Cheap vegetarian food places

I am a vegetarian and as i read on the internet it seems finding vegetarian food will be a challenge during my Japan trip.
Can someone please advise on cheap vegetarian food places in Shibuya, Tokyo and Kyoto especially late in night.

Hi!

First, some bad news: Japan isn't really a late night dinner place, i particular Kyoto things seem to close a little earlier.

Now for the good news, Tokyo and Kyoto are both full of great vegetarian and vegan options. There are places where being vegetarian can still be a bit of a challenge, but it feels like there are so many more options than in the past. I don't know your definition of cheap, but there are so many great places in both. For filling, not terribly expensive and still takes people at 21:00 for dinner, I'd highly recommend T's Tan Tan Ramen in Tokyo Station. The ramen bowls are huge and I think a lot of the sets were 1200 yen or 1500 yen. It regularly gets a line. They also have a quieter branch in Sendai if you are up there.

I went to one of the Ain Soph's in Shinjuku and it was decent and not terribly expensive. The rest of the chain is expensive and I didn't like the service in Kyoto.

Just check out Happy Cow, it's a tremendous resource. https://www.happycow.net/asia/japan/

If you eat dairy and are willing to eat pizza there are even more places than what is listed on HappyCow.

Enjoy!

In Tokyo and Kyoto, no problem whatsoever. Get Happy Cow. Therefs also been other threads here about this with specific restaurants mentioned. Give them a search.

There are too many eating places in Tokyo and Kyoto, and I think many of them have a few vegetarian menus that you can choose unless the restaurant looks like a steak house or sushi restaurant. Especially at an old-fashioned Japanese teisyoku (set menu) restaurant, there must be vegetarian menus. I don't think you should be worried about that. You enter a restaurant that you like, and ask if they have vegetarian menus. How does that sound? Have a great trip.

If youfre a strict vegetarian who avoids bonito dashi, I definitely wouldnft walk into random restaurants and ask if they have a vegetarian menu. I live in Los Angeles, practically the vegetarian capital of the world, and I wouldnft even do that here. Stick with places that advertise their vegetarian specialization and are frequented by vegetarians so youfre sure they know what theyfre talking about. Especially in Japan where itfs frequently misinterpreted what is vegetarian.

Thank you so much for all the replies. It is very useful

To be fair, if you eat dairy and like say Indian food or pizza that are a lot more options than listed on Happy Cow. I've been to a really nice pizza place in Nagano, but I am loathe to put it on Happy Cow because they don't really have anything vegan. It does have good pizza and options if you eat dairy though. lol Japan also has a lot of places serving pancakes and if you don't mind shared griddles, pancakes are almost always vegetarian but not vegan.

I'd say the same is true if you travel most places in the US/World. Generally, if you eat dairy there is always cheese pizza and generally, Indian will always have something vegetarian (but not always vegan.) I agree with @Gregalor and would definitely not just go into most Japanese restaurants unless you are comfortable eating seafood. It's hidden in many many things. Japan is seriously improving though. When we left Narita in July 2018, there were little green leaves at food counters that offered something vegetarian and green leaves showing the particular items on the menu.

One nice thing is some of the jelly desserts in Japan use agar agar instead of gelatin. I can't remember the name of the place now, but it's out of Okayama and I saw a listing of their ingredients in English at their NY branch.

I really can't recommend T's TanTan Ramen enough though. It is vegan and quite delicious and filling. My child always wants to eat all her meals there and I confess it is one of the reasons we took trains from Narita to Tokyo to Osaka when we arrived vs. flying direct from Narita to Osaka.

In addition to Tfs, Jangara (Jungle) Ramen is good, too. Therefs one in Akihabara and one in Harajuku. They have one vegan ramen and itfs really good. It actually comes with a soy pork slice, which Ifve never seen anywhere else. And there you get the experience of lining up and then sitting at a bar, which you donft get at Tfs. Tfs is great, Ifve been to three locations, but it can also be hard to find inside the train stations.

The Sendai T's is my favorite because they have a children's menu and an extended adult menu. They also have a lot more space. I'm honestly trying to figure out another day trip to the Sendai area just to go there.