VegOut Tokyo

dish

2012-02-20T05:18:00.000-08:00

vegetarian friendly restaurant

Before I get down to business, I'd like to send some love out to those who have left me encouraging comments, emailed restaurants suggestions and so on. Though I often neglect to reply, I do read all of them and appreciate hearing from you! It's nice to be reminded that when I throw bits of my experience out into the atmosphere, actual humans are catching and making use of them.

On to the restaurant of the day, I'm really excited to introduce you to dish (yes, that's a lowercase d), a spot that's high on my list of veggie-friendly favourites. We initially came across this self described "organic cafe" in a stylish men's magazine, which was featuring eating and drinking spots in various Tokyo neighborhoods. I was initially drawn to the arty-eclectic vibe created by the white walled, wood floored interior, pleasing hodgepodge of furniture, and art on display.

Dish is a nice place to relax with friends or a sweetheart, but is also somewhere I'd be comfortable hanging out alone. They have a nice selection of magazines that would be fun to pour over while sipping a hot drink. In the warmer months, one can also enjoy a meal out on the patio.

Appreciators of wine will be pleased by their nicely stocked wine list, and glass of house wine will set you back only 525¥.

A lovely dish salad (945¥) is a pleasant way to start things off. The homemade dressing usually contains anchovies but the chef will leave it out on request. A poached egg tops this salad, but egg avoiders could of course order it without.

There are a few meat and fish-free pastas on the menu, and each one I've ordered has been delicious. On our most recent trip, we went for the spicy, tomato sauced arrabbiata (1470¥), asking them to leave out the salami.

The vegetable pie (1260¥) is a must-order. Cutting into the crust releases the succulent veggies inside. Served with a little mountain of mashed potatoes, drizzled with a non-meaty gravy, and accompanied with a sidecar of add ons: parmesan, chopped onions, and pickled pepper slices. Oh yes.

Dish scores full points for ambiance and food, but there is one thing that has bothered me on a few of my visits. With no designated smoking and nonsmoking sections, nonsmokers have no escape from wafting second hand smoke from neighboring tables. I pine for the (far off?) day when Japan, too, bans smoking in eating establishments. In the meantime, dish is still a dandy place for a bite to eat.

practical informaion...

how to get there: Take the Odakyu line to Yoyogi-Uehara station, and use South exit #1 (南口１番出口), heading to the left as you exit. Dish is on your right less than a minute from the station, on the second floor of a red brick building with an external staircase.

address: 〒１５１−００６４東京都渋谷区上原１−３３−１６オオツカビル２階

Ootsuka building 2nd floor, 1-33-16 Uehara, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo 〒151-0064

telephone: 03-5465-6455

hours: open 12:00 - 3:00am. Lunch runs from 12:00 - 6:00 with a different menu, so the dishes mentioned above may not be available. There is a night charge of 10% added to the price of all items after (if my memory serves me correctly) 11pm.

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It's Vegetable: Taiwanese vegetarian cuisine in Tokyo

2012-02-01T07:03:00.000-08:00

Vegetarian restaurant, vegan friendly

A random Wednesday off today gave me a chance to check out a place I'd been meaning to go to for ages. Back in August I went on a short trip to Taiwan and since then I've been craving another dose ever so delicious Taiwanese veggie cuisine.

A 30 minute subway ride away from Shibuya, It's Vegetable is a bit of a hike out the areas of Tokyo I usually frequent, but a satisfying meal tonight and a good book for the train convinced me it was time well spent.

Some of the reviews on Happy Cow had mentioned that it was necessary or at least a good idea to make a reservation for this place, but I got the feeling one would be fine without one. That being said, the restaurant was nearly full when I left around 7pm (on a weeknight), so perhaps during peak times a reservation would be a good idea.

Lunches run buffet style, with all you can fit on a small, medium or large plate system (with some weight restrictions). Dinner can be ordered from an extensive menu of dishes, most of which feature soy based fake meats. Many of these items can be ordered either small (630¥) or large (840¥). I tried the braised "chicken" and mixed veggies with hot sauce, a flavorful dish with chewy meaty bits reminiscent of the sweet and sour pork of my childhood.

While nearly all of the menu is handwritten in both Japanese and English, the soup noodle section curiously has no English translations. The friendly owner kindly walked me through the soup varieties, and I selected the first one on the list, a shoyu (soy sauce) based soup topped with a variety of veggies (900¥).

My only regret with this dinner was that with only one stomach, I was limited in the number of items I was able to try. Given that there were so many yummy looking options I'd like to sample, I'll try to return here with friends and share a feast of little dishes.

It's Vegetable is easy to find. From Kinshicho (on the Hanzomon and Sobu Lines), head to exit 5, turning to your left as you exit. Take the first left from there, and you'll find the restaurant on your right within the first block.

As mentioned on the menu, while all items are vegetarian and contain no egg, some items do contain dairy products. If you are vegan, let the staff know and they'll point you in the the right direction.

Practical information...

address: 東京都墨田区錦糸4-1-9

4-1-9 Kinshi, Sumida-ku, Tokyo

telephone: 03-3625-1245

closed on Mondays

opening hours: lunch 11:45-2:30 (last order 2pm), dinner 5:30-10:00 (last order 9:30)

Tequila House

2012-01-05T04:54:00.000-08:00

vegetarian friendly restaurant

Well hello and happy new year to you! I'm nearing the end of a restful 11 day stretch of holidays here. I hope you are all feeling refreshed and ready to tackle your weekday lives again.

The first few days of the year are not ideal for dining out, with many places shut for a well deserved break from the daily grind. After calling up a few places I've been wanting to try, to no answer, I decided to head over to Koenji to try my luck. I'd had my eye on a few places dotting the shotengai that extends out from the station, and I was pleased to find my first choice, Tequila House, was open for business.

Heading into the restaurant, I immediately took a liking to the atmosphere. The brightly painted walls, well stocked bar, honky tonk music, and Mexican wrestler-infused decor made for a vibe I'd like to share with friends over a great meal and a few rounds of drinks. My date for the night, a copy of Jane Eyre, seemed a little at odds with the surroundings, but did not object when I ordered a Mexican mojito (700¥), which I believe contained both the usual rum and a dose of tequila for good measure.

On the menu, I saw a couple of options that seemed likely to be vegetarian. The avocado taco (350¥) looked like a good bet, with cheese, onion, jalapeño, onion, salsa (50¥ each), and guacamole (100¥) as possible add ons. I was also intrigued by the saboten (cactus) steak. I've seen this option on menus before but never had enough curiosity to override my desire for more familiar and safely delicious Mexican fare. If anyone out there has experience in the cactus steak department I'd love to hear your thoughts. I asked for the server's meat and fish free recommendation, and he pointed me in the direction of the ベジタブルタコス (vegetable taco- 450¥), which he said was a bigger portion than the avocado taco.

My vegetable taco was delicious mix of cheese, guacamole, salsa, and veggies on a flour tortilla. In the last few bites of my taco, I became aware that a creamy sauce drizzled over the mix had a distinctive ceasar salad dressing flavour. If you're a fish abstaining veggie like me, you'll probably be aware that ceasar dressing almost always contains anchovies, which puts it on my no-no list. I asked the server if he could kindly check the ingredient list for me, and as I suspected the dressing did in fact contain anchovy. So if you are equally picky about small quantities of fish, you'll probably want to order this dish without the ceasar dressing (see language note below for guidance). I'm not sure if they include this dressing in the other tacos, so it might be a good idea to check before ordering!

At 450¥ the vegetable taco was quite a bargain, and if you were looking for a light meal this would probably suffice. I was pretty hungry, though, so I took another look at the menu and ordered a mini plate of guacamole (I believe it was 350¥). This zesty guac was full of flavor and a nice size to accompany another dish.

The menu contains very little English, but does have lots of cute illustrations to help you order!

Overall, I was really pleased with my experience at Tequila house. They scored full points for atmosphere in my books, the food was delicious, and the prices quite reasonable. Yet another reason to love Koenji, definitely one of the coolest neighborhoods of Tokyo. I'm already plotting a return visit, this time with drinking companions!

How to get there: From Koenji station, head out through the turnstiles and immediately turn left. Turn left again at the bus loop, and walk straight across the road, heading towards the McDonalds. (Not far from McDonalds there's a liquor/ foreign food/ spice shop called Tokyo-ya that is worth a visit if you are a Tokyo resident!) Pass between the McDonalds and the KFC and head straight. You'll first walk for a few minutes through a covered shopping arcade, which turns into an uncovered arcade. Stay on this street and you'll be heading up a hill. You'll see Tequilla house on your right. It's about an eight minute walk from Koenji station.

Address: 〒166-0003東京都杉並区高円寺南3-23-19

Tokyo, Suginami, Koenjiminami, 3-23-19

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*Language note:
Koenji has pretty high foreigner traffic, so the young staff working at this place probably speak a bit of English. Regardless, this is a good phrase to remember even for those just visiting Japan! You can substitue the first bit with whatever you want left out.
シーザードレッシング 無しでお願いします。
shiizaa doresshingu nashi-de onegaishimasu.
Without ceasar dressing, please.

Ohana

2011-12-12T18:25:00.000-08:00

Organic Vegan restaurant

It's been a while since I've added a new restaurant review to the blog, so when I had a rare Tuesday off a few weeks ago, I figured it was a perfect opportunity to try out a new place. I met up with a friend in Shibuya, and we initially headed over to Vegan Healing Cafe, only to find it closed. This is the 3rd time I've gone during supposed opening hours and found it closed. Does anyone know for sure if it is still open? The website is up and running, and it seems like everything is fine. Do they just keep erratic hours?

Lunch venue plan B required a quick ride on the Denentoshi line over to Sangenjaya. A quick walk from the station found us stepping off the noisy, highwayside sidewalk, and into a little oasis of hippie vegan calm of Ohana.

We were pretty hungry but not particularly excited by the (Japanese only) menu. As far as I could decipher, the lunch menu choices consisted of an onigiri (rice ball) plate (780¥), a soup set (Tuesday's was a white stew with beans) with bread (880¥), a curry plate (880¥), or the daily plate served with rice (980¥), which was featuring white stew with beans. My friend and I decided to share the soup/ bread set and the onigiri plate, as curry is a too often used fallback for the hungry vegetarian or vegan dining out in Japan.

If I had to sum up Ohana's food in one word, I would say it was nice. The meals were simple, wholesome, and tasty enough. It was nothing mindblowing, and nothing that one couldn't fairly easily make at home.

The dessert plate (480¥) we ordered, a little piece of chocolate cake, and a slice of (if my memory serves me correctly) banana and ginger loaf didn't pack the decadence I hope for in a dessert. They reminded me more of the vegan banana bread I often bake for a healthy-ish at work snack when I am trying to avoid junking out on cookies and other tempting goodies.

Overall, our meal at Ohana was pleasant enough, but I can't say I'll be making any special trips to Sangenjaya to return. I could see eating there sometimes if I happened to work or live close by, or perhaps it would be a nice stop for a traveler tired of heavy restaurant food.

How to get there: From Sangenjaya station (on the Tokyu Denentoshi line and Setagaya line), take the south exit. Setagaya-dori and Route 246 merge in a Y shape right at the station, so you want to head along Route 246, towards the upper left arm of the Y. Ohana is just a couple blocks away from the south exit.

