Strict vegetarian needs food help!

Meat flavour/meat imitation products do not contain meat, so if people who do not eat meat for religious/ethical/health reasons still like the taste of meat, there is no reason why they should not eat "imitation meat" products, is there? No cruelty or whatever is involved in producing them, and they are usually healthier/lower fat than the original products.

There is no particular contradiction as far as I can see. You could like the taste of something (eg bacon) but not want to eat it for ethical reasons, so if a similar-tasting food was available with no ethical problems, then fine.

Also, some new vegetarians take a while to adjust to a new style of cooking which does not revolve around meat in every meal, so they may find meat-type products - eg vegetarian sausages - useful for a while. There are also vegetarians in meat-eating families who need to find something that everyone will eat.

Personally, I have been vegetarian for more than 20 years and never missed the taste of meat, but I know some people do. Not many people turn vegetarian just because they don't like the taste or texture of meat.

I've recently moved pretty much totally to vegetarianism, mostly because I do not like the environmental and production methods used by the meat industry, not because I don't like meat as such. My biggest holdback was a lot of my favorite dishes are meat based and won't work with simply omitting the meat. I've since discovered a lot of substitutes (seitan, TVP, etc.) that make my favorite old recipes work. My long-time vegetarian girlfriend even likes many of them.

Okay, back to finding the incredibly elusive, affordable, vegetarian but still Japanese cuisine, restaurant in Tokyo!

I really admire people who have eaten meat before but decided to become vegetarian for whatever reasons!! I have thought about it, especially with all the cruelty that goes on with feeding and slaughtering animals.

You should see how they feed the ducks and goose - inorder to make their livers so fat and drippy to the point that they become sick - yet we consumers treasure this as one of the top dishes in the world. Its kind of similar to Morgan Spurlock's documentary 'Upsize Me' in which he eats McDonalds for one month. (which personally I think wasn't reflecting it very accurately. The unhealthy stuff are mainly from the non-diet Coke and Fries).


I have a question - is there anyone in this world who is allergic to Vegetables and can only eat meat or seafood?

hi rogue,
the answer is "no".

Hello everybody! I just ran into this site via google, me and my bro are planning to go to Tokyo this summer. We are both veggie. First I thought it would be impossible to find veggie food, but I guess there is hope. =) Just wanted to thank you all!!! Wish you all luck and smiles!

Hi All,

My husband is a vegetarian. While we were there last year, we did have some difficulty in finding vegetarian for him. He ate mostly cakes (his favourite), bread, sushi rolls with just pickles or cucumbers or bean curd sheet, instant noodles,odon (without the soup), cold noodles, vegetable tempura, sandwiches.

We didn't dare to venture into resturants much as I have difficulty in figuring out which dish is totally meat-free. So we venture into the supermarket food halls on most nights, and try to look for bentos with vegetables side dishes. We were lucky to find this store which sells really yummy glutinous rice bentos. Of course I will be the one eating all the side dishes with meat. As my hubby can take dairy products, cakes and green tea ice cream became his best friends! *LOL* Not very healthy, but still helps to fill his tummy.

It sure is very challenging to find vegetarian food in Japan. But as long as u are not too fussy, I am sure you will be able to find a bit of food here and there.

Hi all,

Found this seasonal "yansai tempura" donburi at this chain of food outlets called "Tenya".

I saw a prawn tempura in the bowl, but I will be fishing it out from my husband's bowl for myself to enjoy it while he enjoys the vegetables tempura =P

http://www.tenya.co.jp/index.htm

http://www.tenya.co.jp/season/index.html

hello, i just came across this and wanted to inform all the hungry vegetarians visiting or living in Japan, that i am working on a survivalguide for you :) Have a look at my blog for restaurant recommendations, recipes and many other infos concerning veggie food in Japan:
http://vegetarianjapan.blogspot.com/