Vegan-friendly
International
Western
Fast food
Juice bar
Beer/Wine
Take-out
Honey
Winter-only cafe on the slopes of the Happo-One ski resort, near the start of the Kokusai 1 lift. Provides quick meals that are mostly vegan, including Mexican and falafel and hummus wraps, pasta, basic Chinese stir fry and rice meals, Indian-style curry, nachos, and other snack food. Uses organic and locally-grown ingredients. Most items are vegan except for milk available for drinks. Open Mon-Fri 11:00am-2:00pm.
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Last update on 03 Feb 2025 by HenryMoffitt
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21 Reviews
First Review by rebeccalw21
kiwigirl77
Points +160
Must-visit place for vegans and vegetarians - Edit
Absolutely loved the cafe - delicious vegan food and lovely vibe. So much choice too! You really have to visit this cafe if you are visiting Happo-One!!
Read moreI enjoyed the pizza and apple pie. Easy to order and food came quickly!
Guest
saraha01
Points +43
Great location for a ski/snowboard stop - Edit
Great coffee
Read moreGood pizza and falafel salad
Pros: Coffee, Food, Service
Guest
Matty_Surge
Points +165
Vegan !! - Edit
Awesome to find a vegan restaurant in hakuba, though portion sizes and prices definitely don’t match up so loses a star for that. If I worked near here it would send me broke.
Read morePros: Vegan Menu, Tasty, Many tables
Cons: Price way too much, Small portions, Busy
Guest
00panknes
Points +1609
Naja - Edit
Das Essen ist einigermaßen okay, aber für den hohen Preis sind die Portionen viel zu klein. Wir haben in der Mittagszeit über eine Stunde in der Schlange gestanden. Es ist war offensichtlich zu wenig Personal in der Küche und das Bestellsystem ist ineffizient, wenn viele BesucherInnen da sind. Insgesamt waren wir einerseits froh über die vegane Option und andererseits ziemlich enttäuscht.
Read moreGuest
Rednaz
Points +44
Great vegan vegetable pizza! - Edit
Quick service and good quality food
Read morePros: Great vegan pizza, Good location
Cons: Limited options, Last order 3:30 so no dinner service :/
Guest
Marties
Points +1421
It was meh - Edit
Even though Google Maps and the leafets showed a lot of options (tempeh burger, tofu "steaks", etc.), the actual menu on the day I visited was super limited to 6-8 carb-heavy and fried foods, with little room for customization.
Read moreI get that it's been a difficult few seasons for Hakuba and hospitality in general, and it must be even harder for a place that caters to special needs like this one, but I was really disappointed.
The food my friend and I ended up getting wasn't great either, but the Colombian coffee was a nice surprise. #Veganuary
Updated from previous review on 2022-02-06
Pros: Juan Valdez coffee in the middle of the snow!, Very nice views, Big dining room
Cons: Just a few, macro-unfriendly options, Little room for accommodation/customization
Guest
naomihhs
Points +1120
Great Vegan food! - Edit
What a surprise to find a fully vegan cafe on the ski slopes! This place is awesome -- the tempeh burger and buddha burgers were both excellent, and the brownies were tasty!
Read moreGuest
Ewelina_In_Tokyo
Points +605
CLOSED FOR SUMMER - Edit
Roots Cafe closed for the summer, to be reopen in the winter season. As per information online, they recommend the 3301 Cafe, which is open for the summer but only on Saturdays, Sundays and holidays.
Read moreJulieEA
Hi Ewelina,
Read moreMy name is Julie and I work with HappyCow's editing team. Thank you so much for the information that Roots Cafe is closed until the winter season. I've marked the listing as temporarily closed. If you find other problems with listings in the future (closures, hours, offerings) please do fill out an official update form so that our editing staff is sure to see it, as we do not always see reviews. Thanks again for your help and for keeping HappyCow current!
Best wishes,
Julie
Guest
SheenaProwse
Points +74
Yummy curry - Edit
Surprised I found a full vegan cafe here! I only had it once but the curry was good. It was quite busy so obviously a popular place to eat. Prices were okay.