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Nan Station in Shimokitazawa

2011-11-14T17:45:00.000-08:00

Back in Canada, particularly in Vancouver, I used to go out for sushi pretty often. In Vancouver, sushi joints are everywhere (kind of like combinis in Japan), more often than not run by Korean immigrants, inexpensive and tasty. What I didn't really think about back in Canada was how un-Japanese the sushi I actually ate was. Sure I wouldn't refuse a piece of kappa or oshinko maki, but the rolls I usually ordered were usually stuffed with avocado, an assortment of vegetables, or yam tempura. Try to find sushi like that in Japan and you're going to be sadly disappointed. And sadly disappointed I was, and also in need of a new fallback cuisine. Right on cue, Bollywood dancing into my heart, came the Indian restaurant.

Don't get me wrong. I've always been an appreciator of a good Indian meal. Living in Montreal I savored many a dirt-cheap and oh-so-satisfying thali. But living in Vancouver or Montreal, with such an abundance of amazing vegetarian and vegan restaurants (and clearly marked options, or comprehending staff in omni places), I just didn't rely on Indian places in the same way. In Japan they've become the safe bet that I'll take when in an unfamiliar neighborhood and not in the mood to do a lot of menu deciphering and explaining. Indian places are also a good bet for dining with omni friends who, despite being cool about my dietary choices, would rather bite into something meaty.

By our old house in Higashimurayama, we had a favorite Indian place that we went almost once a week. Since moving to Setagaya last December, and having a few places we liked close down or take a dive in quality, we had been on the hunt for a cheap and tasty Indian place, which also had to be in one of the areas we find our selves in often, namely Shinjuku, Shibuya, or the Shimokitazawa area. Our hunt was over when, about 6 weeks ago, a friend and I decided to try a little place in Shimokita called Nan Station.

Nan Station is a pleasant little hole in the wall, with just two tables inside plus bar style single seating. Outside on the patio there are two more tables, and the whole place is open air as during the warmer months. The prices are unbeatable, with their cheapest curry and nan sets costing only 500¥ (or 340¥ for just curry)! The lovely staff speak English, and said they can prepare vegan curries and rice on request.

It's not the prettiest curry I've ever ordered, but consistently tasty, and undeniably a bargain.

If you go to Nan Station I highly recommend that in addition to your curry, you try an order of aloo achar. This server translated the name of this dish into English as potato pickles. I can't say it was like any pickles I've ever eaten, but this flavorful dish of cooked potatoes with chilies, spices and sesame oil was a big hit with myself and both friends that have accompanied me to this restaurant. Recently, A-chan and I have taken to splitting one order of nan between two curries, so that we can each order our own aloo achar without feeling like gluttons You won't find this item on the regular menu they hand you, but rather on a separate appetizer list, which seems to get handed out when the restaurant is less busy. So if you don't see it on the menu, ask for it by name (potato pickles also works)!

aloo achar (potato pickles)

Nan station is also a comfy place for a meal for one, as there are always a few singles seated at the bar. It also seems to be popular with expats, as there always seem to be a few non-Japanese faces around, often seen chatting with the friendly staff.

So if you are in the Shimokitazawa area with a hankering for curry, do give Nan Station a try. You just might become a regular!

How to get there: From the North (北) exit of Shimokitazawa station, head to the right for a few blocks. When the road comes to a T, head to the left. You'll soon see Nan Station on the ground level on your left.

Address: 東京都世田谷区北沢２−３０−１１北沢ビルB１F

Kitazawa Building, 2-30-11 Kitazawa, Setagaya-ku, Tokyo

telephone: 03-5454-3006

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Vi-Sand: Vietnamese subs in Shimokitazawa

2011-11-08T07:42:00.000-08:00

(somewhat) vegetarian friendly restaurant (will customize on request)

Youthful, eclectic Shimokita is a cool little area not 10 minutes away from Shibuya on the Keio Inokashira line. It's only about a 15 minute walk from my house, and I'm often there on weekends, poking around, perusing my favourite thrift shop or picking up some groceries. So it's a bit surprising to me that in the last 6 months of blogging, I've only mentioned something specific to Shimokitazawa once, in my natto vending machine post back in June. The truth is, despite it looking very much like a place that I would imagine to be a veggie hotspot, Shimokita has failed to deliver in the veggie restaurant department. If you know of any places, I'd be happy to be proven wrong!

In the meantime, I have had some tasty veggie meals in some onmi restaurants, including a newish restaurant by the name of Vi-Sand. Specializing in Vietnamese sandwiches, you're not going to find a lot of veggie options on the menu, but I can recommend the tofu and vegetable sub. This sandwich usually includes liver pâté, so make sure to tell the staff if you are vegetarian and would like yours without! Your baguette will come stuffed with tofu, fresh veggies, your choice of cilantro or mint, and hot sauce if you so desire. When I dined there on Friday evening, my sandwich and mini side of potato salad came to 750¥. While it's not an especially filling meal if you are a big eater, it would be a nice size for a sensible lunch, or to compliment with dessert, or perhaps another dish to share with a friend.

Vi-sand is quite easy to find. From Shimokitazawa's South (南) exit, head towards the McDonalds, through the archway and straight down the street for one block. Take the first left after the McDonalds, where there is a Docomo shop on the corner. You'll see Vi-sand just ahead on your left.

Tokyo Vege Food Festa 2011

2011-10-25T07:24:00.000-07:00

Due to some stormy weather on the morning of Saturday the 15th, day one of this year's festival was cancelled. Lucky for vendors and festival goers alike, Sunday was a lovely day- it was even a bit hot! Lots of people came out and I was happy to see the vendors making pretty good sales. Many of the stands even had quite long lines. How great was it to see people lining up for vegan food in Tokyo?!

I purposely ate a light breakfast that morning, and A-chan and I hopped off the train early, so we got a good 30 minute walk on the way to the park. I wanted to make sure I'd have a good appetite for sampling the festival's offerings.

We hit up the ingredients/ cook at home section first, did a lot of browsing, and picked up a jar of my favourite organic peanut butter and a Viana "Picknicker" veggie pepperoni stick. I was also tempted to buy some agave syrup, as I see it pop up so often in tasty looking vegan recipes.

After heading over to the read-to-eat area, I couldn't resist trying a nikuman from the Loving Hut stand. I've noticed this item on the menu in the restaurant, but I think they don't actually offer it anymore. No surprise, it was delicious, with a soft, doughy exterior and chewy little chunks of salty-sweet mock meat inside. I'm always curious to hear how mock meat dishes compare to the original, and my omni co-tester said our nikuman was a convincing fake.

We did some browsing to see what other goodies were on offer. This stand had an interesting concept. Apparently aiming to cash in on 萌え (moe) appeal, these girls dressed as cheerleader/ furry animals would shake your karaage with spices while saying "furi-furi" (shake-shake) and flashing sugary smiles. It's not really my thing but I can see it working in Akihabara!

A-chan tried some harumaki (spring roles) from Chein-Fu's stand. This amazing Taiwanese vegetarian food company used to have a restaurant in Osu, Nagoya and one in Tachikawa, Tokyo. As far as I know both closed down. Did they open up new locations?!? I really wanted to ask the people working at the booth, but they were pretty busy serving customers. I'll have to research this, as the Chien-Fu restaurants served up some of my favourite veggie meals I've enjoyed in Japan.

My next order was a bowl of colourful taco rice from Blue Cafe, which featured a pickled beet and onion topping. I'd never heard of this restaurant before, but according to the flyer they gave me, this place is an Okinawan and Mexican food joint in Fujisawa, Kanagawa. As far as I know, the restaurant isn't actually vegetarian (though I imagine they offer some veg-friendly dishes), but it looks pretty cool and laid back.

Alas, by the time I saw this Indian place grilling up (what looked like) veggie versions of tandoori kebabs, I was already pretty full.

I also wanted to try these tasty looking veggie burgers from Ain Soph. Lucky for me, I bumped into a friend who was about to bite into one, and was kind enough to offer me a taste. Don't you love friends who share food? It was a pleasant bite, and I've put Ain Soph on my list of restaurants to try.

All in all, I was satisfied by my experience at the Vege Food Festa. It was great to see lots of public interest in vegan food, many happy faces of people chowing down on their meals, and also to pique my own interest in some new restaurants. For those of you who made it to the festival, I'd love to hear what you thought of it!

What does a vegetarian eat at Oktoberfest?

2011-10-12T07:02:00.000-07:00

I've never met a pickled vegetable I didn't like. Getting friendly with my sauerkraut, was a chewy pretzel, and of course a mug of beer. It's not usually my alcohol of choice, but it was fun to try a few new kinds at this year's Yokohama Oktoberfest.

hisashiburi veggie dog

2011-10-10T19:34:00.000-07:00

Sunday morning we rolled out of bed and over to Spiral Aoyama to catch the film Romeos, presented by the Tokyo International Lesbian and Gay Film Festival. We really enjoyed it, and it was great to see such a crowd come out on a Sunday morning to support queer film. After the show was over, A-chan had a craving for soymilk ramen, so we hopped on the subway and made our way to Yotsuya-sanchome to pay a visit to Loving Hut.

If you've been following my blog for a while and have read my original Loving Hut review you'll know I'm a big fan of this place. While I was tempted to order up a bowl of soymilk ramen myself, I opted for the veggie dog plate, as it was one of the only Loving Hut meals I haven't tried. While I don't really think of veggie dogs as restaurant food, they're not something you can buy in a grocery store in Japan. In fact, I think this was the first veggie dog I've eaten since I moved to Japan three years ago. Crazy! While they're certainly not my favourite vegetarian meal, a veggie dog is such a tasty, simple comfort food that it's hard to believe I went so long without eating one. The Loving Hut version was satisfying enough, but I have to say the star of that plate was one of the tiny side dishes. This morsel of sweet and sour mock meat packed a punch! I hope to see it appearing as a main dish someday soon.

I mentioned that the veggie dog was one of my few remaining yet to be sampled Loving Hut dishes. Lucky for me, my friend ordered the only other meal I hadn't tried, which was the curry plate. Given that Indian food is an often used safe bet for me when dining with omnivore companions, I hardly ever order curry when I make it to a vegetarian restaurant. So I was quite pleased when my friend opted for the curry plate and put up no resistance when I demanded a spoonful for my "research". It was a nicely spiced, but not too spicy curry, peppered with chewy, ground meat-like TVP.

We finished off our meal by sharing a piece of vegan cheesecake, topped with blueberry sauce, between the four of us. Very impressive! I've tried a number of vegan cheesecakes in my time, and generally they are tasty enough as long as one doesn't try to compare them to an actual cheesecake. (Which is probably easier for long time vegans!) Loving Hut's vegan cheesecake was truly delicious and didn't have that tofu taste that vegan versions sometimes do. This guy has won a place on my Loving Hut recommendation list!

Now that I've tried all the main dishes, I can confidently recommend the veggie burger plate, soymilk ramen, and cheesecake as my top Loving Hut picks. What are your favourites?

*Language note: hisashiburi, which appeared in the title of this post, means "it's been a long time" or "long time no see!"

a veggie feast at the Namaste India festival

2011-10-03T19:44:00.000-07:00

The weekend before last was a delicious one for Tokyo vegetarians. Yoyogi Park's event area was taken over by India, and that meant a congregation of cheap and tasty meat-free meal options. I headed over on Sunday, and before I had reached the park I'd already decided on my first course. Friends that had gone Saturday recommended I try a South Indian meal, including a light and crispy crepe-like bread called dosa.

