Hello friends! I stepped away from my blog for a bit while I traveled and pursued some exciting projects, but now that things are settling down, I’m hoping to get back to regular posts this summer. I have loads of fun photos from my travels and cooking experiments that I’m excited to share!
To start things off today, when I was in Japan a little while ago, I visited this fantastic vegan and vegetarian friendly restaurant called Kizuki Kitchen. I know Japan has a common reputation of being a difficult place to eat veggie, but it’s not true! There are so many fun options, and over the recent years, trendy vegan and vegetarian restaurants and cafes are popping up all over the place!
The ideas are often really creative, too, with a special Japanese twist. These are some deep fried tofu steaks that came with a whole bunch of delicious sides.
There were various salads, brown rice, and mushroom miso soup. We tried a number of other set menus, including the lentil curry, which was nicely spiced. The only adjustment that I wanted to make was that there wasn’t quite enough heat for my taste. I asked the restaurant staff, and they were incredibly helpful, searching all over until they found a little shaker of red chili for me.
One thing that made the cozy little restaurant even more fun was that they would prepare all the food right there in front of you, so you could see your dishes as they were being put together. It’s sort of like dinner and a cooking show at the same time.
The third meal that we ordered was a hotpot set. In it, were daikon raddish, an egg, carrot, konyaku, shiitake mushroom, and a deep fried tofu pouch — all well seasoned and bursting with umami flavour. By the time we finished, the tiny little restaurant was packed, and there was a line out the door. If you ever pay this place a visit, make sure you get there early! This was one of the first health-angled restaurants that I ever visited in Japan, so it was a very neat experience to see what they do with all these different and unique ingredients.
Elle's Travels and Eats 
Now I’m hungry..
Haha, me too! I’ve totally got to try remaking this at home now!
Give me the chili shaker too!
Nice to see you back, Elle! Those tofu steaks look marvelous!
Kat
Hi Kat! It’s great to see a familiar face!
While in Japan, I ended up just buying a little bottle of chili and carrying it around with me haha! Have you ever tried “shichimi togarashi”? It’s a special Japanese chili blend. If you like chili, you’d love it!
Anyhow, thanks for stopping by 😀
Hi Elle! I’ve not tried that; I wouldn’t know where to get it! I do love chili though. Are you back in BC?
I sure am! Back in Vancouver, and loving the sunny weather finally. I found a place here where I can buy a fairly large bag of the chili for a good price. Very happy about that haha! It’s so good, because it’s not just red chili peppers, but also dried orange peel, roasted sesame seeds, etc. Recommended if you ever see it 😀