Read moreGuest
JessPeirce
Points +647
Vegan snow food!! - Edit
I was getting sick of eating fries and rice so this was a wonderful find. The curry, the tortilla chips and the pancakes are gluten free. I got the pancakes and a hot chocolate while my boyfriend got the soy bolognese which he said was good.
Read moreIt was pretty expensive but everything in Japan is expensive
Guest
HayleyHill
Points +22
Good food - Edit
Really good food wholesome and unprocessed
Read morePros: Good variety , Good portions
Cons: Could have more fresh drink options available, Only soy milk as a non dairy option for coffee
Guest
AJ_vegan_AUS
Points +230
100% vegan cafeteria - Edit
Cafeteria style dining at base of mountain beside gondola. Listed as vegetarian but actually 100% vegan. Had a tempura burger with corn chips and wedges. Tasty, simple vegan food in a casual setting. Great to have lots of vegan options available in a busy tourist destination.
Read morePros: Convenient for skiers and snowboarders
Guest
Amberleo
Points +16
Amazing vegan food - Edit
Great cafe for eating fresh and healthy vegan food. The pesto pumpkin pizza is so so good.
Read moreGuest
KristinaPlummer
Points +57
AMAZING - Edit
Incredible variety and flavors, and fresh produce which is almost non existent in Hakuba.
Read morePros: All vegan, Something for everyone
Guest
amc4012
Points +518
Great cafe - Edit
Uploaded a few photos of the menu etc for this season. Enjoyed a Great coffee, non dairy milk options available. food looked good. Cool vibe and nice place to hang out and warm up.
Read morePros: lots of vegan options
Cons: none
Guest
wormcloud
Points +223
good food, inconsistent service - Edit
Went on a Tuesday and it was great. Really good falafel wrap, great service.
Read moreReturned the next day, not so good. Had the shanti lunch, but the soup was cold, twice.
Waitress on the Wednesday was snooty and matter-of-factly told a group next to us that it's ok to eat meat as it's already dead anyway and that as long as you 'give thanks' to it by saying 'itadakimasu' there's no problem.
Pros: Tuesday food and service
Cons: Wednesday service
Guest
TamieWexler
Points +22
Great for non vegans too - Edit
I always return back to Roots cafe when I go to Hakuba. It's junk food vegan, but even great for non vegans and if you're skiing you deserve some junk food. Their vegan deserts are bound too impress!
Read morePros: coffee and deserts
Cons: a lot of soy based products on the menu
Guest
KathyForde
Points +88
Vegan and Gluten Free rare gem! - Edit
This year they appear to have much more choice, especially the baked goods. All vegan too I believe. The soy Karage is excellent, and the brownie is one of the best I've had. Always friendly staff and usually hard to find a seat which says it all!
Read morePros: Vegan, Gluten Free, good coffee
Cons: a bit expensive, hard to find seating sometimes
Guest
meowww32
Points +125
good but limited food -- need a stronger staff - Edit
i agree with reviews below me - would be a great place but theyre really lacking the knowledgeable staff necessary to run a vegan cafe -- i ordered a smoothie and they had to look up what was in it (theres only maybe 3-4 smoothies on menu). they had a bunch of items listed on the wall as the menu but when i went to order they were only offering 3-4 options -- i also am allergic to gluten and asked what id be able to eat -- no one knew for sure what had gluten - not even the 'chefs' -- everyone was very kind and the place is really cozy but ive been in Hakuba for 7 days and I only went here once -- i understand its seasonal staff but at least educate them enough to be able to make all the menu items and know the drink list
Read morePros: only all vegan place for 30miles
Dave Enright
Hello Meow,
Read moreThank you for visiting Roots Cafe and for your review. All reviews assist me to continue to improve Roots Cafe so that everyone may have a great experience.