According to a quick Wiki search, dosa batter is made from ground rice and lentils. For masala dosa, they pour the batter on a griddle, spread it out, and when it's nearly cooked, a mix of potatoes, onions and spices is added. If we can trust Wikipedia, there's an interesting story that goes along with why the mix is placed inside the wrap. Apparently a potato and spice mix used to be served along side the dosa, but during a potato shortage, vendors started mixing in onions to compensate. As orthodox Hindus and Jains aren't supposed to eat onions, vendors placed the mix inside the wrap to conceal the onions. Sneaky!

While I was enjoying my masala dosa, I noticed a lot of people around me eating little crispy egg shaped morsels. I watched a mum crack open a little hole in the top of the ball, spoon something inside, pour sauce over it, and feed the whole thing to her kid. I decided I needed to try some for myself!

The morsel in question turned out to be a sev puri, a popular Indian snack sold by street vendors. What a mix of flavors! Due to the sauces drizzled on top, these guys were sweet, salty and sour. Add that to a crunchy deep fried bread ball. Wow!

We had to take a break from eating with a bit, so we browsed the shopping area, and tried a few glasses of 300¥ a pop Indian wine. Not bad! When we were ready for another nibble, we opted to try aloo tikki. This yummy little potato cutlet disappeared quickly between the four of us, so we had to go back for a second order.

Above are two of my companions for the day. We had such a lovely time! It was nice to have the chance to try a few new Indian dishes. I go for Indian food pretty often, but always order curry and nan. Now that I know what these newly discovered dishes are, I'll happily order them if I see them on a menu.

With the Namaste India Festival behind us, the next Yoyogi Park event I'll be attending is the Tokyo Vege Food Festa on the 15th and 16th. While the reviews I've heard of previous festivals have been mixed, I'm really looking forward to this one. I hope to see lots of you out there!

No Pork?

2011-09-27T19:25:00.000-07:00

神座 (Kamukura) - vegetarian beware!

The weekend before last I had the pleasure of hanging out with a dear Canadian friend of mine who was visiting Japan for a few days on the way home from an artist's tour of Beijing. After finishing work on Friday evening, I met her at Hachiko*. We were hungry, and I wanted to take her somewhere that would really stink of classic Japan.

This ramen shop, four blocks from Tsutaya / Starbucks on centa-gai in Shibuya had caught my eye a number of times. Due to their use of pork stock as a base, conventional ramen shops are generally just a no go, as there are no veggie options or easy ways to modify this dish to make it veggie-friendly. What made this place stand out was a large English sign hanging under their menu that claimed their ramen could be made without pork on request. I consulted with a staff member on our way in, who assured me that as their soup stock was shoyu (soy sauce), based and meat free, there would be no meat or fish used whatsoever if I gave the "no pork" instruction.

We headed in, took a seat at the counter, and started to catch up, talking about how our lives had evolved in the 3 years since we'd last met. Our ramen arrived and we dug in. One thing I liked about this place was that there were a number of add ons you could make to your meal. I always find ramen a bit lacking in the vegetable department, so I appreciated that for 100¥, I could get a little side of bean sprouts to top up my dish. It was fairly tasty, though I'm happy to report, I found it no match for the veggie ramen offered by Loving Hut, T's Tan Tan, or (my favorite) Cafe Proverbs 15:17 in Kyoto or their Tokyo sister Kickback Cafe.

I was satisfied by the experience until, near the end of the bowl, my chopsticks pulled up a little chunk of something distinctly meaty. It was an unhappy end to the meal, but I tried not to let it kill the good vibes the evening. I now regret leaving the restaurant without saying anything. I was struggling to think of a polite way to explain in Japanese that I was really disappointed by the apparent lack of care that let a chunk of pork slip into a meal that was promised to be without. Other than being upsetting for vegetarians, this kind of thing could be a really big deal for those whose religions forbid eating pork, or people with allergies. Alas, I couldn't think of a good way to explain this without making too much of a scene, so we just left. As for the reason the pork ended up in my ramen, my guess is that they do in fact use a vegetarian, shoyu base, but that they're not particularly careful with the utensils they use to transfer ingredients around. Which is something they might want to work on if they're going to display a huge "we can cook every noodle without pork" sign.

On a more positive note, I'm glad to say this is only the third such incident I've had in my 3 years in Japan, and given that I've done a whole lot of dining out, I consider it not too bad an error rate. So I suppose my conclusion is that if it's important for you to feel sure you are digging into a meat free ramen, you are advised to give 神座 (Kamukura) a miss.

* Hachiko is a popular meeting spot in front of Shibuya station, named after a famously loyal dog.

festival bits and bites

2011-09-21T02:26:00.000-07:00

When we were sent home from work early this afternoon I thought this typhoon holiday was going to be the equivalent of a snow day. Then the wind and rain started looking like legitimate threats and Tokyo is now being pummeled by the craziest storm I've seen around here! So while my windows rattle and threaten to blow in, I'll distract myself with some pretty pictures taken over the last few weeks.

I wanted to share a few images from the Sri Lankan and Nepalese festivals at Yoyogi Park. Though most of the offerings were meaty in nature, there are always vegan and vegetarian goodies to be found as well. Next weekend, India will be taking over the event square, so come on an empty stomach!

Lots of people were walking around drinking coconut water (juice?) straight from the source.

Spices! Though this tent was baking hot, I rifled around this pile until I located some hard-to-find-in-Japan goodies.

There was tea everywhere at the Sri Lankan festival. Boxed tea, loose tea, hot milk tea, iced tea...

This baked samosa-like-morsel was called a 野菜ゴダンバ, or vegetable godamba. A quick google search tells me that godamba is the name of the roti. So delicious I had to go back for a second one.

Enjoying a cool shaved ice with mango and sweet condensed milk.

The day of the Nepalese festival was a scorcher so this watermelon smoothie hit the spot.

Design Festa jihanki

2011-09-20T18:20:00.000-07:00

Another specimen for the jihanki (vending machine) drawer. We encountered this colourful anomaly in front of the Design Festa Gallery in Harajuku. We loved the details, like making the money in and out openings into mouths, and the equally cool containers for recycling empties.

More Yoyogi Park Festivals

2011-09-18T23:37:00.000-07:00

Hello! It's a national holiday in Japan today (Respect for the Aged Day) and I am spending the day resting and recovering from a busy weekend and getting things in order for the week. It's so nice to have a day to clean, do yoga, make onigiri for the week, and catch up on some posts which I've been wanting to share with you.

The last few weekends I've had the chance to pop over to Yoyogi Park and check out the festivals taking place in the event area. On September 10th and 11th, the Sri Lanka festival was on, and on the 17th and 18th, Vietnam took over the main event area, with Nepal rocking the pedestrian road that leads up to Yoyogi Park from Shibuya. Looking back at my own Yoyogi Park event listing post, I found that I had listed none of these events! Not sure if this was a result of the events not being listed when I compiled the info for that post, or perhaps a result of my less than amazing Japanese reading ability. Anyway, I thought it was about time to update my list.

Yoyogi Park event schedule for September and October 2011

September 24th (Sat) - 25th (Sun): Namaste India

September 25th (Sun): Tokyo Earth Day Market (along the pedestrian walkway leading to the park)

September 30th (Fri)- October 2nd (Sun): Hokkaido Fair

October 8th (Sat)-10th (Mon): Come, See, Eat, Be Moved! Kyushu Sightseeing Fair

October 15th (Sat)- 16th (Sun): Veggie Food Festa

How much do you love this tea vendor's sign? Spotted at the Sri Lanka festival.

veggies strut their stuff at Vegetable Sushi Potager

2011-09-13T08:59:00.000-07:00

vegetarian restaurant

I'd been wanting to go to this place for months, after reading a review printed in Metropolis magazine. Vegetable Sushi Potager's concept is one inherently appealing to vegetarians: to celebrate seasonal vegetables, making them the heart of the meal, rather than simply side dishes to meat or fish. This restaurant is entirely vegetarian, and they can also prepare a vegan selection if you let them know in advance.

Their dinners are a bit pricy, at 5,250¥ and up, so we opted for a lunch visit, where meals start at 1,575¥. We arrived at 2:00 on the dot, exactly the time for their last lunch order. Their closed sign was already up, but when I squawked to the staff member showing 2 customers out, we were let in. They had already sold out of the chirashi-zushi (1,575¥), so we ordered two nigiri-zushi (2,100¥) sets.

While the restaurant does have some tables for larger groups, smaller parties are seated at the counter around their gorgeous open kitchen, where you can watch your meal being carefully assembled on a stretch of ample counter space that (as fellow Tokyoites will understand why) we looked upon with great envy. While we waited, we took in the carefully constructed decor. This place oozes an oshare (stylish)-natural, modern vibe, with green and neutral colouring, and seasonal displays decorating the shelves forming the backdrop behind the kitchen.

Our first plate of nigiri arrived, and we were given a brief explanation of each of the 5 spectacular looking morsels laid out before us. Each piece was unique, and sauces and seasonings used sparingly to play up but not overwhelm the natural flavor and texture of the vegetables. Many of the nigiri looked an awful lot like regular sushi: the uni, for example, was rather convincingly played by a lovely carrot mousse. Despite the visual resemblance, many of these little bites proved to be rather un-sushi like in flavor, delving into rather un-Japanese kinds of delicious.

Along with the 10 pieces of nigiri we were also served a little bowl of (combu, not katsuo-based) miso soup and a lovely cup of tea at the end of the meal.

Vegetable Sushi Potager is not the kind of place that I'd become a regular. The places I frequent tend to be a bit noisier and a bit less polished, so I can feel at ease being my noisy, not so daintily eating self. We were, however, thoroughly impressed with our meal, and I'd love to return from time to time to sample another season of vegetables or celebrate a special occasion. If you are a vegetarian living in or visiting Tokyo you have my recommendation to give this place a try, as they offer a unique dining experience you will not soon forget.

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おすすめ / recommendation: Though we sampled no other dish to compare, the nigiri-zushi was delish and reasonably priced

good points: unique, delicious, healthy, seasonal, all vegetarian, beautiful food

bad points: dinners are a bit pricy

hours: Lunch 11am-3pm (Last order 2pm), dinner 5-11pm (last order 10pm). To keep everything at its freshest, they have a limited quantity of dishes available so making a reservation or arriving early may be wise!

address: Roppongi Keyakizaki Dori, Roppongi Hills, 6-9-1-1F, Roppongi, Minato-ku, Tokyo

〒106-0032
東京都港区六本木6-9-1六本木ヒルズ六本木けやき坂通り1F

From Roppongi Station (on the Hibiya Line) take exit 1C

From Azabu Juban Station (on the Oedo Line) take exit 7

Head to the green arrow!

大きな地図で見る

Their website has a lot of English content! Check them out here for more information.

Loving Hut

2011-09-09T01:37:00.000-07:00

vegan restaurant

This building! Head up to the 2nd floor.

On Sunday we paid a long overdue visit to Loving Hut. Despite being impressed with this place the first time I went there, around 2 years ago, I never find myself in the Yotsuya-sanchome neighborhood. I realize this is quite a ridiculous excuse, as it's literally a 5 minute subway ride from Shinjuku.

In the mood to take a little walk, we hopped off the subway at Akebonobashi station. That area has nostalgic value for me, as the Ace Inn Hostel was my original Tokyo homebase, back when I was night bussing up from Mie for little weekend hits of urban life. Walking those streets I can still feel traces of those Tokyo butterflies, and it reminded me how lucky I am to call this amazing city home.

On the way we found an alcohol vending machine, which seem to be becoming less common these days.

Booze vending machine! And yes, that is a zebra print dress I'm wearing. A-chan calls it my Osaka obasan dress, which is not a compliment.

