Vegan-friendly
Lacto
Japanese

Vegetarian restaurant in a traditional Japanese house and a small shop. Has a limited menu that includes a varied lunch box, plus matcha and desserts. Open Mon-Sun 10:00am-5:00pm.


Venue map for Traditional Japanese House NAKAMURA - 古民家なかむら
© OpenStreetMap contributors

15 Reviews

First Review by gruberit

pops2107

Points +103

Vegan
18 Apr 2025

Amazing experience and delicious food

The Nakamura Japanese house is a must try when visiting Fuji! The restaurant is in a classic Japanese building with tatami flooring and traditional low seating. If you are lucky enough you may be able to sit at the kotatsu, which is where we sat, with heating underneath to warm your legs on a cold day.

When booking our trip to Kawaguchiko, we came across Nakamura and I knew we needed to visit. To book we used the website messaging service and the owner got back to us promptly.

We arrived and saw the beautiful building, the owner greeted us (she speaks very good English, and is lovely), we took off our shoes and went to sit at the kotatsu.

We ordered the vegan lunch set and green tea. Everything was presented beautifully and so delicious. We loved the tea soba and the pickled tofu, the grilled vegetables were amazing too.

After our meal we looked around the owner’s curated shop of locally made items, and we had to stop ourselves from buying too much as it was all so nice.

It was such a great experience and I would recommend anyone go, vegan or not.

PS - the owner was so kind that she gave us umbrellas to leave with as it was raining.

Pros: All vegan or vegetarian , Authentic Japanese experience, Friendly service

CassandraTay

Points +55

Vegetarian
14 Apr 2025

SUPER GOOD Vegetarian lunch 👍👍

Really wonderful layout- really giving the Traditional Japanese House vibe. I really love it. Even though the place was rather remote, it was quite easy to find.

We had a vegetarian lunch without 5 pungents. The whole experience was super unique, eating lunch from a bento box of 2 layers. The food was super good! Especially how the food was garnished and presented. The sakura flavoured Dango and cake was cute! 🌸

The owners really outdone themselves! 👏👏

There is also a shop beside the restaurant, and I saw a kimono rental experience? haha, I didn't try it though. 🤨 maybe in the future?😆 haha!

Note: Do call in advance if you do not eat 5 pungent as they needed time to prepare.

Pros: The atmosphere of the house, environment, layout , Unique Japanese food experience, Parking available

Cons: A little remote , Easy to access if you drive car , Needed to see the bus timing if travel by bus

kawaguchiko-nakamura

14 Apr 2025

Thank you very much for your lovely comment and I am glad you could enjoy our food and atmosphere. Not only the special meal request to exclude five pungents, we do higly recommend and appreciate if you make an advance book your lunch meals. The cooking itself take really time and effort, so in order to save our precious time each other, let us know you would like to have meals here. Thank you again for everything and enjoy Japan!

tasharafna

Points +28

Vegetarian
14 Apr 2025

Best food we have had in Japan! But best to book

This was a wonderful experience. The vegan bento box was delicious and we got to try so many foods as part of it. Dessert (sakura flavoured vegan mont blanc) was also delicious. The owner is very kind and welcoming and told us all about the venue. The restaurant used to be an inn for shinto pilgrims who were climbing Mt Fuji. Very old and very special. A truly unique experience and a great price for what you get.

Best to book as some people came in after us and they couldn't get lunch. You can book using their website. There's a form in Japanese at the bottom of the page but it's just name, email address, message so easy enough. We emailed early the same morning and it was fine for lunch.

Updated from previous review on 2025-04-14

Pros: Amazing delicious food, Historical venue, Fantastic hospitality

kawaguchiko-nakamura

14 Apr 2025

Hello thanks for visiting us yesterday and it was such a thoughtful idea to make an advance booking and notification for your lunch. Highly appreciated. Actually you can simply send DM to us through Instagram or Facebook. Or email to info@kawaguchiko-nakamura.com

andrei3000

Points +96

Vegan
14 Apr 2025

Amazing experience

Had lunch in a traditional Japanese house overlooking mt Fuji. The atmosphere itself was amazing. Showed up without reservation but the lady running it was nice enough to offer me a box set. The food is really good.

kawaguchiko-nakamura

14 Apr 2025

Hi. Thank you for coming yesterday. It was such a good timing you showed up and we could prepare the lunch box for you. In this kind of local town in Japan, it is not easy to find the restautants offering vegan or vegetarian. Hope you continue great travel ahead!

