I have recently embarked on a short yet amazing trip to Kyoto, and boy was the sakura in this ancient city absolutely breathtaking. Yes, the transient beauty of sakura with Kyoto’s tranquil temples literally took my breath away. Apart from enjoying the picturesque scenes, this was my first time to be entirely vegetarian in Kyoto! I couldn’t have been more excited to share these unique experiences, as they are truly one-of-a-kind!

Caution: Vegetarian is a relative term in Japan, as most of their dishes are made using fish essence or meat sauce. An innocent, meatless dish may look suitable for vegetarians, but it’s always safe to ask if it is fully vegetarian. For my visits, I’ve made sure that all of the dishes are completely vegetarian-friendly. You can rest assured that they contain no fish essence nor meat sauce.

Ippudo Ramen 博多一風堂

Tel: 075-213-8800
Hours: 11:00 – 02:00
Reservation: Walk-in only
Address: 〒604-8143 京都府京都市中京区東洞院錦小路東入ル 阪東屋町653-1 錦ビル1F
Access: 5-minute walk from Shijo station / Karasuma subway / Karasuma station

I’ve visited Ippudo Ramen for my usual ramen fix numerous times, yet this was a first trying their vegetarian ramen. Boy, they did not disappoint! The succulent ramen noodles simmered in rich soy broth, this is a rescue call for all ramen lovers who are vegetarians!

On a side note, as previously mentioned in this post, Sen no Kaze Ramen also offered good vegetarian ramen. However, Ichiran Ramen does not provide vegetarian ramen.

Teppan Tavern Tenamonya 鉄板居酒屋 祇園てなもんや

Tel: 075-551-5272
Hours: 17:00 – 23:00 (Closed on Thursdays)
Reservation: 075-551-5272
Address: 〒605-0074 京都府京都市東山区 祇園町南側５３７−２ B１階
Access: 5-minute walk from Gion-Shijo station (nearby Yasaka Jinja)

Vegetarian teppanyaki? Bet you’ve never heard of!

Tenamonya offers great teppan dishes and cosy environment for your most authentic Teppanyaki experience, vegetarian style!

Ask and they’ll provide you with a set of vegetarian menu in English. Basically, they make their signature okonomiyaki and other teppan-dishes in both vegetarian and non-vegetarian versions. I’ve tried various teppan-dishes like grilled tofu etc, yakisoba (fried soba noodles), okonomiyaki (savoury thick pancake), and negiyaki (thin pancake with green onions). I guarantee that you’ll be full and satisfied!

 

Moreover, we’ve spent less than ¥2000 per person, which I think was more than acceptable for teppanyaki.

The teppanyaki tavern is managed by a lovely couple, Hideki and Naoko. The place can only hold approx. 16 people, so reservation is strongly advised. That being said, the business depends on these limited seats. When I was there, they had to turn down so many walk-in customers even though there were many empty reserved seats. Needless to say, the people who reserved did not show up in the end. If you are unable to make it, please remember to call and cancel.

Shigetsu 天龍寺 篩月

Tel: 075-882-9725
Hours: 11:00 – 14:00
Reservation: Online
Address: 〒616-8385 京都府京都市右京区嵯峨天龍寺芒ノ馬場町68
Access: Within the garden of Tenryu-ji, visitors have to purchase the garden ticket for access

Couple your visit to Arashiyama with an authentic shojin ryori at Tenryu-ji. Shojin ryori is a Japanese Zen Buddhist temple cuisine made entirely vegan, and can be expensive. I would highly recommend to try the set meal at least once, to experience the wonders that Japanese bring to your palate.

We visited Shigetsu during the peak sakura season with reservation. However, it was not fully occupied and walk-in customers were promptly seated. There were three set meals available at Shigetsu, and I’ve chosen the Yuki set at ¥3000. The other 2 set meals, Tsuki and Hana, are priced at ¥5000 and ¥7000 respectively. They are only available through reservations. Walk-in customers will only have the Yuki set option, which I think was more than sufficient to fill up the tummy.

Togaden とうふ処 豆雅傳

Tel: 075-212-1209
Hours: 11:00 – 21:00
Reservation: Walk-in only
Address: 〒604-8004 京都府京都市中京区中島町87
Access: 5-minute walk from Sanjo Keihan station

Togaden is a unique restaurant selling primarily Yuba (soy milk skin) dishes and seat meals. If you’ve never tasted freshly-made soy products, you need to come to Togaden. In addition, they offer a wide range of set meals and a la carte dishes with rather reasonable prices. The usual individual set meal range between ¥1200 to ¥1550, while the most premium set Tofu Kaiseki Shokado at ¥2900.

