Restaurant located near JR Nara station. The owner is the chef who also teaches vegan cooking and gluten-free cooking. Offers a daily lunch set comprising several dishes like salad, steamed vegetables, and fried items: set comes with brown rice and soup. A la carte dishes like ramen and udon are available. For some items you will have a choice between dairy or non-dairy. Note that the vegan food is also gluten-free; halal options are available. Night time is kaiseki cuisine with reservation required. Open Tue-Sat 11:30am-2:30pm.
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Last update on 23 Aug 2024 by EmmaCebuliak
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Added by Junjie on 05 Jul 2013
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100 Reviews
First Review by JesseD
SD
Points +16
Amazing meal - Edit
We were so happy to find this restaurant when planning our day trip to Nara. It may be the only vegetarian restaurant in Nara. We used the map provided by happy cow and it was relatively easy to get to from the JR Nara station. The food was very good, we had the lunch set and the children had the children's meal. Both meals were similar, though the children's meal had a substitution (nuggets for mock fish, I believe) and did not have soup/tea or dessert (but the owner kindly gave them a fruit plate at the end of the meal). All three children (ages 2, 4 and 5) happily finished their meals, with the 5 yr old declaring it was the "bestest lunch ever". Meeting the owner, Yoshiko, was also a highlight. As others have mentioned, she is a very kind woman who goes above and beyond. She inquired where we were headed next and offered us a ride. She said it would not be easy with 3 children and we appreciated her kindness so much! She took us to feed the deer and then dropped us off at Nara park. All and all it was such a wonderful experience, and if we return to Nara again, we will definitely return to Kinatei! We highly recommend it!
Read morePros: Delicious food, Amazing owner, Easy to get to
Cons: None
Guest
Wawbanks
Points +58
best food and service in all of Japan - Edit
Wow, the lady that owns this place gives the best service I have ever received. Me and my partner ate here and were welcomed so heavily and fed the most tasty vegan Japanese style food you can imagine. A 4 dish lunch sample platter, coffee and desert for 1,500 yen. Just so much wow. After a good chat and a great meal, she drove us to Nara park to feed the deer. Definitely do not miss this place. Easy to find too. Just 5 mins walk from the station.
Read moreGuest
Psychonaut
Points +168
A Must-Go if you are near Nara! - Edit
This has been one of the best experiences in Japan. The food is excellent! You can also take some with you which we did. The owner is a lovely lady which can speak English. We spent quite some time talking to her and her husband that joined as well later. She even drove us to the temple afterwoods!
Read moreDefinitely a big recommendation.
Pros: Excellent Food, Lovely Owner, Great Experience
Guest
KINGTYLER
Points +20
Excellent restaurant - highly recommended - Edit
This was the by far the best veg place I have eaten in all of japan! All aspects of the food and dishes is carefully prepared and created. If you visit or stay in Nara, it's not too far from the station. The very lovely chef and owner even took myself and a friend for a drive around after the meal to some 'secret spots' to feed some deer and then dropped us off at a temple.
Read morePros: Care taken in food preperation, Flavours and ingredients used, friendly patronage
Guest
KMR607
Points +367
delightful - Edit
We were welcomed warmly by the English-speaking owner. Lunch were sets were delicious chemical-free japanese food. I loved the potato croquettes, though it was all delicious. When I asked about a bus to Nara Park, the owner gave us a ride herself in her car! She has a guestbook and map of where guests are from, clearly takes pride in being a destination for vegans and vegetarians. It's totally worth the trek!
Read moreGuest
canis
Points +29
More than just a good lunch～ - Edit
I had lunch here in April 2014. (sorry for the late review!)
Read moreThe place is a little hard to find, but if you call the owner she will be helpful with directions or even come and pick you up personally!
The food was really good. It looked as beautiful as it tasted!
Pros: various dishes within one lunch set, good atmosphere
Guest
joel and amy
Points +24
Fantastic Intimate Lunch Experience in Nara - Edit
With the help of Googlemaps, my girlfriend and I made it to Kinatei from Nara Park - a good half hour walk under a hot sun, with lots of twists and turns. Our effort was rewarded with a delectable lunch set cooked up by Yoshiko, the resident chef. The multi-course meal included miso soup and rice, a spread of 4 small dishes, tea and fruit for dessert, for 1500 Yen each. The meal was artfully prepared, the ingredients organic and carefully selected.
Read moreYoshiko speaks excellent English, and as were had the place to ourselves, she provided great conversation as well. The icing on the proverbial red bean cake was her offer to drop us back at Nara Park to visit the big attraction, Todai-ji, which we were saving until after lunch. What would have been a very long trek back instead became a pleasant stroll in her car, stopping en route to feed some deer the compost scraps from our meal. A truly top-notch experience all around. While it might be the only veggie spot in town, I'd highly recommend it on it's own merits for being one of the best meals we've had in Japan!
