Yakuzenshokudo Chabuzen

Contributions +64

Yummy but hot - Edit

Posted by robynie on 18 May 2018.

Must’ve went on the hottest day and it was almost unbearably hot in this restaurant... Food was great though, unfortunately he was out of the mapo tofu which we wanted to try, but we enjoyed the dragon ramen and the tomato soup pasta. This place is very small, just two tables to fit maybe three each if you squeeze, but quite out of the way so it may be unlikely that it is full. Chef was very friendly and spoke some English.

Pros: All vegan

Cons: Hot inside in summer

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tiny, tasty ramen shop - Edit

Posted by ckdouds on 13 May 2018.

Chabuzen is a one-man ramen shop that is cozy and worth the trek. We ordered a delicious appetizer of fried soy meat and the dragon ramen. The ramen was tasty and creamy, and watching the chef prepare it was a treat. The only con was that the ramen had a lot of oil in it and upset my stomach a bit later. Would still recommend, though, as the entire experience was one of a kind.

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Super tiny Japanese vegan ramen shop - Edit

Posted by sneveu on 04 May 2018.

Solid ramen dish rich with flavours but the noodles reminded me of wholegrain spaghetti.

The broth was creamy, on the sweet side, but closely resembled the authentic flavours of Japanese ramen.

Great experience regardless of its cosiness and noodle choice.

Pros: sitting on the floor/tatami mat, owner very kind and friendly

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Contributions +17

ramen did not disappoint! - Edit

Posted by plinz on 13 Mar 2018.

This place is so small and cute, the guy who runs it is lovely and most importantly the food is great- we tried 2 ramens and they were both delicious!

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Contributions +13

I found a gem (: - Edit

Posted by rukin on 03 Mar 2018.

Try the Dragon Ramen and also some Gioza, the best I have eaten.

Cons: Very cheap

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Contributions +31

best vegan ramen in le world - Edit

Posted by tattyloveveg on 19 Feb 2018.

The guy running this little place is super sweet, he makes incredible ramen and gyoza. Definitely would love to come back and try the rest of the menu.

Pros: everything

Cons: none

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Contributions +845

authentic ramen - Edit

Posted by edwardbc on 05 Feb 2018.

I’ve been several times already and it’s one of my favorite in Tokyo. The food is made right in front of you in a very small and quiet place. It’s located on a residential area, away from crowds and tourists, definitely a good experience.

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Contributions +47

Absolute Gem - Edit

Posted by graveraves on 29 Jan 2018.

We absolutely loved this place - the man who runs it was lovely, the food was the best ramen I have ever tasted and it was such a cute little hole in the wall. We ordered the dragon ramen, the nirvana curry ramen and the gyoza, all were fantastic but the ramen really stole the show. If you're in the area and you want to try authentic japanese food while still eating vegan, this is the place to go.

Pros: Delicious food, Good value, Lovely owner

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Contributions +101

great atmosphere - Edit

Posted by dreadjohn on 15 Jan 2018.

This is a very small place so don't bring a group. After eating in all the fancier places located in busy areas that are more welcoming to tourists I found this place perfect. You could probably describe this as a "locals only" joint. So if you're a tourist looking for upscale then skip this place. But if you're cool and want to have real ramen and a quiet experience go here. Leave your high expectations in the hotel and enjoy what he has to offer.

Pros: quiet, large portion size. my girlfriend liked the

Cons: my girlfriend didn't like her dish as much. the ch

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Contributions +19

filthy and disgusting - Edit

Posted by hbad on 22 Nov 2017.

Terrible food. Very overpriced. Tiny place which was absolutely filthy - dead flies on the lampshade. The place was so uncomfortably small. Yeah it's vegetarian, but I would've rather rice balls from Lawson's.

Meal for 2 was 3600JPY!! Never. Again.

Cons: overpriced, awful food, filthy

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Contributions +381

Sympathetic - Edit

Posted by iokan on 20 Nov 2017.