I am sorry that your experience was not 'Totally Awesome', as I would wished it was. Yes, we are a seasonally run operation and had only been open for 4 days on the day that you visited us. The mostly new staff had trained for the previous week but last minute changes were I believe the cause of much confusion during the first week of operation. I am very happy that my drinks staff looked up the drink that you ordered to make sure that you received the smoothie as created by myself many years ago. We were running a very reduced menu as you mentioned as our professional vegan chef and masters in Nutritional Heath was indeed re-working much of the menu on a much needed overall. I wish you could see us now...This years food has got to be the best we have ever put out with amazing all vegan sweets, all vegan sauces and locally sourced produce. The coffee and organic draft beers are also the best we have ever produced. I do apologize if with the hectic start of the season we didn't have everything totally dailed for you. I hope that what you did have was delicious and made fresh with love. I also hope that you will make it back for what I think is the best vegan food you will find on a ski resort any where...Love and Light, Dave
Guest
JesseD
Points +832
Vegan Oasis in the Ski World - Edit
I originally added Roots cafe to Happycow, and have been going to Hakuba every season for three years, mostly because of it. However because of that I feel I need to update this to say that something went very badly wrong this season (2014-15).
Read moreStaff at a seasonal cafe like this will always be using it as a ticket to travel abroad, and perhaps have little experience in the food industry, so one can't expect the same standards as a cafe run by its owner elsewhere. But this season I found some things quite disturbing, with the worst being when I bought a muesli bar and later (on the gondola) found that it was mouldy! I guess it would take several days if not weeks for a dry item like this to go mouldy in the sub-zero conditions of Hakuba in January. The staff member behind the till didn't seem surprised, and just ordered someone to throw them all out immediately. I wasn't even offered a refund (just "grab something else if you want" - and they seemed surprised that I did!).
Please don't let this put you off coming to Roots or Hakuba as it's still a (mostly) vegan cafe, serving decent food, and a great resort, but just don't expect much more than that, for now at least. Hopefully something is amiss this season (manager away?) and it will improve next season!
On the upside they have built a great new wood-fired pizza oven, though like everything the quality of the pizzas varied a lot.
OLD REVIEW:
Roots makes skiing in Japan so much better: no longer is it necessary to carry snack bars in your ski suit or force down white rice and hot chips when hunger calls. Roots cafe is attached to the Evergreen Outdoor Centre (both have the same vegan owner) and is easy to get to - just head to the Kokusai area (Happo One) and it's near the base of the Kokusai 1 lift. The baked items are good for snacks elsewhere on the mountain. It's great how it serves vegan food to so many non-vegans. The main meals are available until 2:30, so I usually go as early as possible (say around 10-11), ski during the busy lunch hour, and then go back for another meal just before 2:30. Note that as the listing says, it's a seasonal cafe, so between the ski and summer seasons be sure to check the website to see when it's open. This cafe makes Hakuba and Happo One the place to ski in Japan.
Updated from previous review on Saturday April 27, 2013
Updated from previous review on Friday February 20, 2015
Pros: right on the ski slopes, all veg and mostly vegan, fast, delicious, healthy food
Cons: service and food standards very variable
Guest
rebeccalw21
Points +39
Heaven in a ski resort - Edit
I lived and worked in Hakuba for 3 and a half months, and without roots I don't know what I would have done. Sounds a bit dramatic, but being a vegetarien in Japan is difficult enough, never mind in a ski resort where the vegi options are limited. Roots is open everyday and is right on the ski slope on the Happo-one resort. The lunch meals (which are the best) stop at 2:30ish so make sure you get there before. I went to this cafe many times with other vegetarians and meat-eaters and both loved this place. A favourite was the 'rasta-wrap' which was braised tofu with spicy rice in a wrap. Other favourites were the vegi burger and the hummus. A great vegan restaurant and a reasonable price! Just under 1000yen for any meal, and it is filling. Also a great idea to try the vegan chocolate brownie and hot chocolate. I highly recommend this place if in the area.
Read morePros: Fantastic good, Organic and vegan, Inexpensive
Guest
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