Delicious Japan

Japanese cuisine is considered one of the highlights for most travellers.  Japan's passion for food paired with so much fresh produce inspires many tourists to create travel itineraries centred around eating. 

Eating in Japan, however, is known to be trickier for vegetarians.  As Japanese use protein (primarily fish protein) as a base, accommodating for vegetarian palettes can be tricky.  Everything - even sweet treats- can unexpectedly have something fishy sprinkled in! 

During Geoff’s last visit to Japan, there were many days when he had to skip meals due to the lack of options available and a communication mishap or two involving sea “cucumbers”.   So, this time, we came prepared, stacking up on as many protein bars as we could carry and a bag full of snacks leftover from our Indonesian retreat. 

We quickly and happily learned that Tokyo had evolved greatly since Geoff’s last visit 10 years ago.  With language as less of a barrier and a health movement that has seen more Japanese becoming vegetarian, eating in Tokyo was actually a pleasure.  It is admittedly a bit trickier outside of Tokyo but we still managed to find completely reasonable options.

In Tokyo, however, we found numerous vegetarian and vegan restaurants around the city that offered creative and delightful meals.  One restaurant – Bon - prepared a divine 6-course vegan tasting menu, using a variety of local vegetables we had never heard of before.  Another was a 2-Star Michelin restaurant - Daigo - which prepared a gorgeous full vegetarian menu and offered delightful service.   There was even a vegan restaurant in Tokyo station - T’s (or Tan Tan) - that was so good it consistently had a 20 person line-up…  and so good that we happily waited in that line and went there 4(!) times during our stay!

What was one of our biggest trip concerns  turned out to be a true highlight.  In many ways, it was some of the best dining we've had during our travels.