Kajitsu

This has to be one of the great culinary experiences in the world let alone NYC, and most definitely for a vegan. A truly incredible experience worth the heavy price tag. My wife and I were lucky that our reservation day which we had booked for a couple months happened to fall on one of their special seasonal celebration days. Not sure of the exact name they had for it, but apparently 4 times a year they do a special menu to celebrate each new season. We had the pleasure of experiencing the summer celebration menu. Eating at Kajitsu was quite possibly the most enjoyable food experience that my wife an I have ever had. It will be shocking if we are ever able to top this place. It’s doing something unique, and really well. It’s special.

I am not a vegan, but holy smokes, this place blew me away. Everything was so flavorful and delicious. This might be my favorite restaurant in NYC. My fiancé and I now celebrate special occasions here.

Had really high expectations for a healing, zen-​feel dinner. Only found that it’s more of a formality than anything. The dishes was presented in a nice way but tastes were just so so. The portions were huge which made it worse towards the end of the dinner. It seems to me that they are just putting a bunch of vegetables together but failed to take advantage of natural flavors well. In my mind it’s definitely overrated, sadly. I could just stroll to union square and probably put together a better meal with fresher/​organic seasonal veggies. The idea of being simple doesn’t necessarily mean a sacrifice of flavors.

My husband and I are long-​time foodies who love to try vegetarian tasting menus. After reading the reviews, we decided to try Kajitsu for his birthday. The reservation policy is a $ 30/​person charge if cancelled within 24 hours, which is fair. When we arrived there was a menu on the table for $ 195/​person tasting, which I didn’t see on the website. I asked for the other menus and was brought two other tasting menus, $ 95 and $ 55. We inquired about the $ 55 and was told that it’s not very filling. At this point, my husband was concerned that he would not have enough to eat and he didn’t want to splurge on the higher priced options, even for his birthday. When I asked the maitre d’ what other options we had, she said there was no ala carte menu, and we couldn’t leave without being charged the cancellation fee. So we were ‘stuck’ with the tasting menu which were extremely small plates (or try their sister restaurant downstairs, which also had limited options, especially for vegans). One of the items on the $ 55 tasting menu was a half a cup of soup with daikon radish and other vegetables. The waiter admitted to the table next to us that «many people don’t like this one.» Bottom line: you will leave hungry, even though the flavors/​freshness/​quality is good. And don’t expect much accommodation from the waiters or management. Skip this vegan tasting menu for one of the many affordable and decadent restaurants in the city!

Kajitsu is a hidden gem for the food lovers. It’s a challenging place for service industry people. I should give 5 star for food and 5 star for their service as well. their unique and friendly service really need to be appreciated .U need to be multi talent to make every month seasonal foods .Lots of respect for executive chef who make every month special meal for their customers. I just love the way food has been prepared. thumps up ! Kajitsu team.

The food here is a meditation and purifying process for your body, your stomach and your mind. All vegetarian food here. They use very fresh fruits and veggies of the season, pair with traditional Japanese cooking method, gives you a really different yet amazing eating experience.
I was told from the painting on the wall, to the plates holding the food to the servers and chefs, they all come from Kyoto, Japan. When you enter this place you can sense the Japanese style here. The food is so clean and fresh taste but you can still taste the umami (not like eating salad, it’s just eating the fruits and veggies directly).
The service here is very warm and sophisticated. I strongly recommend this place.

I had walked by the restaurant many times and I loved the intriguing Zen like appearance of the restaurant is articulately and authentically Japanese.
When we went in, the hostesses greeted us in a Japanese humble manner. I see that they have been well trained. I could say the same to the waiters. Only thing I note is that I’d love that they could give the description of the Omakase just as if we interact and conversate.
I notice that some of them appeared just like bad actors reading his script in monotone.
If I were a owner or a chef of this beautiful venue, I’d love that the food is introduced nicely.
The dishware used here proves the beauty of modesty. It doesn’t always need to be gorgeously decorated to impress!
We were surprised by how much effort and time were put into the gracefully garnished dishes.
We thought that the price could be a little higher…
For people who practice low sodium diet, the meal here might taste a bit salty. A bird told me that the chef comes from a southern part of Japan so that may explain why. But this is just my preference, otherwise the experience was beautiful. We will come back and try every season’s Omakase.
The place is for slow food practitioners, definitely not for fast paced eaters haha.
Bite and chow well. Taste the ingredients!
Thank you.

for those of you looking to woo/​impress/​seduce that hot vegan in your life, i present to you Kajitsu: gorgeous, delicious kaiseki style food.
although i was not actually trying to seduce anyone, we ordered the «hana» tasting menu. it was amazing and left us very very full. we could barely finish the udon/​rice course.
(randomly, however, my least favorite course was the matcha with the fancy branded sugar candies. they’re pasty and leave this awful bean-​y taste in my mouth!)

