Gion Soy Milk Ramen Uno Yokiko — Restaurant in Kyoto

Absolutely atrocious! Me and my partner have just about recovered a day later, following a night of stomach pain and nausea…I’ll save you the details. Please note - we are certainly accustomed to Japanese food, and after two weeks in both Tokyo and Kyoto eating all kinds of different vegan food, this is by far the worst food we had (not only in Japan, but in a long, long time).

I went here because it was one of the only fully vegan places open later in Kyoto that we hadn’t tried. The reviews were really good, so despite my suspicious of the heavy use of soya milk, we went for it.

We queued briefly and were let in to a diner style eating environment, which surprised me based on the prices. But again, given the reviews we decided to go for it. We ordered via a QR code, with quite a confusing English menu that didn’t work on my phone. Little help was offered by staff and there was no water available until I went to the desk and asked.

Whilst waiting for the food, I went to the bathroom which was unclean, with paper towels everywhere. I also noticed one of the members of staff picking their nose! I was totally regretting ordering at this point.

We waited for a while, unable to talk given the atrocious music playing. When I say bad, I mean really bad. Obnoxiously loud, making light conversation impossible. The music became repetitive and louder, with staff shouting and singing. This continued until and after we left.

When the food arrived, my worries were met with the worst ramen of my life (if you can even call it that). The soy milk broth (and I like soy milk) was sickening. Awful, actually. The smell was terrible and I was left trying to spice it up with those available to try and mask the taste. Their ‘pride’ noodles were more like shop bought spaghetti with zero flavour (I’ve had gluten free noodles many times, and these were barely resembling anything like ramen noodles). There were aspects of the meal I couldn’t even identify and my partner couldn’t even get through his share. We rushed through what we could eat, and left as soon as we could.

Quite honestly, this is the worst restaurant I’ve visited in two weeks being in Japan (both Kyoto and Tokyo included). We’re both vegans, and very familiar with Japanese cuisine but this was a real disappointment, painting a sour note on the evening. Awful. Don’t go - prioritise a smaller, independent vegan ramen restaurant (of which there’s many in Kyoto). This is a total tourist trap, with a McDonald’s/ fast food mentality. I’m honestly shocked by the positive reviews.

Worst ramen of my life - made...

Highly recommend this dedicated GLUTEN-FREE and VEGAN restaurant for both those with special diets and those with no diet restrictions alike. The staff were so polite and welcoming, and the ambiance is clean and relaxing. I had the soy milk ramen "gekka" with soy noodles and added the rice with grilled soy cheese option. It was amazingly flavorful with a variety of vegetables and mushrooms. The soup had two vegan, gluten-free gyozas and a really good piece of tofu. My companion wasn't terribly hungry, so had a side of gyozas, which came with a vegan and gluten-free dipping sauce. To drink, we tried the gluten-free beer and the otoso (a type of sake). Both were good and worth trying. Because everything was so tasty, we decided to order dessert, which of course, all on the menu are vegan and gluten-free! We had a slice of the chocolate cake and a slice of the strawberry cake. Both were very good, but I preferred the chocolate cake with the layers of mousse between the layers of cake. Finally, you can order vegan gluten-free desserts to go from an outside vending machine! See the picture I included.

NOTE: the restaurant was full when we arrived at 19:45, which was a good sign that others knew about this restaurant. You sign your name on the wait list with the number of people in your party. There was a party of 4 ahead of us, and we waited about 30 minutes before we were seated. It was worth the wait!!! You order from an online menu, so you can place your order very quickly once you sit down. The drinks were served within 5 min of placing the order and the food was served within 15 minutes of...

THIS IS AN ABSOLUTE MUST VISIT REGARDLESS OF YOUR DIETARY PREFERENCES. PHENOMENAL FLAVOUR PROFILES

Travelling through Japan as a vegetarian meant limited food options, so this place was an obvious no-brainer to try and Oh. My. God. Was I insanely BLOWN AWAY by just how INCREDIBLY DELICIOUS vegan ramen could be, ESPECIALLY when made with soy milk. I cook a lot for myself and I always add in a boatload of veggies so I was really missing it on my trip and this restaurant really satiated my cravings. Not only do they have an insane amount of vegetables in their soup, it's not overwhelming at all. The ingredients all blend together and complement the flavour profiles so well. And LET ME TELL YOU ABOUT THE BROTH. I'm salivating just thinking about it. I would travel back to Japan JUST to eat here again. I went with my meat-loving bestie and the moment she took her first bite, she was shocked and said "I never knew vegan food could taste THIS good".

The restaurant ambiance is adorable, very modern and clean, space is a bit tight but intimate, service was phenomenal, and you HAVE to get to know the owner if you have the chance to. She's incredibly friendly and warm and her backstory is so inspirational and touching.

It is definitely on the pricier side compared to other restaurants in Japan, but it is 100% worth the money. I have never rated a restaurant on my own personal scale of 10/10 (10 being that I would travel just to eat there again) and this was it - my first ever 10/10. Ambiance, service, food (variety and taste). They literally killed it on every front...