Last year, I spent two weeks traveling through Japan, mostly visiting Tokyo and Kyoto, and pretty quickly the trip turned into one long food adventure—as one does when traveling as a vegan in a new country. Before going, I’d heard every opinion possible about eating vegan in Japan, with some people making it sound nearly impossible, while others swore the food scene was incredible. The truth was somewhere in the middle: it definitely took a little extra planning and flexibility, but there were so many amazing vegan-friendly restaurants, cafés, bakeries, and fully vegan spots that completely exceeded my expectations.
And some of my favorite memories from the trip quickly came to revolve around food. Wandering through quiet Kyoto streets looking for a tiny ramen shop we bookmarked months earlier. Grabbing matcha and pastries during an afternoon café break in Tokyo. Finding an entirely vegan lunch box tucked inside a busy train station. Even the convenience stores became part of the experience because there was always something new to try between sightseeing.
So much of Japan’s food culture naturally lends itself to plant-based eating from dining on freshly prepared soba noodles, beautiful Buddhist temple-style meals, rice porridge with fermented vegetables, soy puddings, fresh mochi, incredible seasonal produce, and desserts I honestly wish I could fly back for tomorrow. It never felt like we were missing out on the culture at all and in a lot of ways, food became one of the main ways we experienced it.
Sarah McLaughlin
Must-try vegan-friendly spots in Japan
And while I can’t include every single spot in one succinct list, these are some of the standout spots I’d recommend if you’re planning a trip to Japan as a vegan.
Tokyo
Sarah McLaughlin
1 Izakaya Masaka
Shibuya, Tokyo
This was our first major food stop after arriving in Japan, and honestly, it could not have come at a better time. After over 24 hours of travel and a lot of convenience store snacks, finally sitting down for a full meal inside the busy Shibuya Parco mall felt like heaven. The restaurant had a huge menu with nearly 25 shareable plates, so we fully leaned into it and ordered the famous vegan karaage alongside Chinese-style tofu, a refreshing radish salad, and dumplings. Everything was incredible, but the karaage completely stole the show: crispy, juicy, deeply flavorful, and still one of the best plant-based versions I’ve ever had anywhere.
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Sarah McLaughlin
2 Vegan Soba Tokyo Ayler
Setagaya City, Tokyo
Tucked away in Setagaya City, this tiny soba spot serves freshly fried tempura, perfectly chewy soba noodles and udon noodles, and a deeply comforting broth that honestly hit the spot after a morning of exploring. The owner brewed espresso drinks at the front counter while spinning jazz records and chatting with us about music throughout the meal, which made the whole experience feel less like a restaurant stop and more like being welcomed into someone’s morning routine.
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Sarah McLaughlin
3 Universal Bakes
Setagaya City, Tokyo
This bakery quickly became one of our favorite stops in Tokyo thanks to its huge selection of vegan pastries, breads, and treats. Located on the top floor of the trendy outdoor shopping complex Reload in Shimokitazawa, the café felt like the perfect quiet break from the city crowds. We grabbed a mix of baked goods, many of which I had never tried before, but the curry bun absolutely stole the show. There were honestly so many more things we wanted to order that it immediately went onto the list for our next Japan trip.
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Sarah McLaughlin
4 Marbre Vegan Bakery
Shinjuku City, Tokyo
Marbre Vegan was one of our favorite morning stops in Tokyo before wandering through Shinjuku National Garden (it’s right across the street!). The bakery case was packed with beautifully made vegan pastries and treats, plus a plant-based take on Japan’s classic egg salad sandwich served on impossibly soft white bread that we absolutely had to try. We also shared the strawberry cream cake, matcha tiramisu, lemon roll cake, and apple tarte tatin.
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Sarah McLaughlin
5 Matcha Passport
Setagaya City, Tokyo
Located inside the stylish Reload outdoor shopping complex in Shimokitazawa, this café takes matcha seriously in the best way possible, offering three different ceremonial-grade matcha powders and walking customers through the tasting notes and flavor profiles of each before ordering. We went with the strawberry matcha, which was layered with an incredible freshly made strawberry syrup that balanced perfectly with the earthy richness of the tea. And they even recommended ordering this one with oat milk, which of course we were happy to do!
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Sarah McLaughlin
6 Komaki Shokudo Kamakura Fushikian
Chiyoda City, Tokyo
Tucked inside Tokyo’s busy Chabara marketplace, this casual restaurant felt calm and quiet compared to the chaos outside, and the beautifully prepared set meals were packed with seasonal vegetables, delicate flavors, housemade vegan proteins, and so many thoughtful little side dishes. Think miso soup, marinated mushrooms, crispy karaage, silken tofu, and pickled vegetables.
Find it here
Sarah McLaughlin
7 Ming Teng Hao Hao
Setagaya City, Tokyo
After spending the morning wandering around shops, we stumbled across this all-vegan spot tucked inside an outdoor shopping area and immediately stopped in for a snack break. The café specializes in silky soy puddings topped with ingredients like Japanese sweet potato, lychee, tapioca pearls, red bean, and soy flour (which we quickly became obsessed with after noticing it on so many vegan desserts throughout Japan).
