Daigo, Japanese Buddhist – Atago

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My husband has been taking part in a three month vegan trial and in my search for good vegan restaurants I came across Daigo. Daigo serves “Shojin Ryori” which is Japanese Buddhist food usually eaten by Buddhist monks and at temples. It is mainly vegetarian though they may use bonito flakes sometimes to make some of their dashi (soup stock) so if you are strictly vegetarian/ vegan you need to specify when booking.

The restaurant is located in Atago, not far from Kamiyacho, next to a shrine and inside a tower building. However, once you step inside your world is transformed. The restaurant is luxurious though minimal with ladies wearing kimono waiting to greet you at the entrance. Shoes must be taken off as all rooms are tatami mat and all are private rooms with beautiful scrolls and flowers displayed inside. There is a garden running outside, alongside the rooms, giving you a wonderful view of a zen garden with gravel neatly raked, making you feel like you stepped into Kyoto, hundreds of miles away.

We were given a welcome drink of Ume-shu (plum wine) and hot towels to wipe our hands. The menu is a set course menu. There are a choice of two courses ranging from JPY 15,000 to JPY 19,000 pp but as I had requested the meal to be vegan, there was just the one menu. I was not expecting too much as the food was vegan and Buddhist, but I was amazed. The course was a Kaiseki course style. First was a starter of fried tofu in a starchy sauce with a very light taste. Next was one of my favourite dishes. Though very simple it is very difficult to make great dashi. The dashi was made from shitake, herbs and konbu with wakame seaweed, bamboo shoot with a small shiso leef inside. It was excellent. Next was udon with vegetable tempura which was surprising to have at the start of the meal.  It was served with condiments of chopped leek, grated ginger and Japanese pepper. This was followed by a selection of small appetizers all beautifully presented, including a delicious Kumquat which I was surprised to see on the menu, not usually a part of Japanese cuisine. We dined on Chinese New Year’s Eve, so likely a seasonal addition as Kumquats are very auspicious for Chinese New Year.  Next was spinach fu served in a beautiful lacquered bowl with a golden leaf engraved, served with spicy grated radish on top. I am not usually a fan of fu but it was delicious.

Throughout our meal, our waiters, ladies dressed in Kimono would discreetly enter our room to make sure we were okay, see our pace of eating to know when to bring the next dish, as well as to top up our sake glasses. Their attention to service was impeccable. Next was the Signature dish of the restaurant, as advised by our waiter. It was a lotus root parcel, mashed to resemble the texture of sticky rice with baby spinach and served with grated ginger. It was unusual to try lotus root as a soft texture instead of the usual crunchy salad or fried tempura options and it was delicious. The meal finished with a large rice bowl with eringi mushrooms and dashi and a cup of hot tea. At this time we still had some sake left so our waiter told us to take our time to finish the sake. We took some photos of the room and enjoyed being full with amazing vegan food. Then finally dessert was served, two strawberries with a sugar icing coating.

The restaurant has 2 Michelin stars and this really shows in the detail of both the food and service. We were advised we could take home our used wooden chopsticks as they are made from good wood and can be reused. Am not sure if this is to fit into the Buddhist philosophy but the meal was wonderful as well as being a new experience. Dinner is expensive, total cost approx JPY 45,000 for two including two pots of good quality sake.