Gluten-Free & Vegan Ramen in Tokyo? It's Possible!

A nice bowl of ramen is a hearty and filling meal that’s a joy to try on a trip to Japan. However, as the broth is usually pork or meat based, it is a difficult treat for vegans or vegetarians to enjoy. On top of that, the wheat-based noodles aren’t exactly welcoming for anyone with gluten-intolerance.

Japan, while advanced in many domains, hasn’t subscribed to the Health Crusade that is rampant in North America. There aren’t juice bars, gluten-free options, or veggie burgers offered in every neighbourhood. It can be especially hard to eat out if you don’t read kanji fluently.

However - have no fear! If you are adamant about trying ramen in Japan, there is a place suitable for you in Tokyo: Afuri!

Doesn’t this look good (minus the egg if you’re vegan…)?

Here are the descriptions of their vegan ramen taken directly from their website’s menu:

Seasonal Vegan Ramen
100% vegetable-based broth, fresh seasonal vegetables, wheat noodle blended with lotus root (no egg)

As for the additional toppings, the vegan offerings include:

Menma (Bamboo shoots simmered in AFURI’s superb shoyu dashi)
Mizuna (Japanese Mizuna, amazing element of antioxidant and detox)
Nori (Five stared seaweed grown in fertile ocean Awajishima, southwest bay of Japan)

While anyone (vegan or otherwise) is able to choose out of their three noodle offerings, those who are gluten-free have one option suitable to them:

Konnyaku Men
Made from Japanese yam root and housemade white-dashi, konjac noodle will be your health-friendly alternative also rich in fiber!

Me chomping down on some good ol’ noods.

The ramen itself tastes very good. It’s extremely flavourful, and I finished every bite. I did add some spice, but Afuri has complimentary bottles in the space that you can grab to spice yourself.

The restaurant is quite small, and only has single seating around the kitchen-staff. It’s very intimate, but that is quite common in Tokyo. I really enjoy the atmosphere, personally.

Ordering:

To order, you go to a vending machine, put in your money, and press the options you want.

Yes, this can be a bit intimidating, but there is English underneath the Japanese text. Plug in the menu options I wrote above (Seasonal Vegan Ramen, Konnyaku Men, and any additional toppings), and you’ll be good to go!

After you receive the “ticket” from the machine, you hand it to your server. They will then have you seated, and you will receive your ramen as soon as it’s finished (which is quite fast).

Easy!

Location:
〒150-0013 Tokyo, Shibuya City, Ebisu, 1 Chome−1−7 117ビル1F
〒151-0051 Tokyo, Shibuya City, Sendagaya, 3 Chome−63−1 グランデフォレスタ原宿
〒153-0051 Tokyo, Meguro City, Kamimeguro, 1 Chome−23−1 中目黒アリーナ 1F
〒106-0032 Tokyo, Minato City, Roppongi, 6 Chome−2−31 六本木ヒルズノースタワ B1F
〒106-0032 Tokyo, Minato City, Roppongi, 4 Chome−9−4 UFビル4
〒160-0023 Tokyo, Shinjuku City, Nishishinjuku, 1 Chome−1−5 ルミネ1-B2F
〒106-0045 Tokyo, Minato City, Azabujuban, 1 Chome−8−10 ＴＳビル
2 Chome-12-11 Sangenjaya, Setagaya City, Tokyo 154-0024