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Sarah McLaughlin
8 Zen
Shinjuku City, Tokyo
Zen was one of our favorite comfort food stops for vegan-friendly okonomiyaki. While the restaurant isn’t fully vegan, it has a dedicated section of vegetarian options with several dishes that can be made fully plant-based (the staff is very helpful if you just specify you want the vegan option), making it an easy and approachable stop for vegan travelers. We ordered the ginger okonomiyaki, which was packed with flavor, perfectly savory, and exactly the kind of warm, satisfying meal we were craving.
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Sarah McLaughlin
9 Kohrinbou
Nakano City, Tokyo
Tucked inside a busy Nakano City mall filled with souvenir stalls and vintage shops, this cozy hole-in-the-wall spot is run entirely by one woman who handles all the cooking and serving herself, which made the whole experience feel incredibly personal and welcoming. While the restaurant is vegetarian rather than fully vegan, she easily prepared vegan-friendly set meals for us, and despite the language barrier, we were still able to connect a bit and chat about how vegan-friendly Singapore—where she’s from—can be.
Sarah Mclaughlin
10 T’s Tanatan Ramen
Chiyoda City, Tokyo
This fully vegan ramen chain serves a huge variety of comforting dishes, from rich bowls of ramen and curry to gyoza, soy meat dishes, salads, and rotating seasonal specials, making it an easy option no matter what you’re craving. This spot was recommended to me by so many people before our trip, and it’s easy to see why. It’s reliable, flavorful, and genuinely satisfying.
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Kamakura
One of our favorite day trips from Tokyo was Kamakura—an easy and scenic train ride away that feels like stepping into a slower, coastal side of Japan filled with temples, little cafés, and ocean views.
Sarah McLaughlin
11 Cotonoha
Kamakura, Japan
This serene lunch spot ended up being one of the most memorable meals of our entire Japan trip and it came from a local recommendation. When another spot we had Googled ended up being closed (a frequent occurrence on this trip!), a local was more than happy to point us in the direction of Cotonoha. We were immediately drawn into the calm, peaceful atmosphere and beautifully prepared set meals that felt incredibly nourishing after days of constant travel and eating on the go. The set meals featured a gorgeous array of seasonal produce paired with soy proteins and fresh soup.
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Kyoto
Taking the bullet train to Kyoto was so fast, incredibly smooth, and honestly so much easier and less stressful than most long-distance travel in the US. Kyoto also felt like a completely different experience from Tokyo in the best way: quieter, slower-paced, and a little more peaceful, but somehow home to some of the best and most memorable food we ate during the entire trip.
Sarah McLaughlin
12Mumokuteki Cafe
Nakagyo Ward, Kyoto
This café offers a huge variety of Japanese-style vegetarian and vegan dishes, with an English menu that clearly notes important details like whether fish stock is used, which made ordering feel so much less stressful. We each ordered one of the comforting set meals, served with hearty soy proteins like miso katsu cutlets and tofu steak. They even had gorgeous soy-based sundaes for dessert.
Find it here
Sarah McLaughlin
13 Moon & Back
Nakagyo Ward, Kyoto
This ramen bar offered up my favorite ramen of the entire trip … I’m still thinking about it months later. We were absolutely starving after wandering Kyoto all day and almost every dinner spot nearby had a massive wait, but I’m so glad we stayed in line for this one because it ended up being one of our best meals in Japan. The vegan ramen completely lived up to the hype (apparently even Madonna stopped in for it in 2025), and we also ordered fresh tofu, cucumbers with peanut sauce, grilled edamame, and miso-glazed eggplant that were just absolute stand-outs.
Find it here
Sarah McLaughlin
14 Vegan Ramen Uzu
Nakagyo Ward, Kyoto
This immersive ramen spot ended up being one of the most unique dining experiences of our entire trip. We hadn’t even heard about the restaurant before arriving in Kyoto, but somehow managed to grab a reservation for the very next night and it completely exceeded expectations. We dined through a multi-course experience surrounded by immersive teamLab visuals and sound installations. The whole evening felt more like stepping into an art exhibit than a traditional ramen dinner. The single large table in the restaurant only sits 12 people, and for most of our meal we were the only patrons in the restaurant, which made our experience feel very private and exclusive. I ordered the spicy ramen and genuinely loved every part of the meal.
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Sarah McLaughlin
15 Fune Ethical Lifestyle
Nakagyo Ward, Kyoto
This cozy vegan café focuses on intestinal health and probiotic-rich ingredients, serving comforting fermented rice porridge with different add-ins alongside fermented vegetables, matcha drinks, raw desserts, tea, and coffee. Everything felt incredibly intentional and fresh—especially after days of heavier travel meals—and the attached retail space filled with hemp clothing and ethical goods made the whole experience feel even more thoughtful. This was a dish unlike anything we’d tried before and made for such a cool cultural dining experience.
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Sarah McLaughlin
16 Kyoto Engine Ramen
Nakagyo Ward, Kyoto
Kyoto Engine Ramen was where we ended up for our final dinner in Kyoto, and it felt like the perfect comfort meal to close out that part of the trip. Located in a busy shopping area, the ramen spot is known for its creative vegan-friendly miso ramen options, including the spicy and creamy Zesty Vegan Ramen and the Kyoto Beaning Vegan Ramen made with a rich edamame-based broth layered with shiso and other bold flavors. Warm and cozy after a long day of exploring, it was exactly the kind of relaxed last-night meal we wanted before heading home.
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Sarah McLaughlin (@sarahmclaughlin) is the New Products Editor at VegNews and is always on the search for the newest innovations in plant-based food.
