Osaka/Umeda Station is one of Osaka’s biggest transportation hubs. So you might find yourself around these two stations frequently when you visit Osaka. If it is around lunch or dinner time and you are unsure where to dine, how about referring to the below list of vegan/vegetarian-friendly places?
Table of Contents
- Vegan and Gluten Free Osaka
- Gluten-free
- Can cater to Allium-free/oriental vegetarian
- Natural Kitchen Medaka No. 2 (natural kitchen めだか 2号店)
- Has gluten-free options.
- Allium-free options/suitable for oriental vegetarian
- Ganesh N (ガネーシュN)
- Recommended by the Michelin Guide.
- Optimus Cafe (オプティマスカフェ)
- Babel Cafe (バベルカフェ)
- Has gluten-free and nut-free options.
- Aju (大豆ミートのお店 あじゅ)
- Allium-free options/suitable for oriental vegetarian
- Other Vegan-Friendly Restaurants Around Osaka/Umeda Station
Vegan and Gluten Free Osaka
If you are already hungry when you reach Osaka or Umeda Station, Vegan and Gluten Free Osaka is the perfect restaurant to fill your stomach. Conveniently located inside a building a few minutes walk from the train station, the restaurant offers delicious Osaka street food, such as takoyaki and okonomiyaki!
What to Expect at Vegan and Gluten Free Osaka
As its name suggests, Vegan and Gluten Free Osaka is a vegan and gluten-free restaurant. It is a lifesaver for those who care about animal welfare but have celiac disease. Moreover, Vegan and Gluten Free Osaka is a kid-friendly restaurant. Not only do they offer toys to young children, the dining space is divided into private rooms. Each room has a TV and looks like the dining room in an ordinary Japanese household. Depending on the room you choose, your room might even be covered by the traditional tatami mats!
Another special thing you will soon realised after entering the restaurant is it is very English-speaker friendly. Because over 90% of customers are foreigners, the menus are in English (even on their website!).
Because everything served here is gluten-free, their okonomiyaki and takoyaki taste different (but nice!) from the ones made using wheat flour. Although vegan pan-fried dumplings are common in vegan-friendly restaurants, we still recommend trying them. The dish is one of our favorites!
The Kushikatsu (deep-fried skewers) is another must-order at Vegan and Gluten Free Osaka. You can enjoy the skewers with special sauce or seasoned salt, so it is almost like you have ordered two different dishes.
For those who want some cultural activity on their trip, order a plate of Temaki Sushi. The staff will bring you the ingredients to make your hand-rolled sushi roll!
You can check out Their Menu and get excited before visiting (=ﾟωﾟ)ﾉ.
Tips:
☛ If you are an oriental vegetarian, remember to let the staff know that you need your order to be “Gokun-nuki (五葷抜き)”.
☛ If you usually find the broth/sauce in Japan too salty, let the staff know to put less sauce on your okonomiyaki.
Vegan and Gluten Free Osaka’s Business Hours and Access Information
- Vegan and Gluten Free Osaka is open from 11 am to 10 pm.
- The last order is taken at 9:30 pm.
- The restaurant is a 3-minute walk from Osaka Station.
- Refer to HERE for a detailed description of how to get there, as it can be hard to find.
Natural Kitchen Medaka No. 2 (natural kitchen めだか 2号店)
Around Osaka Station, you can visit Natural Kitchen Medaka No. 2. Although it isn’t a vegetarian/vegan restaurant, it can replace meat and seafood with soybean meat, making it a great dining place if you travel with non-vegetarian families and friends. They even have a few gluten-free options!
While you might think the vegan food at Natural Kitchen Medaka No. 2 would be average because it isn’t a vegan specialist, that isn’t the case. In fact, the vegan dishes at the restaurant receive a lot of good ratings!
A special thing about Natural Kitchen Medaka No. 2 is the water it uses. The restaurant only uses 99.9% purified water. Some think that the resulting cooking tastes better.
You can refer to their English Menu HERE in advance. While not on the menu online, the Daily Special Lunch Set is the most popular.
Tips:
☛ You can pay a little extra to make your food into an Oriental Vegetarian meal.
☛ Their black sesame latte is really nice. It is smooth and creamy.