We arrived at Loving Hut and promptly ordered 3 meals to share between the 2 of us. I felt like a bit of a glutton when the three trays arrived, but as the food is pretty light so it turned out to be a good amount for 2 hungry people.

The first to arrive was a delicious bowl of soymilk ramen topped with green onion and ground mock meat (650¥). It had a lovely, rich flavor, though I wouldn't have minded seeing a few more vegetables involved.

Next came the zen tanpin* (500¥), a slab of mock unagi on a bed of rice. Though I can't compare the taste to real unagi (as I've never tried it), I found this dish reasonably tasty, but a definite third place to the two other yummy meals we ordered. As the name suggests, this can also be ordered as part of a meal plate.

My favourite of the three was the veggie burger plate (1000¥). The very tasty, though little, burger is accompanied by an assortment of sides: a soup, a salad, pickles, a tiny side of curried vegetables, a piece of vegetable korokke and a few bites of dessert.

Loving hut is a small place with just a few tables and lunch bar type seating along the windows and back wall. The interior is clean, bright, and homey, with little grannyish touches like handmade fabric cozies for the napkin dispensers. You'll find copies of vegetarian magazines and other animal loving books, and perhaps not to everyone's liking, a (rather unobtrusive!) video looping religious vegan propaganda playing softly in the background.

Would it be too cheesy of me to say that I feel the love that goes into running Loving Hut? From the decor to the carefully prepared, healthy meals, it's clear that a lot of heart goes into the finished product.

See what I mean by grannyish touches? I love the wallpaper in the washroom.

Language note:
*tanpin (単品 or たんぴん）means a single item or à la carte. When ordering an item that can be ordered with or without a set, this is a useful word to know.

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おすすめ / recommendation: veggie burger plate

good points: cheap, healthy, delicious vegan meals, cute decor, easy to find

bad points: the religious element may not be everyone's cup of tea, big eaters may find the portions a bit small

address: 6-15 2F Yotsuya Sanchome, Shinjuku-ku

東京都新宿区四谷三丁目６−１５２F　

how to get there:
Take the Marunouchi line to Yotsuya Sanchome station, and use exit 4. From the exit, head slightly to the left (walk past Bakery Cafe Antendo). Take a left at the first corner, and you'll see Loving Hut on your right on the second floor.

大きな地図で見る

Quick Bites: Soup Stock Tokyo

2011-09-05T07:31:00.000-07:00

This is my kind of fast food!

When I'm out and about and need a quick meal, I'll sometimes pop into a Soup Stock Tokyo.
Conveniently placed in a number of major train stations, this chain offers a rotating menu of daily soups, and one of these will usually be a vegetarian (and often vegan) option. This Saturday, their veggie offering at the Meguro location was a lovely gazpacho. With your choice of a little bun or rice, your meal comes to about 700¥, and for 900¥ you can tack on a drink. While not quite as dirt cheap as traditional fast food, it is a healthy and easy choice, and I like the ambience of their stores, which are easy on the eyes with a lot of stainless steel and wood.

One of the things that makes Soup Stock Tokyo stand apart from other quick bite places in Japan is the clarity of their labeling. Under the (Japanese only) description of their soup, you will find an allergy alert section where they will list if they've used such items as nuts, soba, meat products, milk and eggs. When I ask to double check there are no fish or meat ingredients, the staff always check the full list of ingredients (and often show it to me), instead of giving a typically vague Japanese answer along the lines of "it should probably be okay", or "I'm not really sure". As a vegetarian, I really appreciate that kind of openness, and I'm sure it's also good for the peace of mind of those with serious allergies.

いただきます！*

*itadakimasu is what Japanese people say before eating. It means something like "I (humbly) receive". I really like the idea of vocalizing an appreciation for the food you are about to eat. It's sort of embarrassing for me that there isn't a secular English equivalent!

Summer festival food

2011-08-30T18:32:00.000-07:00

One of the many things I adore about Japan is the many traditional festivals throughout the year. In the summer, every town has its own little (or huge!) festival complete with taiko drumming, drinking, omikoshi (portable shrine carried or pulled by residents), and people clad in yukata or jinbei. The real reason people come, of course, is the food. A visit to a summer festival can't be fully enjoyed without eating some kind of food on a stick! In general, eating while walking or in random public places (such as on a train platform) is frowned upon and not done except by clueless foreigners and naughty high school students. Festivals, thankfully, are an exception to this rule, and you can see all kinds of people not so daintily enjoying street food and boozing in the streets. Horray!

While most festival foods are not vegetarian friendly, I'd like to introduce you to a few of the options available for those who would rather pass on whole grilled squid on a stick.

Hot, steamy じゃがバター (jyaga bataa) is just a baked potato, salt, and a slab of butter thrown on top. Mayonaise optional. Simple and delicious!

If it's a steamy hot day, a lovely cool 冷やしきゅうり(hiyashi kyuuri) is always nice. While these cucumbers are usually just seasoned with salt, I think they may occasionally contain katsuodashi, so if you are not a fish eater it's a good idea to double check.

This is the first time I can recall seeing 冷やしトマト(hiyashi tomato) as a festival food option. It's just a cut up chilled tomato, with perhaps a sprinkle of salt.

焼きとうもろこし(yaki toumorokoshi), or grilled corn on the cob, is a satisfying vegetarian festival food option. While it's usually safe, the sauce may occasionally contain meaty or fishy extracts so I always ask the vendor before buying.

Moving on to sweets, your least junky option may be a chocolate dipped banana. So cute, but unfortunately the chocolate they use tends to be super low quality so I often find the taste a bit disappointing. Not that this has ever stopped me from getting one.

A sure Japanese festival classic is かき氷 (kakigoori), or shaved ice. Like a snow cone, these guys are usually topped by brightly coloured sugary flavored syrups, and sometimes condensed milk is also poured on top. You can occasionally find more gourmet stands serving syrups made with real juice and frozen fruit. I love the (now rare) old fashioned machines with the hand crank!

Mini castella (sponge cake) is another of the regulars. You can find these little bite sized cakes shaped into characters like Kitty-chan (Hello Kitty), Doraemon, and Pikachu, selling in bags of about 20 pieces and up.

I don't think I've ever actually tried あんず飴 (anzu-ame), despite how pretty they are. Apparently they're made from an apricot (and sometimes other fruit) surrounded by a glutinous starch syrup. Throw a stick in there, ice, and you're ready to go.

Happy nibbling! What's your favourite vegetarian summer festival food? I'm curious to hear about local specialties across Japan. For my international readers, what's your favorite veggie summer festival food in your country?

Nagi Shokudo

2011-08-25T06:46:00.000-07:00

vegan restaurant

I've made it over the last hurdle of the summer: my school's second sleep away camp. Added to the long days and superhuman energy expenditures required, this camp was a challenge for me because (as I mentioned a few posts back) I had to bring all of my own food for the 3 days. It turned out quite well as there was a fridge and microwave in the dining area, and a dish soap and sponge equipped sink nearby to wash my dish. My meals consisted of those ready to eat Indian curries, tofu burger patties, bread, natto, and a supply of fresh fruit and vegetables. The kids got such a kick out of seeing me eat fruit and veggies as is, as it's pretty well unheard of in Japan. The (non-vegetarian) meals provided by the camp were popular enough with the kids, but the other teachers were pretty unimpressed. A lot of my coworkers were wishing they had brought their own stash too!

Back in Tokyo, with a day off to relax before heading back to a regular class schedule, I thought it was about time to do another restaurant post. I'd never been to Nagi Shokudo before, but I'd heard good things. My trusty Japan Vegan Restaurant Pocketguide said it's quite popular, and reviews on Happy Cow are positive. The restaurant has a relaxed vibe, completed by an array of knick knacks as decoration, books and zines around to peruse, and interesting musical selections. Half of the dining space is a raised platform for low Japanese table style dining, and the other half standard tables and chairs.

I was inclined to order the 2 person dinner set, as they tend to be crowd pleasers, and as they often move faster than other menu items, tend to be fresh. A-chan thought the set looked a little heavy on the karaage type fried items, so we ordered a selection of other menu items. The stir fried cucumber and yam (nagaimo) (350¥) turned out to be rather disappointing. It lacked flavor and the several of the nagaimo pieces were staring to go bad. The plate of sliced tomatoes and avocado with tofu mayo (350¥) were nothing to write home about, but not bad either. We tried their eggplant and mushroom curry (480¥) next. It had a nice flavor, but quite watery in texture. The ratatouille was reasonably tasty and I had no complaints about the brown rice (actually genmai), pickles and miso soup set (350¥)... except perhaps that you only get two tiny slices of pickles. The tastiest item we ordered was definitely the falafel with tofu sour sauce, perhaps not coincidentally also the only deep fried item we had. Maybe we should have gone for the 2 person dinner set after all!

Other than not being all that impressed with the food, I should mention that A-chan found the interior of the place quite unappealing. She said the washroom and the open kitchen looked pretty dirty, the utensils and menu had seen better days and the decor looked more like an oddly decorated house than a restaurant. In my eyes, the place just looked relaxed and a bit quirky, and I didn't find it dirty. But hey, I'm someone who eats food that falls on the floor, so I tend to be quite relaxed about such things. Overall, given the wealth of great veggie food options in Tokyo, Nagi Shokudo is not going on my list of places to return to, though if I did end up back there, I'd like to give the dinner or (well reviewed) lunch set a try.

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menu: In Japanese and often oddly translated English

おすすめ / recommendation: falafel with tofu sour sauce, plus I hear the lunch plates are yummy

good points: relaxed setting, zines available for your reading pleasure if that's your kinda thing

bad points: the food was so-so overall and sometimes not very fresh

Address: 15-10-103 Uguisu Dani-cho, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo

東京都渋谷区鶯谷町１５−１０−１０３

It's about 10 minutes walk from the South exit of Shibuya station.

大きな地図で見る

Living it up in Vegetarian friendly Taiwan

2011-08-18T06:45:00.000-07:00

Hello friends! I'm back home now after a lovely 6 day trip to Taiwan. We had a great time and found that our money really went a long way, it was possible to really live it up and still have money left over at the end of the trip. Other than the flight, I think we only spent about 70, 000¥ for the two of us.

One of my favourite things about travelling in Taiwan was the food. Compared to veggie life in Japan, Taiwan was quite easy, as everyone understands the meaning of vegetarian. According to Wikipedia, about 10% of the Taiwanese population is vegetarian at least some of the time. Coupled with the Taiwanese culture of dining out, that means that you can find a vegetarian restaurant pretty much anywhere! The trick, of course, is finding one of these places, particularly if you can't speak or read Mandarin. While there is quite a lot of English spoken in Taiwan, particularly by younger people and those who work in tourism, most vegetarian restaurants don't get a lot of foreign customers, and are unlikely to have English signage. To help you identify vegetarian places, I recommend you remember these characters: 素食 (sùshí) can be found as part of the restaurant name or otherwise prominently displayed out front, or as a heading for a veggie section of an omnivorous menu. My guide book said that looking for a savastika (卍 Buddhist symbol that looks like a backwards swastika) is a good way to identify vegetarian restaurants, but I didn't notice any of these symbols in sight at many of the places we visited.

Did you spot the characters for sùshí?

This sign was on the inside of the same restaurant. So no savastika outside, but here it is on the menu of the vegetarian options.

