Phrase card
Say it in Japanese: a dietary & allergy phrase card
How to use this card
Most Tokyo kitchens want to help; the gap is usually language, not willingness. Show the phrase on your phone, point, and confirm with a smile. The most useful sentence isn't 'I'm vegan' — it's naming the specific ingredients to leave out, because animal products hide in the stock.
Core phrases
- Vegetarian: 私はベジタリアンです。肉と魚を食べません。 — Watashi wa bejitarian desu. Niku to sakana o tabemasen. (I'm vegetarian; I don't eat meat or fish.)
- Vegan: ヴィーガンです。肉・魚・卵・乳製品・はちみつは食べません。 — no meat, fish, egg, dairy or honey.
- Halal / no pork & alcohol: 豚肉とアルコールは食べられません。 — Butaniku to arukooru wa taberaremasen. (I can't eat pork or alcohol.)
- Pescatarian: 肉は食べませんが、魚介は大丈夫です。 — no meat, but seafood is fine.
- Gluten-free: 小麦・大麦・ライ麦アレルギーです。醤油も小麦が入っています。 — allergic to wheat/barley/rye; note soy sauce contains wheat.
Name the hidden ingredients
- Dashi / bonito: 出汁（かつお）は入っていますか？ Is there dashi (bonito stock)?
- Pork: 豚肉は使っていますか？
- Mirin / cooking sake: みりん・料理酒は使っていますか？
- Soy sauce → ask for tamari: たまり醤油はありますか？
- Egg / dairy: 卵・乳製品は入っていますか？
A safety note
For a serious allergy, add: アレルギーがあります。少量でも危険です。 (I have an allergy; even a small amount is dangerous.) For absolute certainty, choose dedicated kitchens — a vegan restaurant like Saido, a Muslim-friendly cafe like Sekai Cafe, or a certified halal house — where the whole menu already fits.
我们已确认的餐厅
Sekai Cafe Asakusa
Halal-meat burgers and matcha sweets
A cafe a 2-minute walk from Kaminarimon serving food without pork or alcohol, using halal meat alongside vegan and vegetarian dishes. Muslim-friendly / pork- and alcohol-free, not third-party halal-certified.
- 清真
- 纯素
- 素食
- Casual
- Solo
SAIDO
Plant-based 'meat & fish' course made entirely from vegetables
Once crowned the world's #1 vegan restaurant on HappyCow, this Jiyugaoka temple of 'new washoku' conjures convincing meat and fish dishes from nothing but vegetables — and welcomes vegan and Muslim diners alike.
- 素食
- 纯素
- 清真
- 无乳制品
- Date
- Anniversary
Sources
FAQ
- Will staff really understand a written phrase?
- Usually yes — a clear written Japanese sentence is far more reliable than spoken English, and most staff will check the kitchen for you.
- What's the single most important word?
- Dashi. The bonito/fish stock is the #1 hidden animal ingredient in otherwise-vegetable dishes, so always ask about it.