日本語はこちら Update 2023: Matsuontoko is now known as Ain. Soph Journey Kyoto (catchy!) — but it is still a vegan restaurant serving delicious burgers, curries and kara-age! Though there are quite a large number of vegetarian establishments in Kyoto, most of them are located in the north of the city, and the few there are in the city center tend to sell nothing that isn't … [Read more...]
Yak & Yeti – Nepalese Curry in Kyoto
Yak and Yeti is a restaurant we go back to time and time again for two reasons. One is the super friendly staff who never fail to put a smile on our faces. And the other is their legendary Vegetable Phuraula, Nepali style spicy vegetable tempura. It's amazing. This restaurant is super popular with vegetarians for the range of tasty vegan options they have on their menu but you … [Read more...]
All New Falafel Garden
A couple of weeks ago we went to check out the new location for Falafel Garden. A short walk north of Demachiyanagi on Kawabata, this new shop opened on April 28th. The old Falafel Garden was always a popular spot, but I think I like this new one even more. It's bigger, more comfortable, they have a nice big garden out the back and if you are lucky you can snag a balcony seat … [Read more...]
Chakra Indian Restaurant
We found another great curry place! Mewby and I stumbled across Chakra last night while out for an evening stroll, and although we hadn't intended to eat out, we were tempted in at the thought of Bengal curry goodness... There are a lot of choices on the menu, and everything seems pretty reasonably priced. There are also a lot of vegetarian/vegan options: 8 different … [Read more...]
Deep Kyoto & Tadg’s
Right then! I'm off to Bali for a week and will be resolutely offline during the interval so there'll be no more posts for a wee while, but before I go a short word of explanation. The astute among you may have noticed the appearance of a black box on the upper right of this page which proudly bears the name "Tadg's". It looks like this (only smaller): I'm pleased to … [Read more...]
BAR F.S.N.
UPDATE: BAR F.S.N. has moved and is now located here. Recently I heard that an old friend Philippe Goulier, had opened up his own bar. I was curious to see it. Philippe had always talked about running his own little cafe, or tea house, or restaurant... or something, but it always seemed like it was just talk. It's awfully nice when people exceed your expectations. Philippe … [Read more...]
Tadg’s Irish Bar and Restaurant
The Home of Craft Beer in Kyoto Four years since it first opened, the Irish pub formerly known as Mc Loughlin's has been renamed as Tadg's. Not a big change really, as I think everyone was calling it that anyway. I've written previously about this pub; its friendly hospitality and the fantastic views over the river and city. And Tadg's cooking is also justifiably renowned; … [Read more...]
Sunday at the Vegan Earth Festival
The sun was out and so were the crowds for Sunday's Vegan Earth Day festival. Now obviously, the big thing at this kind of event is the food (apparently there's no meat in it - but it still tastes ok!), but even if you aren't hungry, just wandering around people-watching is pretty entertaining. I saw some familiar faces - like Falafel Garden's Amir for example. And … [Read more...]
In Search of… the Craic
In December 2008 my friend David Ewen and I (that's us on the left) decided to go on an Irish pub crawl and see exactly what each place had to offer in terms of food, drink, music and the elusive craic. What follows is a list of the five pubs we visited, a summary of what we found there and a map to each location. For a fuller article, more pictures and directions click on … [Read more...]
Na no hana
Out for a stroll last night I stumbled across health and whole food shop 菜花 (na no hana). They have plenty of organic vegetables and fruit here, all kinds of natural cooking ingredients, vegan food supplies and earth-friendly cleaning products. 菜花 sits about halfway between Demachiyanagi and Hyakumanben. If that isn't convenient, they do deliveries. To find it, just walk east … [Read more...]
Hale ~晴~
Hidden away in the heart of the bustling market on Nishiki Dori is a tiny little alleyway that leads to Hale. This is a fully organic and vegan restaurant, specialising in seasonal dishes, yuba tofu and Kyoto's famously distinctive vegetables. For lunch you can have a ￥1000 set or the "Special Lunch" for ￥1800. I settled for the ￥１０００ lunch which you can see amid the pictures … [Read more...]
Mikoan
UPDATE (November 19th 2013): Walking on Teramachi a few days ago I noticed a sign up at the closed entrance to Mikoan. Unfortunately it seems there was a fire there and the owner was badly hurt. She is now recovering in hospital, but at this time it is not clear when or if Mikoan will open again. We hope and pray for the owner's speedy recovery. 彌光庵 was founded by a lady … [Read more...]
Sunny Place
Last December, Sunny Place, a vegan restaurant previously situated in Kitayama, moved serendipitously not a five minute cycle ride from my house. It's name is apt, as it's a brightly lit shop with a friendly atmosphere. They also have a nice range of Coedo organic beers each for ￥６００． If you go for the "定食" or set meal option you get a main dish of your choice, rice (whole … [Read more...]