It would be, of course also very helpful to learn how to say "I'm vegetarian" in Mandarin. At the first hotel we stayed at, I asked the clerk to teach me how to say this, and also to write it down on a piece of paper (我是素食者). Unfortunately, upon trying this phrase out in restaurants, the staff either had no idea of what I was trying to say, or thought I was asking for sushi- apparently my tones need a little work! So in the end, I found that a flashing my piece of paper, and using sign language was the most effective. Ordering in Taiwanese restaurants often involves marking off your desired order on a (pictureless) menu/ orderform. If you can't read Mandarin at all it's a bit hilarious, as you'll have no idea what you are getting, but in a vegetarian place (if you aren't a picky eater) that can be kind of fun. Checking out what other diners are eating and gesturing wildly towards a meal that looks yummy is also a good bet. Veggie places in Taiwan feature lots of dishes with often scarily convincing but delicious mock meat. From what I understand, the food should be mostly vegan, but one blog I read on the topic said some dishes might contain (non vegan) mayonaise, some restaurants will use eggs and sweets might contain dairy. So vegans (who don't speak any Mandarin) would probably be safer bringing some written down phrases to double check. Another note about Taiwanese vegetarian food is that it also doesn't contain onions or garlic. I can't imagine cooking without, but in a way this just adds to my awe of how delicious Taiwanese veggie cuisine is!

You will find a lot of vegetarian buffets in Taiwan. I found that even after stuffing myself silly, I generally felt pretty good and that "too full" feeling didn't stick around to haunt me.

One thing vegetarian travelers, especially those living in Japan, will appreciate is the abundance of cheap and delicious fruit in Taiwan! Living in Canada, fruit always made up a good chunk of my diet, but given the cost of fruit in Japan, my choices are usually limited. Fresh fruit juices, smoothies, and tea/juice blends are also popular in Taiwan and can be found as easily as the ubiquitous convenience stores. Be warned, though- Taiwanese people have a sweet tooth, and sugar is often added to juice and smoothies. I'm not sure if this is standard, but when I ordered a fresh watermelon juice, the vendor poured in something that looked like vegetable oil, so it might be wise to keep an eye on what's being added and be prepared to intervene if this is something you'd rather leave out.

Yummy fresh juice will only set you back around NT$25- around 100¥ or a bit more than $1 Canadian or US.

So if you're considering countries in Asia for a vacation, Taiwan is a great choice. You'll find a good amount of English signage (at least in Taipei and near Taroko National Park), clean and convenient public transport options, warm and friendly people, and great shopping (the night markets are fun and cheap if you can handle the crowds). I hear there are also beautiful beaches and great hiking if you venture out of the cities. The delicious, cheap, veggie friendly food is sure to please vegetarian and vegan travelers, and if you are a tea lover, you are in for a treat! I heart Taiwan. Seriously.

Fuji Rock and surviving summer camp

2011-08-07T19:38:00.000-07:00

久しぶり！It's been 3 weeks since my last post, as I've been busy with all sorts of summery things. The last weekend of July I headed up to Niigata for the Fuji Rock Festival. Not wanting to blow my summer travel budget, I decided to go as part of a work team with one of the vendors. My booth was a rather un-vegetarian friendly establishment, as we served fish and chips, meat pies, beer and gin and tonics. Luckily, the boss was cool and hooked me up with some free veggie meals from the other vendors. Overall, the festival is decent when it comes to vegetarian selection, so if you are going as a guest, you shouldn't have any problems finding food. I didn't get to see a lot of music, as we worked pretty long hours, but we had a great crew and it was a lot of fun to soak in the festival atmosphere. A piece of advice to future Fuji Rockers: bring rain boots! It rained a lot this year, and the sea of mud was intense.

Don't even think of coming to Fuji Rock without rain boots and a waterproof jacket (or poncho)!

I did manage to catch the Chemical Brothers. Great visuals!

This week I was at summer camp in Nagano with my school from Thursday to Saturday. I was told I'd be fine food wise, as the meals were buffet style, but just to be safe, I packed some supplementary nutrition. I was very glad I did, as the buffet was a bit short on vegetarian protein sources and fruit, the gaps between meals were long, and lunch on two of the days turned out to be (meaty fishy) obento. In my emergency pack: meal sized ready to eat portions of beans, nuts, raisins, dried apricots, and a pack of granola with nuts. Oh, and 3 cans of Redbull (we worked 17 hours a day!). I kept nuts and a pack of beans with me at all times, and when hit with the first surprise obento lunch, ran back to my room for my granola. It was interesting talking to the kids about why I was eating nuts and beans instead of meatballs, compared to adults they were really accepting of the idea that some people don't eat meat and fish. They were also really excited when I shared my dried apricots with them. Cute!

We are going on a second round of camp in the fourth week of August, this one to another location (I think it's in Yamanashi). I've been informed that all of the meals are obento style, so I should bring what I need I feed myself for the entire 3 days. There will be no place to buy food, and whatever I bring needs to survive for most of a day unrefrigerated. I may try to bring some natto up in in a small cooler pack, but otherwise it needs to be dried or packaged so it won't go bad. In addition to the kind of things I brought to the first camp, I'm thinking that those pre-made Indian curry packs could be a good idea. They are supposed to be heated, but I think I could get away with eating them as is. Other than that, maybe a loaf of bread, and some hard fruit and veggies? There will be a fridge and maybe a microwave and hot water, but virtually no prep time as I'm supposed to be watching the kids at all times. Any suggestions?

I'm embarking on another summer adventure tonight: a 6 day trip to Taiwan with my sweetheart. I'm really excited for the food, as I've heard Taiwan is quite veggie friendly due to a fair percentage of Taiwanese Buddhists being vegetarian (fulltime, or parttime for spiritual or health reasons). If you've travelled to Taiwan (or of course, if you live there) I'd love to hear your recommendations for restaurants or any other must visit places, food related or not.

I hope you are all having a great and summery summer. Stay cool and keep hydrated!

Tokyo Apartment Cafe

2011-07-19T19:12:00.000-07:00

vegetarian friendly restaurant

This Saturday was baking hot, so after a few hours of shopping in Shibuya and Harajuku, nobody was in the mood to search out a new veggie friendly restaurant. As we often do, A-chan and I headed to Tokyo Apartment Cafe on Omotesando. I was looking forward to sinking my teeth into a vegetable and cheese panzerotti (630¥), so was a bit disappointed when we were told we had to choose from the limited lunch menu. A quick scan of said menu revealed no vegetarian choices, but the server said I could order the ハーブたっぷりリーフサラダ (leaf salad with plenty of herbs, 700¥). I do love the herb salad, which is huge and tossed in a zesty (definitely vegetarian and most likely vegan) vinaigrette, but I'll usually order it to share along with another dish.

Tokyo Apartment cafe boasts an extensive drink menu, with fancy cocktails, fancy blended cocktails (840¥), beer (577¥), wine (from 420¥ a glass), spirits, as well as coffees (from 472¥), teas, and a decent list of other soft drinks. They also have some yummy looking desserts on display (from 367¥).

Fitting with its おしゃれ (stylish) location on Omotesando, TAC's thoughtfully designed interior provides a cool ambiance for dining or chilling over drinks. The concept, outlined by a floor plan on the wall close to the entrance, breaks this restaurant into various rooms of an apartment. I always feel like sitting in the smaller rooms, like the couchy space straight in from the entrance (I'm guessing the living room?), but the nonsmoking section is the main room in front of the open kitchen. One good thing about this space, (other than not having to struggle to breathe) is that it's a good spot for people watching, as you can see people strolling by on the sidewalk outside.

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menu: Japanese only, but you can get pretty far if you can read katakana!

おすすめ / recommendation: ベジタブルチーズ (vegetable cheese) panzerotti, ハーブたっぷりリーフサラダ (herb salad), スパニッシュオムレツ ( Spanish omelette 682¥ - unlike most omelettes in Japan, it does not contain katsuodashi or meat extracts)

good points: convenient location, cool ambiance, yummy

bad points: limited vegetarian options, even worse for vegans, at lunch your only choice is the herb salad

how to get there: from Harajuku station on the Yamanote line, take the main entrance (marked as exit 2?) and head to the overpass in front of you. Cross over the street and start heading down the hill. You'll be on Omotesando, a major shopping street and will pass a Doutor coffee shop in the first block. Several blocks down, you'll see a subway exit, (exit 5 of Meiji Jingumae station on the Chiyoda line). Tokyo Apartment Cafe is right in front of the subway exit.

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見つけた！I found it!

2011-07-17T16:45:00.000-07:00

A couple weeks ago, I posted about a natto vending machine I came across in Shimokitazawa. I also mentioned a banana vending machine that I'd heard about, but never seen, that was said to exist somewhere in Shibuya station. On Saturday, we were hunting for an English guide book for Taiwan (just bought tickets, hurray!) and stumbled upon said vending machine outside of a bookstore in an underground shopping area. Coincidentally, this is a building I visit pretty often- my yoga studio is on the 5th floor but I've never ventured into the basement.

At 130¥ per banana, and given that Japanese people don't really eat fruit as a snack, I doubt that they do a lot of sales. I suspect that the banana vending machine is more of a conversation piece or an advertising vehicle for Dole (which I suppose is working if they have people blogging about it!). Regardless, I think it's kind of clever.

tips for incoming inaka JETs

2011-07-15T09:35:00.000-07:00

Before I had the pleasure of calling Tokyo home, I spent a year out in the countryside of Mie ken, teaching with the JET program. I didn't have it so bad as some of my JET friends, as my little town had a foreign food store and even a Starbucks, but it felt pretty rural to me. My commute consisted of riding my bicycle down a path between rice and nashi fields, and other than my one British co-worker, I only ever met one English speaking foreigner living in the town.

It was a really interesting year of my life, and though I decided about a week into living out there that I would not be renewing my contract for an extra year, I'm really glad to have had the experience living in small town Japan.

It's that time of year again when a new batch of JETs are anxiously awaiting their departures. A decent number of JETs are vegetarian, so much so that the meals they served at the Tokyo orientation the year I arrived were prepared with mock meat instead of the real thing! (Though I've heard from other JETs that this was not the case for them). As the vast majority of JETs are not placed in big cities, the shift to small town life adds to the challenging adjustment to vegetarian life in the context of a new culture and language. For all you vegetarian (and vegan) incoming JETs, here is some advice to make your transition to inaka vegetarian life a little smoother.

Things you can start doing before you come to Japan

1) If your Japanese is lacking or nonexistent, start studying NOW! If you don't have access to classes or a tutor, try to get a your hands on a good textbook (the Genki series or Minna no Nihongo are pretty good), or make use of some of the resources online. For a while, I was using Japanese Pod 101 to supplement my studing, and I found it helpful.

Japanese is a challenging language to learn how to read and write fluently (I'm still a LONG way from that) but you can get a great start by learning hiragana, katakana, and a few key food kanji. Most people start with hiragana (as Japanese kids do) but it may make more sense to start with katakana if you have limited time, as it is more helpful for menu reading. You can probably get it somewhat memorized with maybe 5 hours of serious studying and suddenly you will be starting to sound out menus!

In addition to the universally necessary greetings, personal introductions, thank you's, and apologies, vegetarians and vegans are HIGHLY ADVISED to learn some food specific Japanese. Before you get on that plane, I suggest you learn how to say what you can't eat in Japanese. (Check out some basic phrases here or a video version here.) Just saying you're vegetarian isn't going to cut it.

2) Improve your knowledge of Japanese food. The more you know about Japanese dishes, and what they contain, the better you'll be able to feed yourself. If you are someone who doesn't eat fish, I suggest you become an expert on katsuodashi.