Pros: personalized service, relaxing atmosphere, delicious, healthy food
Guest
Gilles et Sylvie
Points +32
Excellent - Edit
We made a new visit to Nara and were looking for a vegan restaurant . Kinatei is excellent the lady speaks english and is very friendly. We were a bit lost in the old part of Nara we gave her call and she came to pick us up with her car . After an an excellent lunch she took us to an entrance for the temple park where the tourists don't go that much . We are not used to such much kindness in Europe. So go there and you will met a lovely lady and will have an excellent Vegan lunch for a very reasonable price
Read morePros: Excellent food , Very good value , An exceptionally friendly owner
Guest
delphis
Points +33
wonderful experience - Edit
Yesterday we arrived in Nara and I looked for a veggie place to eat. Just 200 meters from our hostel was Kinatei. I called to reserve for dinner. Later it turned out that the owner was planning not to open the restaurant that night, but she did anyway, specially for the three of us. We had a very special and wonderful meal. I was with one of my non-vegetarian friends and he could not believe how tasty the food was.
Read moreI recommend this restaurant to anyone, also when you are not a vegetarian. Besides the food, the hospitality is in a class of its own.
Pros: great variety, wonderful service, good value for so many dishes
Cons: none
Guest
Eigna15
Points +53
traditional japanese multi-course dinner set - Edit
We had the a regular set lunch, and a children's version. I enjoyed the food so much that we asked to make a reservation for dinner right away. My son is more of a picky eater, so looking back, maybe the spaghetti or udon would have been better for him. The service by the multilingual, multi-talented owner was excellent - she is very attentive , introduces dishes with much passion and offers personal touches. For dinner, we got to try a traditional, multi-course dinner, an experience we very much appreciated.
Read moreGuest
JayBeeGeeBee
Points +51
Wonderful experience. - Edit
I visited Kinatei with my grandmother in May, 2014. I rang ahead on the day and was offered a lift from Nara Park by Yoshiko (the owner/chef). We had a slight miscommunication which ended with us delaying Yoshiko for about 20 mins in the middle of the day/lunch service. She waited very patiently for us and then drove us to her restaurant.
Read moreWe were greeted by Yoshiko's mother and daughter, both of whom help out. The lunch was a lovely fresh 'teishoku' (set) style. Hot tea, Minestrone soup, a selection of 4 mains, brown rice with shiso, and then dessert and a choice of a specialty tea or coffee. Everything was very tasty but the vegetables (shitake and green capsicum) stuffed with seasoned tofu were exceptionally good.
The set was 1500JPY each for lunch - I thought it was very good value. The restaurant was relaxing, and Yoshiko was a fine ambassador for Japanese hospitality, and she demonstrated just how wonderful Japanese vegetarian cuisine can be.
I was very hungry after a light breakfast and travel from Kyoto, yet I was too full at the end of the meal to finish the lovely apple cake for dessert.
Do give them a call if you are looking to find the restaurant - Yoshiko speaks very good English.
10 stars!
Pros: Quality Japanese vegan meal, Service 'above and beyond', Delicious memories :)
Cons: None.
Guest
ohbsmith
Points +16
Better than even the reviews suggest - Edit
After a long time working in China, Japan and the US this is beyond doubt the most special experience I have had in a long while. Great food, all vegan, and a lovely host who went out of her way to help me and even dropped me off in her car to the Park. Highly recommended.
Read morePros: Vegan, Good Price, Lovely owner
Cons: That I don't live in Nara
Guest
MercedesJ
Points +13
A must if you are in Japan! 5 stars is not enough. - Edit
I've used happycow.net for a couple years and have eaten at amazing veg restaurants because of it, but this is the first time I have taken the time to write a review! It was THAT amazing.
Read moreWhen I met someone at my hostel that was vegetarian I suggested we all go here for lunch. It was delicious (enough to make one of the non veg with us consider going vegetarian/vegan!). It was such a friendly atmosphere, we ended up having an impromptu matcha demonstration with the restaurant owner's kind friends! She offered to hold a dinner reservation for me but it was a solo trip and by the time dinner rolled around I got a concerned call from the restaurant owner (who I had just met at lunch! a stranger!) asking if I was ok for dinner and that she could make me a bento box for dinner or talk me through convenience store options if the restaurant was too far away. As a vegetarian of 9 years (well 9 yrs on May 7th!), I still get anxious finding veg options when traveling and away from my kitchen and I never said that during lunch, so the fact that she was such a compassionate person that she called to check touched my heart.
When I showed up to the restaurant she told me to put my bag down, and what I expected to be a quick grab & go was actually her driving back from Osaka to open the restaurant just for me, 1 person, and serve a huuugggeeee vegan meal! Plate after plate of deliciousness! They kept coming! I got to try so many dishes that I wish I could try at restaurants but that are never veg. I talked with her, and her nice husband. It was so nice to talk to a woman who had been veg for so long and that had had such a major impact on the lives of her friends and family! I was so inspired! Afterwards she even drove me back to my hotel.
