Eating out in Kanazawa and enjoying its unique cuisine is a huge part of experiencing the best of what the city has to offer. Being a vegetarian doesn’t mean you need to miss out on incredible food in Kanazawa either. Unless you’re traveling with a group of vego’s, you’ll likely want to find a Kanazawa restaurant that caters to both omnivores and vegetarians. This is my list of unmissable restaurants in Kanazawa, Japan with both vegetarian and non-vegetarian food!
Japanese foods featured in my list of Kanazawa restaurants with vegetarian options include sushi (even make-your-own sushi), yakisoba and okonomiyaki. My list of Kanazawa restaurants also includes some trendy new restaurants that have Western or international vegetarian options like burgers and tacos as well.
1. Coil
Coil is a famous sushi restaurant in Kanazawa that allows its visitors to make their own rolled hosomaki sushi! This fun concept and the trendy (Instagrammable) interior space draws in crowds of locals and tourists alike. Guests can choose from a variety of ingredients to include in their rolled sushi, then combine them in any way they like before rolling the nori seaweed and rice.
The joyful part of choose-your-own-ingredients for vegetarians is you can choose from various hearty ingredients for your rolled sushi like pickled vegetables, camembert cheese, natto, baked eggs, and avocado. For non-vegetarians, freshly caught Kanazawa ingredients like various seafoods and roes, even beef, can be added to your sushi.
The popularity of Coil means you might want to make a reservation ahead of time.
2. Fuwari
Fuwari is a traditional Japanese izakaya-style restaurant located near Kanazawa’s famous Omicho fish market. Fuwari is known for its grilled foods, which are made over two different types of specialty Japanese charcoal. The charcoal-grilling method retains the flavor of all ingredients, which are sourced locally.
The restaurant’s signature dishes are platters of fresh sashimi (straight from the sea!) and an assortment of the day’s best grilled ingredients. Vegetarian and vegan options include grilled shiitake mushrooms, sweet potato, lotus root, and zucchini. They also serve egg omelette and tempura (seasonal).
3. Atsushi Kanazawa
Atsushi Kanazawa is a Kanazawa restaurant serving a variety of creative Japanese and Western-fusion foods. Their online menu conveniently shows allergen information for all of their dishes, and there are plenty of options for vegetarians and vegans. This small reservation-only restaurant is housed in a traditional Kanazawa building near the Kenrokuen Gardens. It’s known for using high quality and local ingredients for their dishes, such as fish from the local market and vegetables sourced from the surrounding mountain ranges.
Although Atsushi Kanazawa is most famous for their creative futomaki sushi rolls, there are plenty of options for vegetarians and vegans like their grilled mushrooms, tofus, avocado salad, and hearty vegan sushi roll.
Love the food and the vibe? Atsushi also has a guesthouse on-site.
4. Shogun Burger
Let’s get some Western food options on the table for this list of Kanazawa restaurants with vegetarian options! Shogun burger is an emerging burger chain in Japan, with a location near Kanazawa’s main train and shinkansen station. Although it’s known for its wagyu burgers, Shogun burger also offers plant-based soy burgers and other types of limited-edition burgers on rotation too. This restaurant is perfect for when you’re craving a quick and dirty burger set meal in Kanazawa.
Shogun Burger also has locations in Tokyo and Yokohama.
5. The Godburger
While we’re on the top of burgers, another popular Kanazawa restaurant with a vegetarian burger option is The Godburger. The Godburger is a small, local joint that takes its inspiration from the cult classic movie, the Godfather.
Although it’s known for its hearty meat patties, the Vegetable Burger means both vegetarians and non-vegetarians can enjoy a tasty meal here.
6. Okonomiyaki Shizuru
Okonomiyaki Shizuru is another Japanese comfort food option in Kanazawa, perfect for vegetarians and non-vegetarians. This DIY teppanyaki restaurant allows visitors to make their own okonomiyaki (savory pancakes), yakisoba, and other teppan-fryable goodies like mushrooms, potatoes, and shrimp. Both vegetarian yakisoba and okonomiyaki options are available for guests. Meaty versions with pork and seafood are also available.
This hole-in-the-wall Kanazawa restaurant is the perfect place to stop by for a fun meal and a beer after a long day exploring the city.
If you love okonomiyaki, don’t miss okonomiyaki village in Hiroshima, or Sakura Tei in Tokyo, another great restaurant with vegetarian options.
7. Hatakenoko 家庭料理と野菜マルシェ 畑の子
Hatakenoko is a hidden gem cafe in Kanazawa with vegetarian options, and a perfect place to eat for anyone cravings vegetables and healthy farm-to-table food.
Hatakenoko, or the full name translated, katei ryōri to yasai marche hatakenoko, means home cooking and vegetables, a child of the farm. The cafe serves up set meals of colorful, healthy vegetables, soups, and curries, some with bite-sized shrimp or chicken, perfect for vegetarians and non-vegetarians alike to enjoy. They even have a small market on-site where guests can purchase locally-grown vegetables.
8. Kourin Sushi
Kourin Sushi is a classic Japanese sushi restaurant that services fresh fish from Kanazawa’s famous seafood market. It’s located between both the Omicho market and the Kanazawa Castle Park, making it a great place to stop by when exploring the many things to do in Kanazawa.
For vegetarians this restaurant serves a hearty vegetable roll with egg, cucumbers, and lettuce – a welcome addition to an otherwise traditional Japanese nigiri sushi menu. Other vegetarian options include a cucumber roll and egg nigiri.
9. Margarita
Margerita is a Mexican restaurant in Kanazawa with vegetarian options. Mexican restaurants like this are not common in Japan, so this is a perfect place to grab some cheesy, spicy, vegetarian or non-vegetarian Mexican goodness before continuing traveling around Kanazawa.
Margerita’s vegetarian options include avocado and tomato tacos, various types of quesadillas including jalapeño and habanero, and snacks like avocado fritters and crispy grilled cheese. Meat eaters can try their authentic chorizo, beef, shrimp or pork tacos and various mains like beef skirt steak and chicken wings.
10. Ippei Sushi
For a wholesome Japanese sushi experience in Kanazawa, look no further than Ippei Sushi. This counter seating-only restaurant is run by an elderly Japanese couple who serve fresh sushi to their patrons over the counter. With no website or social media, this restaurant thrives off of word-of-mouth recommendations and loyal recurring patronage.
Compared to other sushi restaurants in Kanazawa, this one is friendlier on the wallet without compromising on quality. Vegetarian sushi options are similar to those listed above: egg, cucumber and other hosomaki, and inari sushi too.
Others:
On my list of Tokyo and Osaka restaurants with vegetarian options I’ve included descriptions of chain restaurants like Tenya (tempura), Mos Burger (fast food) and Coco Ichibanya (Japanese curry) that have both vegetarian and non-vegetarian options. If you’re visiting Kanazawa and want more variety than what’s listed above, check out these Japanese chain food stores in Kanazawa too!
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