3) Communicate with your supervisor and/ or your school about your dietary restrictions. There will, without a doubt, be welcome parties for you that will, without a doubt, revolve around food that you won't be able to eat unless you make things extremely clear beforehand. If you are lucky, someone in your line of predecessors will also have been vegetarian. Even if this is the case, you will find yourself explaining your dietary choices many times. Be patient but honest. Letting people know ahead of time will save a lot of hurt feelings and wasted food. If you will be working at elementary schools, (and in some cases, at Jr. high schools) there will be a kyushoku (school lunch), that will not be veggie friendly. I recommend telling your school no thank you and packing your own lunch.

After you arrive in Japan

4) stock up your kitchen, you're going to be spending a lot of time there! Buying unprocessed food like fresh veggies and fruit, tofu, soba, rice, and cooking them up yourself is the safest way to ensure what you're eating is actually vegetarian. It's also healthier, cheaper, and can't be bad for your culinary skills, either. Learn how to cook some vegetarian versions of Japanese dishes! A lot of your favorite meals to make from back home will be difficult find ingredients for. While it's worth hitting up the foreign food stores when you venture to a real city, you will find a lot of foreign foods expensive. Learn to love what is cheap and plentiful in your area.

5) Find an Indian restaurant in your town! If you live in the REAL inaka, you may not have one, and I will direct your attention back to my last piece of advice. Luckily for most of you, Indian food is an ethnic food that enjoys a lot of popularity in Japan, so you should be able to find one within cycling distance or with a few stops on the train. Even in Mie, there were quite a number of Indian places around. Indian vegetarian curry will virtually always be actually vegetarian, and they may be able to do a vegan version too. You should always double check that your curry contains no meat, but an added bonus of Indian places is that quite often the staff can speak English. Italian food is also very popular in Japan, and there will usually be a few safe options.

6) Once you find a place with veggie options or willing to make you a special dish, become a regular! Always having to check labels and explain yourself can be quite exhausting. Having a restaurant you regularly go to where they remember you (it won't be too hard if you are the only foreigner in town!) and your food requirements is great because you can just order the usual without having to worry. Also, it's great to financially support the places that are veggie friendly!

7) Challenge yourself to try new foods and learn to love them. In Japan you'll find lots of unfamiliar dishes and ingredients. Be curious, look at labels, ask questions, develop a love (or at least a tolerance) for some new foods. It took me a year in Japan and many many unpleasant taste tests before I started to like natto, but it has become one of my favorite foods. I encourage you to be adventurous!

8) Be patient and realize you are making a difference. As touched on in #3, you may soon tire of explaining what a you can and can't eat and why you are vegetarian. Some people will find the idea hilarious, some will be annoyed by your selfishness, some will be curious, and some will just write your vegetarianism off as another foreigner oddity. If you are veggie for ethical reasons, you will find that a lot of Japanese people just don't really get it. There seems to be some fundamentally different ways in the way Japanese culture and western cultures think about animals. A willingness to talk about your diet and the reasons behind it is an important piece of cultural education, which is one of the fundamental goals of the JET program. Exposing Japan to new cultures and lifestyles is part of your mission. I can tell you that in the 13 years since my first trip to Japan, there has been a shift in awareness and availability of vegetarian food. If you are a vegetarian or vegan living in Japan, you are part of this shift.

がんばれ！(Do your best / hang in there!)

Yoyogi Park weekend festivals

2011-07-12T17:36:00.000-07:00

One of my favourite things to do on a weekend in Tokyo is head to Yoyogi Park. A quick walk from Harajuku station and you're in an oasis of green in the center of the city. Yoyogi Kouen is a fantastic spot for people watching: all types of people come out with their friends, lovers, families, and pets to spend a little time on the grass to unwind at the end of the week. You can watch the rockabilly dancers do their thing near the entrance of the park, join a drum circle near the fountains, and hoolahoop or play frisbee on the grass. Yoyogi Park is a lovely place to have a picnic, and you can bring along a bottle of wine, a few cold beers, or a sweet umeshu to savor on the grass. I love that drinking outside is allowed in Japan, and have always thought it rather annoying that my hometown (Vancouver) 's laws prohibit this, though it would probably be more appropriate to direct my disapproval at the kind of hooliganism (rioting because you lost a hockey game?!?) that makes these laws necessary.

Another cool thing about Yoyogi Kouen is that nearly every weekend of the warmer months has some event happening in Yoyogi Park event square, just across the road in the south end of the park. There are cultural festivals, with plenty of stands selling food and drinks from the country of the week, as well as shops selling other items like clothes, accessories, and groceries. You can get information on travel, as well as learn about NPOs and community groups with links to the featured country.

The food at these events caters to Japanese tastes, so there usually aren't a ton of vegetarian meal options. When I go I like to try interesting sweets or drinks that can't usually be found in Japan. At the Indonesian festival last weekend, for example, I had a yummy avocado smoothie drizzled with chocolate sauce.

These events are a great, very cheap (free entry, it'll only cost you what you eat) option for an outing in Tokyo. I also love that at these events, you see a more relaxed side of Tokyoites than usual, and people can be seen to be doing such things as (gasp!) sitting on the ground (even without a leisure sheet!) and eating.

Yoyogi Park upcoming event schedule ( summer 2011)

July 2011

21st (Thurs) - 25th (Mon) Yoyogi Park Oktoberfest

30th (Sat) - 31st (Sun) Morning Market Earthday

August 2011

13th (Sat) - 14th (Sun) India and Africa
I heard that, in order to conserve power, this year some of the cultural festivals will be sharing a day. I'm guessing that's the reason for this pairing. Of course, the Indian festival should be better than most for vegetarian options!

21st (Sun) Morning Market Earth Day

September 2011

17th (Sat) - 18th (Sun) Vietnam

23th (Fri) - 25th (Sun) Namaste India

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Hope to see you there!!!

Dashi

2011-07-11T17:14:00.000-07:00

If you've read the dining out toolkit or the combini shopping section, you will be familiar with katsuodashi, a vegetarian's biggest obstacle to eating in Japan. The use of katsuodashi is extremely widespread, but lucky for us, katsuo is not the only dashi in town. Combudashi and shitake dashi are two other traditional Japanese stocks, and are safe for vegetarians and vegans.

Before we get too far into the specific dashis, I want to back up a bit. I have a question for you. When you think of the basic tastes, what comes to mind? If you are from a western country, you will most likely have answered sweet, salty, bitter, sour, and perhaps spicy. If you ask a Japanese person, they will tell you that there are 5 tastes: sweet, salty, bitter, sour, and umami.

Umami is the taste of nucleotides or glutamates hitting your tongue. The body needs these building blocks of protein to survive, so we are hard wired to enjoy this taste. But what exactly does umami taste like? The closest word we have in English is probably savory, but that doen't quite do it justice. Umami rich foods include meat, seafood, including combu and other seaweed, and vegetables like ripe tomatoes, shiitake mushrooms, Chinese cabbage, as well as other items like parmesan cheese and soy sauce. When mutiple umami rich foods are combined, some kind of magical umami multiplication effect occurs and the total taste becomes far greater than the sum of the ingredients. Because of this, a mix of fish and combu dashis forms the flavor base of many Japanese dishes.

Now to the specific dashis. Katsuodashi (かつおだし, カツオだし, 鰹だし) made from dried bonito fish, and is the most widely used. Similar, but less widely used is nibodashi (にぼしだし, ニボシダシ, 煮干出し), which is made from dried anchovies. If you are vegetarian or vegan, you should make friends with kombudashi (昆布だし), made from dried kelp, and shiitakedashi (椎茸だし), made from dried shiitake.

Dashi is considered an essential base to all kinds of Japanese dishes, including pretty much every kind of soup (miso, soba, udon... ), nimono and more less anything cooked in a broth. As katsuodashi, or some combonation including katsuodashi is generally used, be very careful when eating in a restaurant or buying prepared food from a combini or grocery store. When you cook at home, you can use combudashi, shiitakedashi or a both to create a rich base flavor for your dishes. When buying dashi in a grocery store you have two basic options. You can buy actual dried combu or shiitake, and make the dashi yourself, or buy powdered dashi, which includes individually wrapped portions in little paper packs. These days, most Japanese people buy the powdered version, as they require no work, but the traditional version is healthier (the powdered version also contains salt, sugar, and other additives) and unambiguously vegetarian and vegan friendly. If you are buying the powdered version, check to make sure that the your combu or shiitake dashi doesn't also contain katsuo. Also, the instant version will usually contain amino (アミの酸), amino acids from which source (animal vegetable or mineral?) they don't bother to write.

This brand is vegetarian, other than containing the ambiguous amino.

How to prepare combudashi and shiitakedashi

Using dried combu or shiitake to make your own dashi is really quite easy. The standard way to make combudashi is to wipe a piece of combu with a damp cloth, then soak in a pot of water for at least 20 minutes. Turn on the heat on low and remove the combu from the pot just when the water comes to a boil. You can save the combu you used for your stock to use in other dishes.

When I make miso soup, I just throw a piece of combu in before the vegetables, not bothering to presoak cause I'm a lazy cook. You can remove the combu before serving, but it's quite nutritious, so I like to eat it along with my soup.

This combu is cut into convenient dashi making strips.

For shiitakedashi, the recipes I've seen really vary. Start by rinsing a handful of dried shiitake. You can get a fair amount of flavor by simply soaking the mushrooms in water (for a half hour, a few hours or overnight), or for a stronger flavor, simmer the shiitake for about 20 minutes. You can then use those mushrooms in other dishes. Shiitake dashi is often made with both shiitake and combu for a richer flavor.

Okarakonnyaku- giving new life to soymilk refuse!

2011-07-07T08:36:00.000-07:00

Marketed as a dieter's food, okarakonnyaku (おからこんにゃく) is a relatively new product made from the fusion of two traditional Japanese foods. It can be found in the refrigerated section, likely near the tofu, of some supermarkets, and also at health food stores.

Okara (おから) is a biproduct of soymilk production. When soybeans are pureed and the liquid is strained out, the pulp that remains in the filter in okara. Most okara ends up going into animal feed, as consumers buy a lot more soymilk than they do okara, but it is also a great food for humans, being low in fat, high in fiber, and a source of protein, calcium, iron, and vitamin B2. (Thanks wikipedia!) You'll find it used in Japanese, Korean, and Chinese cuisine, and more recently in vegetarian products in the west. It doesn't have much of a taste by itself, but can be made into delicious dishes like unohana.

Konnyaku (蒟蒻, こんにゃく）is a jelly made from the root of a tuber (potato-like plant). It has all kinds of crazy English names that are relatively unknown: have you ever heard of devil's tonge, voodoo lilly, or snake palm? I certainly hadn't! In Japan, konnyaku is made from a mix of konnyaku flour, water, and limewater. As it contains almost no calories, and is high in fiber, it is known as a great food for those trying to lose weight. Fresh konnyaku has a somewhat stinky fishy smell, though I can assure you it is vegetarian, and the smell disappears once cooked. I'm not crazy about the taste of konnyakku itself, but it's not bad with a yummy sauce, or tucked into flavorful dishes.

The wonders of Japanese food technology have fused these two healthy, traditional foods into something rather meatlike in texture, and seemingly healthy. To be honest, after reading in Defense of Food by Michael Pollan (which, along with The Omnivore's Dilemma, I highly recommend to any thoughtful eater), I've become rather suspicious of wondrous modern food technology, but from my limited research, okarakonnyaku seems pretty decent. For one, this product contains a fairly short list of recognizable ingredients, the opposite of which (long list, unfamiliar, scientific sounding ingredients), Pollan believes we should try to avoid.

