Masaka (Vegan Izakaya)

I ended up liking so much, I went twice. It’s located on the B1 floor of Shibuya PARCO, which makes it pretty easy to find once you know where you’re going. Just enter the mall, head downstairs, and you’ll spot it near the bottom of the escalator. Since they don’t take reservations, you give your name at the front, they add you to the list, and then you wait until they call you in. The interior isn’t the typical cozy, dim izakaya atmosphere you might expect. It’s actually quite bright, with red furniture and a more modern, almost cafeteria-like vibe. But honestly, the food more than makes up for it. And the food is insanely good. Every dish I tried was flavorful and satisfying, and the menu is perfect for sharing, which helps a lot because it’s definitely on the pricier side. Still, if you split a few plates with friends, it feels totally worth it. One thing I really appreciated was how fast everything came out. It’s very much an eat-drink-and-bounce kind of place, Overall, Masaka ended up being one of my favorite vegan finds in Tokyo. Great food, super quick service, and easy to stop by if you’re already in Shibuya. I’d go a third time without hesitation.

#latepost We ordered Kaarage with Sichuan-Style Spicy Hot Sauce, Karaage with Tartar sauce, Chinese Bamboo Shoots, Gyoza Dumplings, Spicy Potato Wedges, Mapo Tofu, Deep fried Mushrooms. We are thoroughly impressed with the dishes we ordered. Each item was exceptionally flavorful with a well-balanced spice level. The vegan karaage, in particular, was remarkably tender and delicious, closely resembling traditional meat in texture and taste. It's been a year since that Japan trip. I always miss the food I had there. I recommend this place to every vegan/vegetarian friends. You will feel very happy.

TLDR; this place is 100% worth it even if you’re not vegan I was unsure about how good this place would be since a good chunk of their menu had imitation meat, but my god, was I wrong! Imitation meat in Japan is just a world apart compared to the US. We ended up coming here twice - I highly recommend the gyoza, kaarage with spring onion and lemon and deep fried maitake mushroom. The mayo tofu was not my favorite and I’ve definitely had better. The wait here is a hit or miss - on the first day we got a table right away but the second time we waited about 30 minutes to get a table.

Came here for an early dinner, so I found a seat without issue. Small dining area and small chairs. The food itself came out quickly after ordering. This place had the best vegan karaage I’ve eaten to this point, and the mizuna salad was very good. The mapo tofu was good but a bit too salty in my opinion. Overall really enjoyed the food here and would definitely return. Note that some items on the menu may be sold out and not available at the time of your visit.

As an izakaya were vegans can eat everything, I was really excited. Especially everyone was talking about the Karaage, so I wanted to try them. Location/Atmosphere: The Izakaya is at the basement floor of Parco, easy to get to, with a lot of other restaurants. And frankly, especially compared to all of the other restaurants there, it looks a bit shabby and rundown. Service: Also, compared to the Service you normally get in Japan, I was surprised that one of the male staffmembers was not giving it at all and just did the bare minimum, didnt smile at all and seemed annoyed. We didnt even get tissues, but had to get it on our own. Maybe it was bc he was talking english to us, but it felt rude. Especially compared with one of the female staff, who was smiling and friendly. Order/Food: You can order via QR Code, and they have a nice selection of options. We ordered 2 diff. Karaage (difference is the Sauce they use on top), gyoza and spring rolls. I enjoyed the crisp outside of the karaage and the Sauce, but the rest was just "ok". The gyoza and springrolls were very oily and, for the price (!!), I was disappointed. You can try it, maybe we just got there on a "bad day" but tbh, esp for vegan/vegetarian - you have other options. Other options if you are in the mood for some really delicious (in my opinion) gyoza/karaage: 1) Vegan/vegetarian Gyoza at Kakekomi Gyoza (Kabukicho) 2) The vegan Kaaraage at Fallaffel Brothers (Roppongi, Shibuya, Harajuku), overpriced but delicious

Heard a lot about his cosy vegan Izakaya and decided to try it. The shop itself is small but the quick service make it a great spot for an enjoyable meal. The service was top-notch—everyone was friendly and efficient. Highly recommend this place if you are in the area!

Flavorful, delicious and reasonably priced. We got 5 items between 2 people and that was more than enough. I would recommend the Hot Karage, Cucumber, and dumplings. The Fried spring rolls were hella oily.

Great vegan restaurant. there may be a long line, and they stop accepting new guests early - today they stopped accepting new guests at around 19:30 (they did accept everyone who was already waiting). The Karaage, deep fried Maitake mushrooms and spring roles were amazing. Also, their Vanilla ice cream was really great - I don't remember having vegan Vanilla ice cream as good.