of the mamasan and the hostess is directly tied to profitability of the bar. The fact that big spenders get more attention is pure economics.
A bar girl will never tell you in a bar if she's married. Many bar girls are married, but they will never admit it. Somewhere there is a code for bar girls written, and that is the first rule. A bar girl, or hostess, develops a clientele that is frequently made up of men who are pursuing her for personal reasons. Should she get fired or quit that client base usually follows. Despite the clearly understood fact that "bar talk" or "tatemae talk" is for the most part sweet talk and flattery, customers still pursue them because many of them are "not married." Telling the customer she's married doesn't make good bussiness sense and is not finacially a sound thing for her to do also it sends the signal that she is unavailable and they have wasted every drink they ever bought her.
Never bring a bottle of beer or booze into a bar. This is very rude and inconsiderate and you will look like a fool to everyone there. It's like going in and sitting down in a fine restaurant in your hometown carrying a bag of sandwiches and chips. Bars are in the business of selling drinks and the girl's services are usually included in the price of the drinks. Saying "I just want to talk to her" is like walking through a grocery store and eating off the shelves without paying.
Never refuse a drink from an Okinawan man. Even if you don't know the person it is not so much an insult as it is antisocial. When a local offers a drink he is stepping outside the social norm in front of his friends and if declined as such may lose face. Generally, there is no other intent other than to be friendly and make you feel welcome. The result of accepting could be a party and group of friends you won't soon forget.
Never use dollars in a bar that does not normally use them. Many of the GI-bars use dollars regularly, and a few have a decent exchange rate. Bars that use yen only will normally give you a very poor exchange rate.
Do not be offended if an Okinawan man tries to hold your hand in a bar. I know this is difficult for heterosexuals (strait men), especially Americans, because we tend to be overly homophobic (afraid of homosexuality). If an Okinawan holds your hand while talking to you in a bar this is an expression of friendship. It is fully accepted in this culture that men who are good friends may put hands on arms while drinking and having fun. It is very rude to overtly refuse to allow him to do so and it could cause an argument if he is really drunk. However most locals are tuned into our feelings about this and tend to respect our views. Now that said, if he tries to hold on to other parts of your body... it may be time to find another friend!
Never threaten anyone especially an Okinawan. The Okinawan's are a very proud people and will defend their pride irregardless the relative size to their adversary. It is also wise to remember that Okinawa is well known for its roots in Karate, and as such, all Okinawan's have mandatory martial arts training in school. I have witnessed and heard of more than one service member getting his !@!$%^ handed to him by small, meek-looking Okinawan. Naturally, if you strike someone you can expect to be arrested and thrown in jail. Also, the bar clan (regulars) are often very close friends and they will eagerly chase you down if you decide to run. Besides, Okinawa is a really easy-to-get-along place, and the Okinawans are some of the most peaceful people on the earth. You would do well to use your brain not your brawn. If you feel like fighting go to a karate dojo these are all over the island.
Never by a keep your first time in any bar. Bars are here today gone towmorrow types of places and so are the hostesses. They open and unexpectedly close down at a very high rate and or change owners often. You don't want to buy a bottle somewhere just to come back the next week to find they have closed down so you should know a place pretty well before you buy a keep. A keep is a bottle of liquor you purchase with the intent of keeping it there in the bar for next time. The hostess will write your name on the label and place in on the shelf with all the other keeps. You should only do this in a place that you go to frequently. When you return the next time to have a couple of sniffers from your keep, many bars will charge you a set-up fee from between 500 yen - 1500 yen for the ice, water, and glasses every time you come to drink from it. Remember that you are actually paying for their services.
Please use this information along with the information I've done about the types of nightlife places to enjoy on Okinawa.
As always if you have something to add to this please email me.