Natural Kitchen Medaka No. 2’s Business Hours and Access Information
- Natural Kitchen Medaka No. 2 is open from 11 am to 8:30 pm.
- On Sundays, it closes early at 8 pm.
- It is a 12-minute walk from Osaka Station (大阪駅) or Osaka-Umeda Station (大阪梅田駅).
- From Osaka Subway’s Higashi-Umeda Station (東梅田駅) and Ogimachi Station (扇町駅), it is a 7-minute walk.
Ganesh N (ガネーシュN)
Ganesh N is a Northern Indian restaurant recommended by the Michelin Guide, which is one of the reasons that there is usually a queue in front of the small restaurant. While Ganesh N’s owner is Japanese, she has more than 15 years of experience making Indian dishes, including when she was trained in India. So if you feel like eating curry when you are in Osaka, visit Ganesh N!
Important: Please get in touch with Ganesh N beforehand by filling out their web form HERE if you have any dietary requirements.
The menu of Ganesh N is simple, two daily special non-vegetarian curries and one vegetarian curry. You can choose between Indian rice or Japanese rice. Curry and rice portions can be upgraded too. And if you want something sweet, a cup of Lassi perfectly matches the curry!
Ganesh N’s Business Hours and Access Information
- Ganesh N is open from Tuesday to Sunday from 11:30 am to 3 pm and 4 pm to 9 pm or until sold out.
- It will open if Monday is a public holiday.
- Refer to their Business Calendar for extra days that the restaurant will be closed.
- It is a 7-minute walk from JR Ōsakatemmangū Station (大阪天満宮駅) or a 6-minute walk from Osaka Subway’s Minami-Morimachi Station (南森町駅).
Optimus Cafe (オプティマスカフェ)
Just a few stations away from Umeda, Optimus Cafe, close to Kitahama Station, is a vegan cafe offering delicious vegan dishes and snacks. Located along the Tosahori River (土佐堀川), it is a great spot for a break sitting on their terrace seats overlooking the river. A few sparrows might visit when you are there, looking for leftovers!
As Optimus Cafe has breakfast, lunch, and cafe menus, no matter when you visit it, you can surely find something you feel like eating. While soy-based meat is used for all their dishes, it doesn’t mean you won’t feel satisfied. In fact, it is the opposite! The cooking and seasoning are just right that it is almost like eating real meat!
The menus are tweaked slightly according to the season, allowing you to enjoy the seasonal vegetables and fruits. In addition, instead of wheat flour, rice flour or buckwheat flour is used!
You can refer to their menu HERE in advance.
Tip: Arrive early to avoid waiting in a long queue for lunch. The lunch menu is served between 11 am and 3 pm.
Optimus Cafe’s Business Hours and Access Information
- Optimus Cafe is open from 8:30 am to 5 pm.
- On weekends and public holidays, the restaurant closes late at 6 pm.
- It is a 3-minute walk from Osaka Subway’s Tenjimbashisuji 6-chome Station (天神橋筋六丁目駅) or a 5-minute walk from JR’s Temma Station (天満駅).
Babel Cafe (バベルカフェ)
Another vegan place a few stations away from Umeda is Babel Café. The café that doesn’t use eggs, dairy, animal products, white sugar, and chemical seasonings also aims to use organic ingredients as much as possible. It also has a few gluten-free and nut-free options, so if you are allergic to certain ingredients, Babel Café should be able to provide something delicious to fill you up.
Besides Today’s Babel Plate (vegan plate), they also have vegan sandwiches, meat pies and curry rice. While the menu is relatively simple, the nicely cooked food surely won’t make you regret your visit.
Babel Café also sells cakes and snacks made from 100% rice flour. While you might feel uncertain about the idea, it is tasty and loved by those who have tried it.
Babel Cafe’s Business Hours and Access Information
- Babel Café is open from 12 pm to 6 pm from Friday to Wednesday.
- It is a 3-minute walk from Osaka Subway’s Kitahama Station (北浜駅) or a 5-minute walk from Keihan’s Naniwabashi Station (なにわ橋駅).
Aju (大豆ミートのお店 あじゅ)
While many vegan and vegetarian restaurant owners are vegan or vegetarian themselves, it isn’t the case for Aju. As a non-vegetarian owner runs the restaurant, they pride themselves on being a place that offers vegan dishes that can satisfy meat lovers.