We went to "Food Therapy Chabuzen" because of a review on YouTube. A couple of meat eaters and famous YouTube'ers named Simon & Martina decided to give vegan food a try. Their conclusion: if all vegan is as good as the food at Chabuzen, they could go vegan.

Our conclusion differs. A lot. Yes, Chabuzen is an adorable little restaurant (2 tables, 4 stools at the counter) ran by a passionate owner who is also the chef. But the restaurant is old and feels unclean. Also, the little kitchen looks old and worn out. Cozy as it might be, it's not a great start.

Based on said review by Simon & Martina we ordered the ramen. Now I've never eaten meat based ramen, but for me it was too rich and too oily. But then again, I'm the type of person who orders salad without dressing. All day long I felt the oily ramen in my stomach. It didn't agree with me. But perhaps meat eaters are used to this level of oil and will appreciate it, as said on the YouTube review.

As a side dish we ordered fried chicken meat (tofu based, of course) which was more fatty than tasty. The gyoza was nice and dry on the outside, but the promised "tofu meat" inside was bland lacking an interesting taste (no herbs, no flavour).

Perhaps we ordered the wrong items from the menu (there's also curry rice, salads, tempura and soup), but we didn't enjoy the food. Nevertheless I would go here again to try other items from the menu and give this sympathetic little restaurant a second chance.

Pros: cozy, nice area (close to old city centre), low price

Cons: fatty and oily, very little seating space

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Contributions +66

tiny gem - Edit

Posted by VegDre85 on 13 Oct 2017.

Very small place (seating for about 3 parties), and a few minutes off the more busy streets, but great food, very cute, well worth the wait for everything being freshly prepared dish by dish.

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Contributions +33

I downloaded the app just to give this place 5 stars - Edit

Posted by ballzy_mcsack on 04 Oct 2017.

blown away. Top 5 best food I have ever had, and the best I had in Tokyo during my visit. So satisfied I had to download this app and give it the highest score. Super cute man running the place. The dragon ramen is heaven sent. Go there!

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Contributions +60

Cool but awkward - Edit

Posted by paulbelafonte on 15 Jul 2017.

This place is small, like really small. This can be charming and romantic (see: every other review), but for us it was super awkward as it's just you and the owner on a quiet night and there isn't a lot to say (my wife speaks Japanese too). The food was alright: I got the salt ramen and it was just ok, not super sodium heavy for the country that gave us soy sauce. The saltiest thing was me after clearly ordering the wrong dish. My wife had the recommended ramen and it was pretty dang good. Worth going if you're in shimo kitazawa, maybe bring a party of five to ease the tension or something.

Pros: cool place, cat posters on wall, food is cheap af

Cons: kind of dirty

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Contributions +20

cozy, delicious hidden gem - Edit

Posted by lilyflower on 10 Jul 2017.

Such a wonderful place! It's a very small and intimate place, perfect for relaxing. The guy who owns it is lovely and cooks everything right in front of you from scratch. It is so rare to find something like ramen, that's vegan, and still tastes amazing. Everything here is so flavorful, whether you eat meat or not, you will definitely enjoy this. And if you are someone who doesn't eat meat, this place will be heaven for you :)

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Contributions +18

The best vegan restaurant in Shimokitazawa - Edit

Posted by AlexLouiseWalker on 07 May 2017.

Yakuzenshokudo Chabuzen is Shimokitazawa's hidden gem. Situated along a quiet street just off the main shops, Yakuzenshokudo Chabuzen is worth the walk.

The restaurant is quaint with floor seating. The lovely owner is extremely accommodating and quick to take your order when ready. The menu has an array of Japanese cuisine including: curry, rice dishes with tofu and soy meat options. I had the curry dish and the chicken with tartar sauce - both were incredible!

Yakuzenshokudo Chabuzen is the perfect place to go to while in Shimokitazawa if you're looking for authentic vegan Japanese food. The resturaunt is run by the owner himself who cooks and serves the food which is a great addition.