My friends know that one of the last things I would ever become is vegetarian (or vegan), so even I was surprised by my interest in Kajitsu. The one Michelin-​starred restaurant specializes in Shojin Ryori, a vegetarian cooking style that has its roots in Japanese Zen Buddhist monasteries, and is considered the foundation of traditional Japanese kaiseki. The focus is on grains, fruits, and vegetables, and coaxing the pure and simple flavors out of these ingredients. Accordingly, Chef Ryota Ueshima ensures that the menus are changed at the first of each month to highlight the produce that’s at its peak during the season.
I came to Kajitsu with a good friend of mine to celebrate my birthday, and she took care to handle the details and logistics of the evening. All I had to do was arrive on time, and we were soon led up the set of stairs into the austere, almost too-​muted, dining room. It’s not the most opulent environment, but the minimalist space featuring wooden chairs and tables, a panel of windows that overlooks 39^th Street, and the light brown-​beige walls will direct the focus to the meal at hand. Kajitsu offers two menus: a four-​course «Kaze» and an eight-​course «Hana». They’re appropriately priced ($ 55 and $ 95, respectively) and although I had initially planned on ordering the shorter menu, my friend convinced me to go for the full experience.
It has been some time since I dined here, but there are some dishes that I must highlight. Our first, the June Vegetable Plate, featured a gorgeous assemblage of ingredients, including eggplant, zucchini, white asparagus, tomato, lotus, myoga ginger, and kaeda-​fu, a bread-​like ingredient made of wheat gluten. The array of textures and pure freshness in each bite was astounding — and one that raised expectations for the dishes to come. The Seasonal Assortment, which featured a near-​impossible number of components in one elegant box, was even more impressive. A little tartness from the green strawberry, gooseberry, and young peach; earthiness from the morel and chanterelle mushrooms, a crispness from the bamboo shoots, carrots, radish, and string beans, and a creamy spinach salad on the side — it was both food and art, and we both lost ourselves in trying to identify each element of the dish as we ate it.
The simple Corn Croquette was elevated by the addition of asparagus, shishito peppers, and spruce shoots and the actual appearance of a fried element made this course appear to be one of the more decadent ones of the evening; nonetheless, it still maintained a purity that placed the individual flavors at the forefront. And the Wakame Udon, with a light vegetable broth base highighted by scallions, mochi, and sesame, was a comforting bowl that would have been perfect on a chilly winter day. The attention to each element — the chew of the noodles, the seasoning of the broth — was truly pronounced in this course.
Our meal began to wind down the Daifuku Mochi, a small mochi ball that used azuki, white bean, and a hint of peach as well as a small birthday gift from the kitchen: a sweet silken tofu dish with summer berries. It was the idyllic light, refreshing course for the summer, and one that I wish we had several more bowls of. A small cup of matcha (by Ippodo) and a plate of Matcha Candies (from Kagizen-​Yoshifusa) marked the end of our Hana meal.
In hindsight, I can say with honesty that I didn’t miss the lack of any animal or fish protein in the meal. The creative and meticulous ways that the dishes were constructed and presented more than made up for that fact, and there was more than enough variety of flavor or texture to keep our taste buds entertained. By that same thread, however, I can’t recommend Kajitsu to everyone. Even in the realm of Japanese cuisine, it’s far from the norm of what’s offered in New York City, and the lack of one of the main food groups can be offsetting to some. If you are even the slightest bit curious though — go with an open mind as it’s truly a one-​of-​a-​kind experience.

Last week, I was asked which is my favorite restaurant in the city. But not one that came to my mind immediately… Now I believe I found it Everything started all about food — how my friend and I decided to have this experience together, how I found my favorite resultant (just now) and how I’m feeling so happy in this cold December and why I am so looking forward to trying it again every month next year! kajitsu offers so much more than food itself, I just fall in love with every aspect of it.
We ordered Omakase — 8 courses with half size wine pairing (named Hana). During the whole course of the amazing meal (I feel amazing is too ordinary for this course already), there are so many sentences came to my mind «best (vegan) food I ever had», «I wanna be vegan and this makes me happy!»,” impressed and fall in love with every single dish”, «tonight I feel fullness of life, happiness, and fall-​in-​love» and it just went on and on with every single dish… It was just pure happy, clear, fullness and life experience, that I found I need need any specific description of food/​taste/​texture to describe to you. I believe you will enjoy your own kajitsu experience.

