About to finish a two week holiday in japan. The food is fantastic, we have tried everything from chains, konbinis, classic restaurants, izakayas and bars.
I do find that there is not many vegetable sides with our meals, most of the time it is just cabbage. Is there a particular reason why this is? Thanks in advance!
by deadfish1225
9 Comments
It’s restaurant food and it’s what people expect, people cook more vegetables at home. But you can still pick up fruit, salads, and veg at conbinis, and supermarkets. I always look for vegetable dishes at restaurants, and teishoku places vary, some have more vegetables than others. But that’s where you get the closest to home cooking.
i noticed that as well would be interested to hear what locals have to say
That entirely depends on what you order/get yourself.
At least for fried/deep-fried dishes, raw cabbage is a good partner that helps with digestion (plus it’s cheap).
Lived in Japan for 5 years now, it’s extremely common in restaurants to have small portions of vegetables. The only exception are the katsu places that offer unlimited cabbage with your meal or the buffet meals at hotels that have salad bars. I just eat a lot more veggies at home to compensate if we eat out.
It’s because you need to have the full Japanese holiday experience and have the worst constipation you’ve ever experienced in your life.
I had this issue as well when I traveled in Japan, before I went there with my wife (who is Japanese).
Now when we go she finds the good spots – we generally like izakayas, so we often go to those. There are almost always vegetable based dishes on the menu based on whatever is in season, so it is no longer a problem.
If you order a set menu, it is mostly in a classic format that just includes some pickles or cabbage as you mentioned. You sort of have to go outside of the standard set menus to get vegetables.
I did 3 weeks of traveling in Japan and YES I also noticed veggies were in short supply when eating out.
I’m 2 months deep in my 3 months trip. I definitely miss vegetables.
I’ll catch up on my vegetable intake when I get back home. I’m planning to cook the most magnificent ratatouille.
But in the mean time, I’m getting as much as I can at breakfast.
find a ringer hut and you can get a bowl of noodles soup with, basically, a whole head of cabbage in it