Ikea’s strawberry plant-based soft serve, first sold in European stores, has made its way to Tokyo via their new city-center Harajuku location.
New Options for Vegans in Tokyo
Japan isn't known for its vegetarian or vegan food. While the country actually has a long history of food that fits the bill, "shojin ryori" (精進料理) vegetarian food eaten by Buddhist monks, totally meatless cuisine is still a niche market in Japan. Sure, you can ask them to leave the sliced pork out of a bowl of ramen, but that broth is probably made with meat anyway.
Fortunately, we've seen a slow increase in vegetarian and vegan options in recent years, especially in major urban areas like Tokyo. Japankuru writers have written about their favorite Tokyo vegetarian restaurants in the past, and we've taken note of shojin ryori in Kyoto that sits right on the edge between trendy and traditional. Now you can make your own vegan sushi in Roppongi, or pick up a vegan burger in Shinjuku. The plant-based Green Burger at Mos Burger, made with no meat or meaty additives, is available all around Japan these days.
And now, for that sweet tooth that craves a frosty cold dessert in the middle of Tokyo, but doesn't eat meat or animal products, Ikea has vegan soft serve ice cream in Harajuku! We recently wrote about our visit to the grand opening of With Harajuku, a huge new shopping facility, and one of the major tenants is Ikea's first ever city-center location. Taking into account the relatively small space (for an Ikea, that is, the space is still huge), Ikea Harajuku is focusing less on the model rooms the store is known for, and putting more emphasis on the cafe and food options.
The food options also cater to the trendy Harajuku crowd and their taste for the unique, too, by making the majority of the prepared food vegan. After a meal of vegan sausage tunnbröd flatbreads in the Ikea cafe, for dessert diners can try the "strawberry plant-based sundae."
After trying the soft serve, though, opinions were divided among the Japankuru team. We all agreed that texture-wise, it was great. Obviously it was no high-end gelato, but the mouthfeel was satisfyingly creamy and a perfectly acceptable stand-in for a dairy-based ice cream.
The flavor was what had us disagreeing. Immediately upon receiving our orders, we picked up the cups and noticed an almost perfume-y strawberry scent coming from the plant-based ice cream. Tasting it, well… according to our Taiwanese Editor L, it was a pleasantly nondescript berry flavor. I, however, had a different experience. Growing up in the United States I was subjected to fluoride dental treatments from a young age. As an adult I can now forgive those, but the flavor of the terrible fluoride goo has undeniably stuck with me. At the first mouthful, the flavor of the strawberry soft serve brought up strong memories of fluoride treatments past, and I just couldn't ignore it all enough to really enjoy the ice cream.
If you were fortunate enough to have skipped that unpleasant dental treatment as a child, you will probably have no problem with the flavor of Ikea's soft serve. And since it's available right inside the entrance, I have no doubt that Harajuku explorers vegan and dairy-eating alike will be lining up for the new sweet treat throughout the summer, and enjoying it while meandering in front of Harajuku Station. Plus, the same counter serves lattes made with almond and oat milk, which I had no objection to!
Let us know if you check out the new facilities at With Harajuku, including the Ikea and a brand new Harajuku Uniqlo, on the Japankuru twitter, instagram, and facebook. Or feel free to ask us any questions you might have about your next trip to Japan!
Details
NAME:Ikea Harajuku
ACCESS:Harajuku Station
PROFILE
Between collaboration items and special-edition limited-time-only goods, Japan has some pretty interesting products, and if you're anything like me... well, you can't help but be interested!