The menus are centered around tofu and soy meat. Every week, Aju offers two different weekly special set menus. Each has a main dish and a couple of side dishes. The main dish includes a variety of cuisines, including stir-fried minced soybean and tofu mince cutlet set, minced soybean taco rice, and Aju curry.
Note it will take time for your orders to be prepared as the restaurant doesn’t have any other staff except the owner.
Tip: Their okonomiyaki and yakitori skewers are must-tries.
Important: Aju has started to offer non-vegan dishes on its menu in 2020. Please check with the staff which dish is vegan before ordering.
Aju’s Business Hours and Access Information
- Aju’s current lunch hours are from
- 11:40 am to 1:30 pm for lunch
- 5:30 pm to 9:30 pm for dinner
- It is a 2-minute walk from Osaka Subway’s Nakazakichō Station (中崎町駅).
Other Vegan-Friendly Cafes and Restaurants Around Osaka/Umeda Station
Japanese Cuisine
- MOON and BACK HEP FIVE
- A ramen restaurant with a few vegan options.
- You will get one of the best vegan ramen here. Many would go back once they tried the vegan ramen there.
- Gluten-free noodles are available.
- HERE is the restaurant’s menu.
- Umenohana (梅の花 梅田店)
- A traditional kaiseki (multi-course) restaurant chain with a big focus on tofu. The entire restaurant has a traditional setting, with tatami mats covering the floor.
- A reservation is required to enjoy the vegan kaiseki at Umenohana. Same-day reservation is accepted.
- Like other kaiseki restaurants, the food at Umenohana is beautifully presented and tastes amazing!
- Reservation can be done online HERE or by calling them at 06-6485-5805.
- Okonomiyaki Izakaya Fuwatoro (お好み焼きが美味いだけの居酒屋 ふわとろ)
- An okonomiyaki Izakaya near Osaka Station that can make the pancake vegan on request.
- The incredible okonomiyaki pancake is so huge that one is enough for two people. Vegan/vegetarian side dishes are also available in case one pancake isn’t enough.
- The owner-chef is very friendly and accommodating, making it one of the best vegan-friendly izakayas in Japan.
- The restaurant’s decoration is quirky and very unusual, but it fits so well with the owner’s funny personality.
Other Cuisines
- BAGEL AND BAGEL
- A bagel chain shop that sells bagels in various flavors, including sandwich bagels.
- Their Osaka shop is on BF1 of LUCUA Osaka (ルクア大阪).
- Please check with the staff for vegan/vegetarian bagels upon arrival.
- Far East Bazaar (ファーイーストバザール エキマルシェ大阪店)
- A delicatessen chain shop inside Osaka Station building selling Arabic and Middle Eastern foods and snacks, especially dried fruits, nuts, and spices. Their ice cream and parfaits are also very popular.
- Vegan and vegetarian options are available and clearly labeled. It is a great spot to try vegan ice cream cookie sandwiches.
- Everything on the menu has rich flavors from the raw ingredients. The desserts sold here aren’t overly sweet, and the vegan ice cream is sugar-free!
- Folksaka (FOLK茶菓)
- A vegan and gluten-free cafe near Fukushima and Shin-Fukushima Station. In addition to the light meals, their sweets are a must-try.
- Unlike many gluten-free breads and baked goods that are dry, the ones at Folksaka are moist!
- The cafe’s desserts are so amazing that you will doubt if they are truly vegan and gluten-free.
- One of the top sellers here is their cheesecake.
- Another must-try is their carrot cake. It is made from buckwheat flour. The fruity taste balances well with buckwheat’s unique aroma.
- Head up to the 2nd floor if you want to dine in.
- Erick South Grand Front Osaka (エリックサウス グランフロント大阪店)
- A South Indian curry chain restaurant near Osaka Station with a couple of vegan/vegetarian options.
- You can get a set curry platter with different curries.
- The saffron rice contains butter, so it is more suitable for vegetarians.
- They can replace the yogurt with salad.
Discover Vegan/Vegetarian-Friendly Restaurants in Other Parts of Osaka
Obviously, the Northern Osaka Prefecture won’t be the only part of Osaka you visit. So refer to our Top Vegan and Vegetarian-Friendly Restaurants in Osaka for places to enjoy delicious vegan/vegetarian food!