NatalieReynolds

Points +15

Vegetarian
07 Mar 2025

AMAZING!

The owner was so kind. She made us feel so welcome and we had a lovely conversation. The food was incredible. Everything was made fresh and had beautiful presentation.

Pros: Traditional Japanese experience , Delicious food, Super friendly

kawaguchiko-nakamura

12 Apr 2025

Thank you very much for visiting us. It was such a lovely time for me too to have chat with you. Hope you can come back again in the future. Highly appreciated your honest feedback. Thank you!

ChanelleRodeka

Points +719

Vegan
05 Mar 2025

Lovely place

Wonderful set vegan lunch, chocolate cake and soy matcha.
You order and pay online when you’re there through the QR code.
Lovely friendly lady working there.
I had messaged them on instagram a few hours prior to let them know I was coming- not necessary but is recommended as it was very busy there today (given awful weather people are not out exploring)
It is freezing today so I positioned myself by the heater but it was still too cold to take off my jacket and beanie.

kawaguchiko-nakamura

12 Apr 2025

Thank you very much for visiting us and your comments. Please accept our deep apologies the room was so cold. The house was 200 years old archtecture without any insulation materials and we are not allowed to install any oil heaters due to fire prevention. I hope you kinldy understand that the is one of your experience of authentic Japanese people's life style. Again thank you for choosing us.

Harrshha

Points +236

Vegan
15 Nov 2024

Loved everything about this place.

Tasty, unique, well presented food in a traditional Japanese house, with a view of Mount Fuji if you're lucky. What's not to like! The chocolate cake was also nice indeed. Go!

Updated from previous review on 2024-11-15

Pros: Presentation , Food, Location

kawaguchiko-nakamura

21 Nov 2024

Thank you very much for visiting us! We are so happy that you liked our meal. Again appreciated for choosing us!

holeaf

Points +396

Vegan
30 Oct 2024

Vegan Bento

We arrived without a booking and they were kind enough to find a place for us. I would recommend booking in advance as the kitchen is really small.

Lovely all vegan bento box prepared fresh. Other items on the menu are not vegan.

Very friendly staff.

Pros: Traditional Japanese , Friendly staff

Cons: Not everything is vegan.

kawaguchiko-nakamura

06 Nov 2024

Thank you for coming to our cafe restaurant. Hope you enjoyed the vegan Japanese Bento box. Now we start serving vegan chocolate cake as a vegan menu. Thank you so much!

sofiell

Points +499

Vegan
01 Oct 2024

Both food and experience !

We had the vegan bento, it was really lovely. The owner was happy to chat with us, offered to take our picture and even told us the history of the house. We really enjoyed it and learned about the culture. It felt very authentic, welcoming and sincere.

Aim to go around 2 hours before closing time if you want the bento, or contact them in advance- otherwise the kitchen may not have sufficient time to prepare it.

Pros: Tasty food, Super friendly owner/service, Traditional Japanese setting

Cons: Go early!

kawaguchiko-nakamura

11 Oct 2024

Thank you very much for visiting us and appreciated your practical and useful advice to our visitors. Yes we will absolutely appreciate it if the advance booking for lunch box is made. Thanks again and have a wonderful journey!

Flo-Chi

Points +25

Vegetarian
14 Sep 2024

Sehr gutes veganes Essen in wundervollem traditionellen Ambiente

Das alte Holzhaus ist bewusst fast im Orginalzustand belassen, von der Gartenseite sieht man bei gutem Wetter auf den Fuji.
Das Mittagsmenü ist frisch zubereitet und im Obanzo Stil. Uns hat alles sehr gut geschmeckt. Wir kamen ohne Voranmeldung - und hatten Glück noch etwas zu bekommen. Deswegen unbedingt vorher reservieren!
Die Besitzerin spricht hervorragend English also einfach anrufen. In der Gegend um den Fuji eines der wenigen reinen Veggie Restaurants und dann noch so ein Juwel!

