Eat Well: Vegan Gyoza Yu - Taito
Tucked away on a back street about 7 minutes from Uguisudani Station is one of the most delicious vegan gyoza restaurants you’ll ever visit in Tokyo. Vegan Gyoza Yu. They specialize in rainbow gyoza with 11 unique flavors to enjoy steamed or fried. Their claim to fame is that their gyoza is so good you don’t need dipping sauce or condiments to go with them, and we agree. In addition to gyoza, they also have a variety of alcoholic, caffeinated, and decaf drinks to enjoy with your meal. And with indoor and outdoor seating, that’s heated in the winter, you can enjoy this restaurant year-round.
Let’s talk flavor. As mentioned above, there are 11 flavors to choose from to build your perfect plate, but we recommend trying the full set on your first visit to see which ones you’ll like best. Your options are two types of shiitake, celery, green pepper, Chinese chives, coriander, kimchi, eggplant miso, ginger miso, garlic miso, and green onion miso. They’re all well seasoned and full of flavor, and each flavor has a naturally dyed dough to tell them apart. Don’t worry about guessing which is which because the set comes with a small guide paper to identify each one. This set is super filling and will leave you feeling happy at the end. Our top five flavors, in no particular order, are Chinese chive, shiitake, kimchi, ginger miso, and garlic miso.
We couldn’t resist getting a drink this time and decided to have the decaf chocolate latte with caramel sauce as our dessert. You’d be surprised at how many cafes and coffee shops in Tokyo don’t have a decaf option, which is a problem for us because we shouldn’t have too much caffeine, but love the taste of coffee. It was a real treat to try this rich, chocolatey drink topped with thick whipped cream, chocolate sauce, and caramel sauce. It’s smooth, easy to drink, and our go-to beverage choice.
After you’ve indulged in this delicious gyoza, you can get a customized frozen set to enjoy at home too. We’re very excited to share this restaurant because Vegan Gyoza YU is our favorite place in Tokyo to get gyoza. It’s a good thing we don’t live closer, or we’d be eating out a lot more. The menu at Vegan Gyoza Yu is pretty consistent, so there probably won’t be a need to update this one, but if anything changes, we’ll let you know!
The owner Yu (on the left) and our friend Zim
Yu, the owner, is one of the sweetest business owners you’ll meet out here. She’s kind, attentive, and friendly. Don’t be afraid to have a chat with her and let her know how great the food is!