Jail House, Shibuya

A meat loving friend suggested a restaurant in Shibuya for a Friday after work dinner. Walking uphills towards Roppongi-dori from the Shibuya station, we were not sure if we were heading towards the right direction as the usual Shibuya busy lights faded away and more and more office buildings appeared. Finally we found this hidden beach house on the 2F of a tall office building. It was smaller than expected, white sands on the floor and surfboard on the wall. The staff did a good job making the place relaxing and unique. The only thing missing was the sunshine and the sound of the waves. Not a lot of people when we walked in; it was a rainy Friday night afterall. There is a dart board and a few other games like Jenga that you can play while hanging out in the izakaya/bar. Staff was friendly and played a game with us for a bit. Food wasn't anything special - salad and sausage was ok, pizza was quite good with the half-based egg on top. Ginger ale with lemon was suprisingly good however :P Also the chef wasn't particularly fast so be prepared for a looong dinner. All the tables are quite big - no lover's seats available.

What did we eat?

Shrimp salad
Grilled Sausage and corn
Egg and bellpepper pizza
Two beer
Two ginger ale with lemon

Total was 6100 yen for two people.

Veggie friendly rating
Doesn't look so good. Everything has meat inside. All the salads have either small shrimp, bacon, or ham. It is probably possible to ask for non-meat salad, but at the end still not a lot of options or food.


Find the menu here
Map to Jail House
English Map with directions to Jail House

AMADINE, Ebisu

After a week of non-dairy, (see the vegan experiment), a serious cheese fix was on the cards to celebrate. And only fondue would do! So Friday night, post-stressful work week, we headed to this cozy place in Ebisu. I say cozy but looking back it was a big space, high ceilings and perhaps no need for our 7.30 reservation – not unlike somewhere you would find out in the countryside and not a bit like a downtown Tokyo eatery. Regardless, the ambiance was romantic, the noise was minimal, and the lighting played the part to give it a nice atmosphere. A great date place! Might be perfect for afternoon tea or Sunday brunch with a wide drinks selection and word is the pancakes are good too.
What did we eat?
Cheese fondue for 1-2 people (1200 yen, bread for dipping included)
Baguette (300 yen)
Steamed vegetables (600yen)* NB smaller than expected.
Maple Honey Milk (~500 yen)
Oolong Tea (~500 yen)

Veggie friendly rating

Great for dairy-eating folks, not so kind for vegans. Soup and bread, as well as salads, available and even though we weren’t hungry, dessert looked good.

Find the menu here
Map to 1F Café Restaurant AMANDINE

Monsoon Cafe, Shibuya

Met a veggie friend during Vegan week to catch up with the last six months since I randomly ran into her in Cambodia! What better place to choose than South-East Asian fusion bar and restaurant, Monsoon Café (Shibuya branch)

Although by no means unique (locations all over Tokyo), for a chain restaurant this place does ooze character and was a great place for Saturday night pre-club. Best thing about it was the large menu, friendly waiters and nice cocktails!

Note – this place is non-smoking. (great!)
Reservations can be made online (maybe only necessary for big parties – the place is big)
Menus in English
What we ate
Thai green curry – (950yen) (Never occurred to me before that coconut milk is vegan (^^)
Pad Thai (sans shrimp) (1100yen)
Brown rice (250yen)
Passion Mojito (800yen)
Mangoyan Squash (500yen)
Veggie friendliness
Excellent – Thai curries, fried rice, noodles and salad – and best thing is they offered to make anything on the menu without meat! Seemed very accustomed to the idea.

http://www.monsoon-cafe.jp/en/shibuya/home/location
Find the menu here