In Japan, okarakonnyaku's target market is dieters and health conscious eaters, but this is also a great product for vegetarians as it makes a great mock meat to throw into a stir fry. Which is precisely what I did tonight.

"Soon he started to develop a new food with his positive thinking. The wish to eat a tasty food is common all over the world. He held out!"

This quote is from a cute description of the birth of okarakonnyaku found here.

wagashi boom

2011-07-06T06:49:00.000-07:00

"My boom" or "(***)boom" are expressions used by Japanese speakers to talk about something they've been really into lately. For example, 最近サングリアブームです！(saikin sanguria boom desu!) Means that you've been really into drinking sangria recently. (See postscript on this language below.)

My boom at the moment is wagashi (Japanese sweets), in particular, 豆大福 (Mamedaifuku). Daifuku is a mochi (glutinous rice) cake stuffed with anko, or sweet red bean paste. Anko is a common component of traditional Japanese sweets, and a flavor that it took me a while to warm up to. As a vegetarian in Canada, beans were a regular part of my diet, but the idea of sweet bean as a dessert flavor took some getting used to. There are several different kinds of daifuku, but my very favourite is mamedaifuku, as it contains whole beans tucked into the mochi portion. The addition of these beans doesn't change the flavor so much as adds another interesting dimension to the texture palate: thick, sticky anko, chewy mochi, and harder beans.

Daifuku can be found at combinis, supermarkets and specialty shops. I think the main catalyst for my wagashi boom is that I discovered a lovely little wagashi shop by my work. Though the price is double what one pays at a combini (200¥ rather than 100¥), the difference in flavor is well worth it. My specialty shop's diafuku is so much more flavorful, and a look at the ingredients reveals a better quality and a simpler list. The specialty shop's daifuku are made from rice, beans, and sugar (and starch?), while the combini version is a longer and more artificial list, allowing a cheaper product with a longer shelf life. I also love that my local shop is a small business, and the employees are able to interact in a more genuine and less scripted way.

Though mamedaifuku is my #1 favorite, I've tried a few of their other goodies too. The photo below is a seasonal treat, with a pancakey outside and mochi inside. I was assured that the fish link was in shape only!

So pretty. Wagashi are popular as gifts so presentation is extremely important.

Unlike most western desserts, wagashi are generally vegan. The little jellied ones below, however, appeared to be made with gelatine. When I inquired about this, the lady behind the counter said they indeed were made with gelatine, but the older man resting in the back of the store insisted they were made with kanten (a seaweed based jelling agent). They insisted back and forth for a bit (family businesses are cute!) and the matter was never solved. I'm going to assume they are not vegetarian, but they sure are nice to look at.

Postscript: The above use of "boom" was ok'd by my Japanese advisor #1. But, as I'm paranoid about teaching you bad Japanese, I ran it by a few Japanese coworkers today, and they said it was a bit off. Both said that the expression (***)boom is used when something is popular with a big group of people, while one should say "my boom" when talking about something that one person is into. They suggested:

最近のマイブームはサングリアです。

saikin no maiboom wa sanguria desu.

Do any Japanese speakers want to weigh in on this?

Another interesting note about this language is that you can also talk about another person's "my boom". So it would be permissible to ask your friend the equivalent of "what's your my boom these days?".

EL Pato - Koenji hamburger shop

2011-07-04T06:26:00.000-07:00

vegetarian friendly (?) restaurant

I must admit, I have some reservations about recommending this place on a vegetarian blog. Let's be clear: El Pato is a meaty paradise, and there isn't a veggie burger in sight. That said, I seriously love this place. For me, fabulous vegetarian living means not limiting myself to vegetarian restaurants, but also finding yummy things in seeming danger zones like yakitori (grilled chicken) restaurants. My sweetheart and most of my friends are not vegetarians, and while sometimes they'll indulge me by dining at a veggie place, they usually want to sink their teeth into something meaty. And as long as I can find myself something satisfying to eat too, that's cool with me.

Back to El Pato. Not far from Koenji station, you'll find this little gem. El Pato specializes in American cuisine, and is also a bar in the evening (or anytime you have a hankering for a Heartland beer or Mohito (750¥)). This place has a cool, diner-ish atmosphere, and is beautifully finished with lots of wood and stainless steel. If you come for dinner or drinks in the evening, you'll find tealights charmingly twinkling out of pickle jars.

The first time I ate at El Patio, when I explained my dietary restrictions to the server, she recommended that I order a BLT (890¥) with avocado instead of bacon. The resulting sandwich, ordered with fries (free with lunch, 150¥ with dinner), was fabulous. What made it so delicious? The homemade bread? The kick of dijon mustard? The generous serving of fresh vegetables? Any lingering disappointment over lack of veggie burger was quickly forgotten.

This time, after inhaling my ALT, I thought that for the sake of VegOut Tokyo I'd better order a dessert. The brownie with pecan nuts topped with vanilla ice cream caught my eye. At 700¥, I had high expectations. When the brownie arrived, I couldn't help but do that excited clapping thing that Japanese girls sometimes burst into when a yummy looking dish arrives. My dining companion, who had said she didn't want dessert, quickly claimed half of the brownie, and her share of the berry sauce drizzled ice cream.

The service at El Pato leaves nothing to be desired. The lone server was really attentive and helpful, and the chef (and owner?) speaks great English. According to the diplomas hanging on the back wall, he studied at the California School of Culinary Arts.

So if you don't mind watching other people stuffing their faces with meat, I definitely recommend a trip to El Pato. If you're not familiar with the Koenji neighborhood, spend an afternoon kicking around the quirky shops in the shotengai and connecting streets. This area is also known for having a great nightlife, with lots of cool little bars and livehouses (concert venues), so a visit to Koenji at night is also well worth it.

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Menu: The hamburger menu has both English and Japanese, however there's not a veggie option on it. Ask about the vegetarian version of the BLT. The main menu, bar menu, and the 200¥ tapas (!) menu are in Japanese only.

I inquired about other menu items that were vegetarian, and was told that the tomato salad, lettuce salad and pickles (all 200¥) were all fine (including the dressings). Also, the blue cheese pizza is safe.

おすすめ　／　recommendation: avocado, lettuce and tomato sandwich, brownie, fresh squeezed orange (actually mikan) juice

Good points: delicious, cool atmosphere, great service, English spoken

Bad points: no veggie burger (yet!), vegetarian choices are limited

How to get there: Head to the North exit of Koenji station. Across the street you will see an uncovered shotengai (shopping street) with a yellow sign arching over the entrance, with a 7/11 on the left side. Head to your left, and walk around the bus area towards the shotengai. As you enter, you'll pass between the 7/11 and a drugstore. Walk straight down this shotengai until it ends at at T. Take a left and then the next right. Walk straight for a block and a half and you'll see El Pato on your right.

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Pure Cafe

2011-06-30T06:43:00.000-07:00

vegan restaurant

Pure Cafe ranks as one of my favourite vegan restaurants in Tokyo. Tucked on a side street off Aoyama Dori, close to Omotesando, Pure is a calm little oasis to head to for a break from the bustle of Harajuku or Shibuya.

After a morning yoga class, I headed to Pure for a solo lunch. It's a comfy spot for a meal for one- they have plenty of little tables, books and magazines for perusing, and a counter facing out to the street so you can watch the stylish passers by. The ambiance is lovely, earthy, and stylish.

I have only ever been to Pure for lunch, but it's an ideal time to go. Though many of their individual items are on the pricy side (a muffin will cost you 472¥), the lunch specials are quite reasonable (1150¥ - 1360¥). They always have several choices of lunch sets- a few sandwiches, a grain salad, or perhaps a curry as the main dish. With your main, you get a little soup (today's was a lovely Thai curry soup), a salad, and a drink (organic tea, coffee or juice). Pure's food is consistently delicious, and often creative. My sandwich (named "my favorite sandwich") was avocado, cucumber, lettuce, tomato, celery, and peanut butter(!) on rye bread. I was skeptical about how well those ingredients were going to get along, but somehow it worked out! True to their name, Pure serves up food that is tasty in a distinctly healthy way, not from an overload of salt, sugar, fat, or artificial flavors.

I haven't tried their desserts (630¥ - 715¥), but have heard great things about them! Do any Tokyo friends want to accompany me on my next visit for some "research"?

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***If you want to take items out, make sure to bring your own cup or bag! They don't offer disposables.

Menu: both Japanese and English. The main chalkboard is English only. Also, the staff speak some English. All menu items are vegan!

おすすめ　／　recommendation: Everything! Order a set for better value.

good points: lovely atmosphere, delicious, healthy

bad points: portions may be small for some, can be pricy

how to get there: The first time I ever went to Pure, back before I moved to Tokyo, I wandered around for 2 frustrating hours getting lost even though I had a guidebook with a map. I have no idea how I managed that, cause it's quite simple to find. Take exit B3 of Omotesando station on the Ginza, Hanzomon, or Chioda lines. When you exit, take a left, and head down the little street. The road soon comes to a T, and you will see the Aveda salon just to the left in front of you. Pure cafe shares the building with Aveda, with the cafe on the left and salon on the right.

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T's Tan Tan: vegan ramen in Tokyo station!

2011-06-27T07:06:00.000-07:00

vegan restaurant

I don't even bother going into ramen shops. The vegetarian in the know can find a decent meal in an izakaya, soba shop, sushi restaurant, and even yakitori (grilled chicken) place, but generally, ramen in a non-vegetarian establishment is a lost cause.

How exciting is it, then, that there is now an all vegan ramen shop in Tokyo station! Now vegetarians and vegans in transit can enjoy hot steamy bowls of delicious greasy noodles!

On a rare Monday off, I made my way over to Tokyo station, miraculously managed to not get lost on the way to the shop, and ordered up a lunch special. I opted for the white ramen (on the advice of a friend I requested it less spicy), which comes topped with beansprouts. The lunch special offers the choice between mock meat karaage or a mini curry, and I opted for the latter. While the ramen didn't come close to challenging my current favourite (Cafe Proverbs 15:17 in Kyoto) for the top spot, it was yummy and filling. I would have loved a bigger serving of vegetables in exchange for some noodle volume, but T's Tan Tan's proportions are true to the classic ramen form, with veggies acting as a topping to a big serving of noodles. It was a treat to get to eat Japanese curry for a change, as Japanese curry is usually another fight not worth fighting (as it will nearly always contain a meat base). I'm a big fan of Indian curry but also enjoyed the sweet, smoother Japanese version.

For dessert, I had a little serving of sweet and simple tofu pudding to finish off my meal.

T's Tan Tan is an interesting place cause the target market is not vegans or vegetarians, but rather health conscious commuters and business people. The meals are definitely designed with a mainstream Japanese taste in mind (I doubt you'll be finding any genmai here anytime soon). If you want to get a stress free taste of what regular Japanese people eat on the go, this is a great place to try!

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Menu: Japanese only, with photos

おすすめ / recommendation: I haven't tried enough to compare dishes, but the shiro tan tan (白たんたん) was nice. Apparently quite spicy as is, can be ordered "plain" for less spice.

good points: convenient location if you are passing through or work by Tokyo station, stress free (all vegan), authentic ramen taste!

bad points: tricky to find

how to get there: T's is inside Tokyo station, in a shopping/ restaurant area called Keiyo street. Check a map in the station, or ask for Keiyo street at one of the information kiosks. Look for Uniqlo once you've found Keiyo street. If you face Uniqlo, you will see a New Days combini on the left, and beside that, an information booth on the corner. Walk towards the information booth, and turn to the right. Walk past an omiyage (souvenir) shop, and you will find T's Tan Tan next door.