We visited Togaden during the peak sakura season. It was slightly crowded but we didn’t wait for long to be seated. I’ve ordered the Tofu Kaiseki Shokado and Fresh Yuba Tempura Meal, and they were heavenly! This place is definitely highly recommended for those who appreciate a delicate meal, or simply a soy milk lover!

Okutan Nanzenji 奥丹 南禅寺店

Tel: 075-771-8709
Hours: 11:00 – 16:00 (Closed on Thursday)
Reservation: 075-771-8709
Address: 〒606-8435 京都府京都市左京区南禅寺福地町86-30
Access: 3-minute walk from Nanzen-ji

When travelling in Kyoto where tofu is a famed specialty, one simply has to try a tofu meal at least once! After visiting Nanzen-ji, we walked to the nearby Okutan for some yudofu meals.

We visited Okutan during the peak sakura season with reservation. However, it was not fully occupied and walk-in customers were promptly seated. They offer only one type of set meal, which is the Yudofu set at ¥3000. The whole set includes various specialty dishes made entirely of tofu. The centre piece yudofu includes some boiled tofu simmered within a ceramic pot with a jar of dashi-shoyu (house-special dipping sauce). Fret not, as the waitress will demonstrate to you how to properly and traditionally enjoy the dishes.

I was too-full (pun intended) at the end of the amazing tofu meal. I genuinely recommend that you should try the yudofu meal when in Kyoto!

LBK Craft

Tel: 074-293-6707
Hours: 12:00 – 21:30 (Closed on Mondays)
Reservation: Online
Address: 〒630-8216 奈良県奈良市東向南町 5-1 井上ビル 2F
Access: 5-minute walk from Kintetsu Nara station

Though LBK Craft is not in Kyoto, but I’m sure that visitors to Kyoto will most likely to visit Nara for a day-trip. LBK Craft is a hip-vibed bar/restaurant near Kintetsu Nara station. Owned by a friendly lady from Shanghai and her American husband, they mastered the Japanese culinary dishes so well that I was so impressed!

Made using the freshest products made in Nara locally, there are many vegetarian options available at LBK Craft. There are menus in various languages including Mandarin and English, you’ll probably have no problems communicating your preferences!

We’ve spent approx. ¥2000 per person, which I think were well worth with the quality of food we’ve gotten. My favourite of all were the eggplant with miso sauce and grilled cheese, and the curry rice. I’ve been a huge lover of Japanese curry, yet I’ve never eaten such wonderful curry where the sauce is made entirely of spinach, cashew nuts, and chick peas. Must try for curry lovers!

Kinatei 喜菜亭

Tel: 074-220-6188 / 080-6119-6105
Hours: 11:00 – 14:30; dinner by reservation only (Closed on Mondays)
Reservation: Email
Address: 〒630-8357 奈良県奈良市 杉ヶ町 25-1 フェリス駅前 1階
Access: 5-minute walk from JR Nara station

A Special Nara Experience

A specific restaurant which I highly recommend in Nara is Kinatei. As it operates for lunch only, if you’d like to visit for dinner, you’ll definitely have to email them for reservations. The family restaurant is a cosy space, and the daughter, who speaks perfect Mandarin due to her time abroad in Taiwan, made us feel like home.

Pride to have used only the freshest ingredients without preservatives and grown locally in Nara, they offer one of the best tailor-made meals for our visit. How dinner works was that they will serve petit version of dishes one-by-one as in a typical course meal. However, whats special was that you can request to stop anytime when you’re almost full. Then, they will start serving the desserts and coffee/tea.

The dishes came with so much love and care, and especially for us only (as we were the only one booked for that night)! They may not look extravagent or extraordinary, but trust me, they were heavenly. The fruits were also locally grown in Nara, and tasted so sweet. Heck, even the soy sauce for the yuba tasted so heavenly, as it is purchased from a home-made soy-sauce store down the street!

We’ve spent approx. ¥5000 for two people, and I was more than satisfied with the food. If you’d like to have a unique and complete Nara dining experience, Kinatei is your choice. You get to enjoy delicate dishes made by a chef from Nara, using the freshest ingredients grown and made in Nara. Not to mention, the lovely Nara hospitality by the family (though I met only the father (chef) and the daughter).

Conclusion

It can be difficult for vegetarians/vegans to search for suitable meals in Kyoto, so I hope that you will find my recommendations on vegetarian in Kyoto helpful. Hopefully, I will continue to add to this list after my next trips to Kyoto!

Leave a comment below and share your experiences with the restaurants above (if you have), or if you have any questions.