COMMENT
FEATURED MEDIA
VIEW MORE・The new Tokyo flagship for Volcom Japan is a center for all things skateboarding, street fashion, art, and culture, all in the heart of Shibuya! ・Volcom日本旗艦店東京澀谷登場 本格派滑板街頭潮流藝文新據點 #Volcom #japankuru #shibuya #日本購物 #日本潮流 #日本街頭時尚 #澀谷 #東京購物 #東京購物推薦 #東京潮店 #澀谷潮店 #滑板 #雪板 #衝浪 #볼컴 #시부야
Which snacks make the best Japanese souvenirs?~ Jaga Pirika ~ 일본과자 선물 뭐하지?~자가피리카 편~ #pr #calbee #jagapokkuru #japanesesnacks #japanesefood #japanesesouvenir #japantravel #japantrip #naritaairport #hokkaido #나리타국제공항 #일본여행선물 #흔하지않은기념품 #일본쇼핑리스트 #일본과자추천 #고구마과자 #일본간식추천 #일본면세점쇼핑 #개별포장 #일본감자칩 #도쿄나리타공항면세점 #현지인추천 #일본여행 #일본기념품리스트 #자가포쿠루 #자가피리카
Asakusa's Sanja Matsuri, one of the biggest festivals in all of Tokyo, is almost here! Make sure you check out the festival route so you don't miss all the festivities this May. #asakusa #sanjafestival #sanjamatsuri #asakusashrine #sensoji #sensojitemple #japanesefestival #shintoshrine #japaneseculture #tokyo #tokyotrip #tokyotravel #asakusasightseeing #matsuri #japantrip #japantravel #springinjapan #tokyotravel #japankuru #산자마츠리 #아사쿠사 #일본마츠리 #일본여행 #일본5월
Odaiba's DiverCity Tokyo Plaza is home to the famous real-size 20m-tall Unicorn Gundam, and the popular shopping center has even more Gundam on the inside! Check out the Gundam Base Tokyo on the 7th floor for shelves upon shelves of Gunpla, and the Gundam Base Tokyo Annex on the 2nd floor for cool anime merchandise. Both shops have tons of limited-edition items! #pr #odaiba #tokyo #tokyotrip #japantrip #japantravel #PR #divercity #divercitytokyoplaza #tokyoshopping #gundam #unicorngundam #gundambasetokyo #anime #otaku #gunpla #japankuru #오다이바 #다이바시티도쿄 #오다이바건담 #건담 #일본건담 #건프라 #건담베이스도쿄
Evangelion, in miniature!? Tokyo's SMALL WORLDS Miniature Museum is actually a must-see for anime lovers, thanks to the tiny Evangelion Hangar and Tokyo-III... plus a whole universe of other scenes both real and fictional. #smallworlds #smallworldstokyo #tokyotrip #tokyotravel #evangelion #eva #anime #miniature #miniatures #animefigure #japantrip #japantravel #에반게리온 #스몰월드 #에반겔리온 #スモールワールズ #오다이바 #아리아케
Have you sat down for a snack at Sumida Aquarium yet? This aquarium next to Tokyo Skytree is known for its penguins and garden eels, but we can't get enough of their cute snacks! There are lots of good seats around the aquarium, too, so it almost feels like one big cafe. 🐧 • Find out more at Japankuru.com! (Link in bio.) • #japankuru #sumidaaquarium #skytree #tokyoskytree #solamachi #sumida #tokyo #tokyotrip #tokyotravel #aquarium #japanesesweets #themecafe #すみだ水族館 #Japan #日本 #일본 #Japon #ญี่ปุ่น #Japão #япония #japantravel #日本旅行 #日本旅遊 #japan_of_insta #japantrip #traveljapan #japan🇯🇵 #igerstokyo #explorejapan
For anime fans, the Evangelion areas at Small Worlds Miniature Museum are a must see! The tiny miniature people in the Evangelion Hangar look like ants beneath the moving Unit-01, Unit-00, and Unit-02! And over in Tokyo-III, characters like Shinji, Rei, and Katsuragi live life on a miniature scale. #odaiba #tokyo #tokyotrip #japantrip #japantravel #ariake #smallworlds #miniaturemuseum #smallworldstokyo #tokyotravel #evangelion #eva #anime #miniature #miniatures #animefigure #japankuru #스몰월드 #에반게리온 #오다이바 #오다이바관광 #오다이바스몰월드 #미니어쳐