I would definitely recommend Yakuzenshokudo Chabuzen to anyone in the area. Cannot wait to visit again!

Pros: Authentic Japanese food , Fresh and quality food , Plenty of options and great prices

Cons: None

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Contributions +27

overwhelmingly romantic - Edit

Posted by LaszloBergovecz on 12 Apr 2017.

This little place from October, 2016 turned fully vegan with the owner himself. He said that since he decided to change, didn't want to cook differently.

It is tiny and it is a bit dusty. But the whole thing feels like something out of a Murakami book.

Try the Dragon Ramen (personally I have never eaten anything this amazing) and the Indian Curry (also outstanding). He will serve a handful of salad for starters and a tiny special tofu cacao sweet dish as a dessert. It feels like if I missed this place I would have missed something very authentically Japanese. There is enough space for only seven people. Price is on the low side. The owner is super kind and speaks basic English.

Pros: food, kindness, atmosphere

Cons: nothing that really matters

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great little find - Edit

Posted by MeganOaktree on 01 Apr 2017.

Lovely little place. Very friendly owner and delicious Japanese food. Very welcoming and warming on a cold spring night.

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Contributions +89

Great little place! - Edit

Posted by Haymehhker on 24 Feb 2017.

Updated review. over the past few years this has been a vegan options only place but I'm happy to report he owner has flipped the menu and it is now fully vegan with a larger menu than before. This tiny gem is a small walk from Shimokitazawa and Shindaita stations and has a clearly labeled vegan section in the menu. It's not a huge selection but you wont care!! The food is good, the price is right and the space is a cozy little space to escape the cold winter night and have a big bowl of ramen.

Pros: good prices, good food fully vegan, cozy and relaxed

Cons: tiny, seats 10 maximum

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Contributions +50

May actually be fully vegan - Edit

Posted by jonolay on 20 Oct 2016.

We found this pretty easy to locate but actually think that nearly everything on the menu might have been vegan. Obviously language barriers are difficult but the owner seemed to suggest that he himself was vegan. It seemed that nearly everything had a vegan option (a green highlight on the menu) and the only other possibility for dishes was that they were also Jain/Buddhist with no garlic or onions. Lots of photos of happy animals pinned to the walls and the owner was super friendly. Ramen was great! Though admittedly more like soup stock with noodles than thick ramen. Very enjoyable!

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Contributions +74

great little find - Edit

Posted by GenevaJohnson on 01 Oct 2016.

So happy we found this place. Cozy little ramen/curry spot! Highly recommend hitting this place up if you're in the area. The owner/chef was so sweet and amazing. Thank you.

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Contributions +42

no more veggie rama - Edit

Posted by Dabrowskiowski on 24 Sep 2016.

As of September 2016, they are no longer selling the vegan ramen. :(

still able to order vegan gyoza

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Amazing Ramen - Edit

Posted by HattyAnne on 17 Jul 2015.

This place was a must do if visiting Japan. Its a very tiny place with vegan signage out front. We sat at the bar and witnessed the owner/chef as he made our meal in the very small kitchen area. The ramen was the best I have ever had and you can tell the chef put much effort in developing the flavor and cooking it just right. We were surprised by the free dessert of bananas and raisins in a sweet sauce. Very nice touch. One of my favorite experiences while on my vacation!

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Contributions +15

lovely vegan food - best Ramen - Edit

Posted by MartheseNohra on 27 Jun 2015.

tiny restaurant, 10 mins from the station. the owner was lovely! my carnivorous husband is a big ramen fan and said his vegan ramen was better than the meaty ramens he normally eats! my curry was also delicious.

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Contributions +1494

Vegan options! - Edit

Posted by paulkates on 10 Jun 2015.

Stumbled upon this place on an inner-city hike. It was like an oasis! Fresh, delicious ramen and other vegan options, including Indian curry dishes. Owner seems really nice (speaks a little English). So glad I found it!

Pros: Delicious , Reasonable, A bit off the beaten path

Cons: A bit off the beaten path, Only seats about 11

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