When I went back for lunch the next day (of course!) it was another delicious combo of vegan dishes. She also made me a bento for my bus home since I was leaving. I ate a total of 4 times at that restaurant counting the bento and never once was bored with the food! Never once had a meal anything less than amazing and extremely delicious.
Every time I went to Kinatei I never once saw a person leave sad. Everyone left smiling complimenting her food. Every single person! You come in a customer, and leave feeling like someone who was at their friend's house for lunch/dinner.
Thank you for everything! I will definitely be back.
You are missing out if you don't come here!
Pros: Variety of flavors and dishes day to day, Extreme level of hospitality, Main ingredient in every dish is love
Cons: absolutely nothing, it is not in my city
Guest
Noahxp
Points +20
好吃的素食餐廳 - Edit
很好吃！老闆娘人很好，老闆娘是日本人，但中文、英文能力都很好 建議去奈良時，如果需要全素餐食，可以去吃看看。非常推薦！
Read more主要營業時間為中午時段，要去用餐最好電話確認，避免沒有營業。
Guest
itzjac
Points +255
Fantastic service, wonderful food!! :) - Edit
Possibly the best service we have ever experienced in our lives!!
Read moreWe walked in to be greeted by the beautiful owner and cook - Yoshiko. She could speak very good English and we chatted throughout our lunch. She gave us tips on Nara and what to see and got us to stick a little sticker on her map of the world where we were from. She was excited when we told her we were from Australia as her son is studying in Lismore and she has been to visit Australia before too.
She was just so beautiful and she even dropped us off in her car at the deer park - and then kept apologizing because she didn't have any deer snacks for us! This lady is simply amazing! Truly beautiful soul - definite STOP if you are in Nara!! She even offered to open for dinner for us even though it was her night closed.
The food was amazing and we went back the next day for lunch too!
Just a truly beautiful heart warming experience :)
Pros: Service - out of this world!!!, Food, Ambience
Cons: NOTHING!!! It was perfect!
Guest
jordanleekspin
Points +20
Perfect! - Edit
Probably the greatest hospitality and service I have ever witnessed throughout my entire life of eating at different restaurants. Myself and three friends enjoyed our first experience at Kinatei so much we booked for dinner that night and came back the next morning for lunch... and took away a bento box too! The food is superb but what sets Kinatei apart is the service--as soon as I arrived I was greeted not only by the staff but by customers as well! Yoshi continually offered to take us around sight seeing and actually drove us out to the public baths. Never before have I eaten anywhere like this! You must go if you are in Nara.
Read morePros: Delicious food, Unrivaled service
Guest
gianyasai
Points +17
Home Sweet Home - Edit
Kinatei is truly a wonderful place. Not only is the food delicious and healthy, the atmosphere is peaceful, and you are really made to feel you are at home. There is clearly a tremendous amount of love that goes into the food. Yoshiko is very sweet and when I came back for lunch a second time, we went to the park to feed the deers together and go to see some beautiful gardens. I really felt taken care of. You will not only recieve amazing food and hospitality when you come to Kinatei, but you will have new friends and family. Clearly I highly reccomend it!
Read morePros: Friendly, welcoming, Health and Delicious, great atmosphere
Guest
a_mand_a
Points +24
Great food and service! - Edit
So glad we decided to start our day in Nara with an early lunch at Kinatei! Only a short walk from the station, we enjoyed a vegan meal specially prepared for us by the owner, Yoshiko. Not only were we provided with the most delicious lunch, Yoshiko also gave us plenty of helpful advice and was even so kind as to offer us a ride up to Nara park, saving us the walk on a what was a very hot summer's day. Such gracious hospitality (and amazing food) really helped make our trip to Nara a very memorable experience.
Read morePros: Excellent English
Guest
JesseD
Points +832
Charming Little Veg Restaurant! - Edit
This restaurant has great food and a very friendly and hospitable owner. Being vegan was no problem at all, and the owner takes great care with the origins of all her foods and ingredients, for example she explained how some tofu in Japan is made with glycerine (which can be animal derived) so she makes sure she buys only tofu set with nigari (vegan). She clearly makes an effort for vegans (instead of just leaving out dishes with animal products) for example she used tofu mayonnaise in her potato salad. The lunch set included a variety of delicious dishes, and was excellent value at 1500 Yen. There are a few tables and also seating at the bar, and the owner enjoyed chatting with us and other customers as she prepared the meals. As well as Japanese, she also speaks English and Chinese, and her husband (who was there at the time, I guess for lunch) speaks Spanish, so many people will be able to communicate in their native language. This place is a must-visit while in Nara. The Happycow location is correct.
Read morePros: great food!, very reasonable prices, friendly owner
Cons: not all vegan (but very vegan friendly)
Guest
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