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Natto vending machine!

2011-06-27T06:18:00.000-07:00

Japan is famous for its ubiquitous jihanki (vending machines). Drinks are of course the most common (with both hot and cold beverages available), with cigarette machines holding firm at second. When I first came to Japan, I was amused to see alcohol jihanki, which, unlike the cigarette machines, require no proof of age. You can occasionally find machines offering oden, ramen, bread and onigiri, and apparently there is a banana vending machine somewhere in Shibuya station! You've probably heard of the worn ladies' underwear machine- this is one I haven't seen myself, but as I have seen other racy items sold in vending machines, I don't doubt that it exists.

Some months back, while strolling the streets of lively Shimokitazawa, we came across vending machine that exclusively sells natto and related products. Even my koibito (sweetheart) was surprised to see it, so apparently the natto jihanki is a rarity.

For newbies, and those of you that don't live in Japan, I should probably explain what natto is, as I don't think I was acquainted with it before living here myself. Natto is basically fermented soybeans. It's usually eaten on rice, especially on a breakfast food, and sometimes can be found rolled up in sushi. Natto is inexpensive (about 40¥ per serving) and fantastically healthy, being high in protein and probiotics, but low in fat. To those familiar with natto, it has a lovely savory, beany, nutty flavor. To the uninitiated, however, natto's particular taste, strong (stinky cheese or stinky foot-ish) aroma, and slimy texture can be rather off-putting. I think it may be the texture that is the most challenging for westerners: in North America there aren't really any popular foods that have this texture. We associate sliminess with rotting garbage, pond scum, or mucous, not with something you'd want to eat. In Japan, however, neba-neba is a food texture category (like, say, chewy or crunchy) that includes yama-emo, okura, and nama-tamago (raw egg!). Though I'll admit that natto is an aquired taste (it took me a year of living in Japan before I started to like it), I think it's worth the effort and not-so-pleasant first tastes.

Natto is an excellent food for vegetarians in Japan (and elsewhere if you can find it!), with only one small drawback. Most packages of natto come with little packages of sauce that contain katsuodashi (bonito fish stock). If you are a pescatarian, or someone who is ok just discarding the sauce pack, this will pose no problem. If you're not cool with buying something with fish sauce in the first place, there are several specialty types of natto you should look for. They're not available at every grocery store, but if you check a few places you can probably find them! The first (and my favourite) is 黒豆 (black bean) natto, which comes with vegetarian friendly sauce. (Other brands may not be veg friendly, so scan the ingredients for かつお or カツオ or 鰹) You only get 2 little styrofoam packs for the price of the usual 3, but it's still quite reasonable. The second option is to buy sauce free natto, which is packed in a thin, rectangular paper container, wrapped again in plastic, rather than the little styrofoam squares.

Natto is most delicious with a little sauce mixed in (try the one in the black bean natto or throw in some shoyu / soy sauce), and lots of people like to sprinkle on some chopped green onions too. Make sure to mix up your natto until it is good and slimy too!

Tofu restaurant Sora no Niwa

2011-06-23T07:42:00.000-07:00

vegetarian friendly restaurant

Friday night I met up with a group of former students at the lovely Sora no Niwa restaurant. Located next to the train tracks connecting Shibuya and Ebisu stations, this swanky place specializes in tofu dishes. While not a vegetarian restaurant, there are plenty of dishes that veggies can eat. Make sure to do your vegetarian explanation, though, as a number of otherwise veggie friendly dishes come with katsuodashi (fish base) containing sauces. The staff is quite helpful and will bring you alternative sauces upon request.

Our cottage cheese, black bean and snow pea salad (680¥) was followed by avocado tofu (350¥), cheese tofu, vegetable tempura, and grilled fu (wheat and rice gluten cake) sticks topped with walnut miso sauce (750¥). Though mild in flavor, one of the most notable dishes they serve is the fresh tofu (large 1800¥), which cooks from soymilk to tofu in a wooden box at your table in about 20 minutes. The lovely, mellow tofu flavor can be enhanced by sprinkling on a little salt, but avoid their original soy sauce as it does contain some fish. I love their tofu tiramisu, which tastes as rich and delicious as a good tiramisu ought to.

Sora no Niwa is also a good place to drink, as they have a nice selection of alcohol (most drinks around 600¥). There are some interesting varieties of umeshu (plum wine), as well as less common offerings like yuzushu (alcohol made from yuzu, a small citrus fruit) and umeshu wine. Fans of sweet drinks should try the fresh squeezed apple cocktail, tested and approved by several members of my dining party.

Overall, I give this place high marks. I thought every dish I tried was delicious, and also they also got the approval of my non-vegetarian friends. While not a budget restaurant (we paid around 3500¥ per person, although this included an average of 3 drinks each), considering the quality of the food and the beautifully crafted setting, I think the price is quite reasonable.

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menu: ours was in Japanese only but according to the website, they have an English menu available

おすすめ / recommendation: cheese tofu, avocado tofu, grilled nama fu sticks, tofu tiramisu

good points: lovely ambiance, delicious, healthy, helpful staff

bad points: not a vegetarian restaurant so requires a bit of effort to ensure a veggie meal

how to get there: From the east exit of Shibuya station (near the Tokyu Toyoko line entrance), take the overpass on your right. Take a right on the overpass, and head down the stairs. You should be standing in front of a bookstore. Facing the bookstore, head to the right, which will take you through an underpass. At the end of the underpass, there is a Japanese restaurant with a yellow sign and white and red lanterns. Take a left at the small street that passes between this restaurant and the drugstore. Walk straight down this street. During the day, you'll see an area with some big trees further down the road, and that's where you will find Sora no Niwa. It's literally right across from the railway tracks. There are two restaurants side by side, this is the one on the left. There is an off white sign with the characters 豆腐料理空ノ庭 written vertically.

Mugicha

2011-06-18T02:17:00.000-07:00

When you think of summer drinks, what pops into your mind? In Japan, most people would probably answer mugicha. This summer will be my 4th in Japan, and it's hard for me to imagine a summer without a jug of mugicha chilling in my fridge!

Mugicha (麦茶) is a tea to made from roasted barley. As it doesn't contain leaves from the tea plant, it's technically a tisane, and contains no caffeine. I'm not sure about bachelors, cause I used to teach adult students who told me they literally had nothing in their fridges but beer (they ate all meals at restaurants or bought them from convenience stores), but I'm pretty sure just about all families always have a jug of mugicha going. Being caffeine free, it's a staple drink for kids in this country. Japanese people don't seem to drink a lot of water, but they are big on their teas!

This cooling summer drink is tasty in kind of an earthy way, and fantastically cheap. A pack of 54 large teabags (each makes a kettle full of tea) costs about 300¥ (less than $4).

Another great thing about mugicha is that it is calorie free. I think that liquid calorie overconsumption is one of the things that the North American diet typically does wrong, and the lack thereof in the traditional Japanese diet is one of the things that they got right over here. So you can drink all the mugicha you want, and save your calories for the things you really want to be savoring, like scones.

I'm sure you can buy yourself some mugicha in a Japanese grocery store like Fujiya in Vancouver, but how about a regular grocery store? Take a peek for me next time you are shopping. So go hunt for some, brew up a pot, serve over ice, and let me know what you think!

Sofa Vegetarian Cafe

2011-06-13T07:13:00.000-07:00

vegetarian restaurant

To celebrate the birth of this blog, I thought it fitting to try out a new vegetarian restaurant. After a quick ride on the Inokashira-sen, we were in bustling Shibuya, crowded with Tokyoites trying to squeeze a few more hours of play time into their weekends.

Arriving at Sofa Vegetarian Cafe, my first impression was that it was more of a take out/ fast food style restaurant. The front window displayed a blown up version of the menu, and the register was directly in front of the door, so I expected them to ask us to order at the front. Instead we were instructed to head up to the 2nd or 3rd floor and choose a seat. Up on the 3rd floor, it looked more like a proper restaurant, although my dining companion thought that the plastic server call button gave the place a family restaurant feel.

The menu includes a number of pastas, a few curries, sandwiches, salads, a soup, as well as a few other items like gyoza. I went for a focaccia katsu ("meat" cutlet) sandwich (840¥) and my companion had the lasagna (840¥). While I had no major objections to it, my dining partner was not impressed with the lasagna. When pressed for an explanation, she said it reminded her of frozen food and she could have made something tastier at home. The katsu sandwich, luckily was more of a hit- it was the right amount of greasy, crispy, and I was told, had the texture and flavor of fish.

For dessert, we tried the baked tofu cake (630¥).
It definitely tasted like a vegan dessert, with a light tofu flavor and not too sweet. It certainly wasn't the most delicious tofu cake I've ever tasted, but it was pleasant end to the meal.

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menu: main menu has English, specials menu in Japanese only, vegan items clearly marked with a V,
O means oriental vegetarian (no garlic...)

おすすめ / recommendation: focaccia katsu sandwich

good points: convenient location, cheap

bad points: decor and ambiance could be better, seats are quite close together

how to get there: When you exit from JR Shibuya Hachiko-guchi, directly in front of you (across the street) you will see big flashy screens and a Starbucks, (across the street) to the left you will see the 109 building. At the scramble, walk to the left. You will be walking towards 109, but on the opposite side of the road. From there, just walk straight up the hill (Dougenzaka 道玄坂) for a few minutes. Sofa is right by the first traffic light (Dougenzakaue koubanmae 道玄坂上交番前) you will come across, just before the kouban (police box).

大きな地図で見る

Why VegOut Tokyo?

2011-06-12T06:23:00.000-07:00

Why VegOut Tokyo?

My love affair with Japan has been a long one, but some of my earliest memories of trying to eat in this country are somewhat traumatic. Ordering dishes that surely would have been vegetarian in Vancouver, my 14 year old self was repeatedly dismayed by the meaty meals I was served. After resorting to bowls of white rice and combini yogurt to avoid gambling with restaurant food, I was cranky and disappointed to be missing out on real food in Japan. Then, a miracle happened. My Dad and I happened upon a vegetarian restaurant while walking the streets of Kyoto. After filling my belly with a real meal, I started chatting with another customer, who turned out to be a vegan guy from the states. Armed with print outs from Happy Cow (which I hadn't heard of before that day), this guy said he'd been eating well the whole trip. I was in awe. What a difference a little thinking ahead makes!

Before moving to Japan in the summer of 2008, I did myself a huge favor and learned how to explain what I couldn't eat in Japanese. My language skills at that time were pretty lacking, but I made sure I had at least a few ordering phrases down pat. With a little bit of Japanese, the Happy Cow website, and an understanding of what dishes are usually safe, modifiable or impossible, I've usually been able to eat well in this country. Since moving to Tokyo about 2 years ago, I've found tons of fabulous vegan, vegetarian, and veggie friendly restaurants that have kept me happy and well fed.

With this blog, I hope to share some of what I've learned over the past few years. Japan is an amazing place to travel and live, but I highly recommend veggie travelers or soon to be Japan residents do to their homework before hopping on a plane. I know not everyone will have the chance to study Japanese before they come, but it will help you immensely if you can memorize a few phrases and a handful of vocabulary before you visit. I plan to include some language help content on this blog to help you with this. Of course, you're going to want to get yourself to a proper vegetarian restaurant once in a while, so I'll be posting some restaurant reviews, maps and other practical information to help you select and find a place.

Mostly, I hope this blog will be a celebration of veggie cuisine in this fine city. Eating in Japan shouldn't be about deprivation and survival! If you know where to look, or how to ask, Tokyo is going to feed you well.