Pros: Essen geschmacklich top, Ambiente , Alles frisch zubereitet

kawaguchiko-nakamura

14 Sep 2024

Thank you so much for your visit and I highly appreciate you have kindly noted that advance bookings would be highly reccomendable. Thanks again for your kindness and I look forward to seeing you again! Have a great journey!

SSPpFvGi7!XXZju

Points +38

Vegetarian
26 Aug 2024

Vielseitiges Gericht in gemütlicher Atmosphäre

Es gibt ein veganes Mittagsmenü, das aus vielen kleinen Sachen besteht, wie es traditionell üblich ist, und dadurch geschmacklich sehr vielseitig ist. Getränke und Nachtisch habe ich echt probiert. Die Stäbchen sind extra von dem Haus und man konnte sie anschließend mitnehmen. Nach dem Essen gab die Besitzerin eine Führung durch das Haus, erzählte einiges über die Geschichte der ehemaligen Besitzer und zeigte auch alte Besitztümer. Vor dem Restaurant ist ein kleiner Laden und über dem Restaurant ein Co-working space. Alles hatte eine sehr gemütliche und familiäre Atmosphäre. Dadurch, dass das untere Stockwerk weitestgehend original gehalten ist wirkt es sehr authentisch. Die Besitzerin meinte, sie wollte das beides erreichen. Sie spricht außerdem sehr gut Englisch.
Bei gutem Wetter kann man den Fuji sehen.

Pros: Essen, Atmosphäre, historische Infos

kawaguchiko-nakamura

14 Sep 2024

Thank you so much for your post with beautiful photos. It was so nice meeting with you and I was so glad that you liked our place! Please enjoy the rest of your trip in Japan and hope to see you again soon!

Al-un

Points +193

Vegan
24 Jul 2024

Wonderful experience

I had a lunch set, only one vegan choice possible, and an ice coffee.
First of all, the coffee was simply wonderful. Regarding the setting, it is an old traditional building (a «kominka») without air conditioning but the flowing air was refreshing enough despite the hot summer. The owner, who speaks good English, made us a quick visit that was interesting.

The lunch set was a lunch box with carefully picked items. I loved the diversity and the fact that veggies mainly come from surrounding areas.

Highly recommended.

Pros: Atmosphere, Cooking

wez

Points +75

Vegan
20 Jul 2024

Must go

What a beautiful old house converted into cafe. A must visit. The food is absolutely amazing, and so is the scenery. The owner is very kind and passionate making the experience well worthwhile.


Take the red bus to stop 15 and it's a 10min walk from there.

Pros: Traditional Japanese food that's vegan, Views of Mt. Fuji

Shardonnay

Points +77

Vegan
19 Jul 2024

Delicious traditional meal with an overall impressive experience

The vegan lunch consists of many different tastes that make up a heartwarming combination, in general it was one of the best things I ate in Japan.

The experience is rounded off by the traditional location of a Traditional Japanese House. Just sitting there is calming and an experience by itself.

The owner is also really friendly and speaks English. She told me about the history of the house and we had a nice chat.

First I was happy to have found some vegan place here while I was watching Mt. Fuji, but it's not just some vegan place. Go there if you have the chance.

gruberit

Points +35

Vegan
20 Jun 2024

מקום מושלם לארוחה קלה

שירות נהדר, קופסת האוכל מספיקה לאדם אחד בדיוק אם הוא לא מורעב במיוחד

Pros: אוכל יפני אמיתי טבעוני, שזה די נדיר ביפן, יחס מצוין, בית אותנטי מקסים ביופיו

Cons: לדעתי לא משביע לאדם מאוד רעב, אין מבחר ארוחות, פחות התחברתי לקינוחים היפנים, אבל זה עניין של טעם




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