I guess the only reason brought me here is the fact that Kajitsu is the best veggie restaurant in NYC, and probably in the US. Have said that, I was actually being disappointed by Semilla, which just received its first Michelin star as a veggie restaurant. Ok Kajitsu is different in a sense that it serves shojin ryori — similar to buddhist’s delight and is the only restaurant doing so. I hope it could wow me from a very different perspective. Fortunately it did, in an amazing way.
We opted for the six course Omakase — Hana with wine pairing. At first, a basket of vegetable was brought to us — representing the whole universe of food that will be used for cooking. Our meal started with the apple vinegar tea, just to open up the palate. The following six courses, while each one has its own specialty, they all brought me a unique feeling of warm and satisfaction.
My favorite out of favorite was the stuffed yuba roll, with tofu skin as the crust and veggie stuffed inside. Though the tofu skin lost its crispy feeling, it’s softness actually helped to show its freshness. Strawberry mochi, on the other hand, was a perfect end of meal — with the red bean stuck in the middle of strawberry and mochi; it actually introduced a tiny little bit of sweetness. Well done!
Words failed to explain how unique this place was. I could already vision myself coming in during the following couple of months — just to explore how impressive it could potentially get to.
If I rank Kajitsu five star, I probably would have to lower my rating for all other restaurants. My single favorite place so far!

Awful, just awful! Ordered the «Kaze» for dinner. All was going well until we got the second course.
The second course was Tempura, seasonal veggies, we were told the veggies were: green beans, egg plant, mushrooms, okra and a tomato. Unfortunately, when I bit into that I thought was an okra need up being a super spicy jalapeño. It maybe would have been okay if the pepper was mild to slightly spicy, but it was unnaturally hot. I alerted the waiter and he didn’t believe me, he said it could have been a mistake but he seemed unapoligetic and didn’t seem to care that MY MOUTH WAS ON FIRE. This ended up ruining the entire rest of the meal for me. He could’ve at least acknowledged the mistake, he denied it over and over again. I am pretty sure I can tell the difference between a super spicy pepper and an okra.

This is my most favorite Resturant in New York. Frankly speaking, I come here every week. Their menu change every month with seasonal choices. Highly recommended Saba sushi, fresh fish with fabulous sushi rice. And of course Uni don and beef udon. The reason I felt so connected with this place is the homemade tradition for almost every dishes (extremely fresh materials) Soba, noodle, even wasabi and soy sauce. Decoration or the all the dishes are a masterpiece. Servers here are nice and kind. You won’t be disappointed by anything on the menu. Upstairs is the Kajitsu (prefix menu) downstairs is the Kokage (more casual) I usually come to Kokage for lunch. Heard the owner will change the chefs every two years so as to give more talented chefs from Japan development opportunities. And no ads for this place as well, simply want to promote Japanese culture:)

Not being a vegetarian, I still adore this place. They change their omakase menu every month which is something to expect for. I love certain months than others (personal fav: Nov-​harvest season, July-​summer). I’ve also been to some raved Shojin cuisine places in Japan and I think this is as good as you can get in this category.
Also, if you are someone who loves gluten, they have really nice Fu!

Lovely experience — relaxing atmosphere, impeccable presentation, and delicious food. The upstairs restaurant space is minimalist and peaceful (we were a group of 8 and we could actually hear each other speak!) Service was a little inconsistent, but well intentioned.
The 8 course tasting menu wasn’t necessarily phenomenal all the way through, but there weren’t any bad dishes. And it’s pretty amazing what varied flavors they manage to accomplish with just veggies!

so very delicious! unique food and a nice atmosphere. personally, i feel things are a bit overpriced. i hate saying this but after meals go beyond $ 100 per person, I have some steep expectations. the experience is enjoyable and relaxing and i really like supporting skilled professionals… but this place is pricey enough that it is a better fit for a fancy dinner date for the sake if being fancy and not because the food or presentation or atmosphere is far above other experiences. i have been lucky enough to come here twice and i must say this second time was my favorite.
this place is lovely and filling for all foodies but a really special treat for vegetarians. my first experience was the chef’s choice multi-​course meal and it was an interesting use of vegetables and flowers to simulate sushi. while this was an incredible artistic culinary expression, it often felt more focused on presentation over palate.
my second experience was also a multi-​course meal but really focused on creating complex flavors from the natural essence of each ingredient. i really appreciated the opportunity to experience the comfort of familiar autumnal flavors & colors through a filter of japanese culture. these dishes were truly inspiring, in taste, texture, and simplicity.
overall fresh & traditional ingredients and a surprisingly satisfying & robust vegetarian meal. come here for a new experience but level set your expectations for great food & authentic seasonal flavors at high cost.

My boyfriend and I came here and both had the $ 185 tasting menu that came with sake and tea. I have really thought a lot about how to review this special experience. If you’re looking for a very minimalistic décor with high level of service and very minimalistic ingredients and flavor profiles this might be the perfect restaurant for you. To be honest the atmosphere was much better than it seems based on pictures but has a sophistication and quietness about it which is very serene. As for the actual food I’ve been a vegetarian for over 10 years and I was not wowed by anything that I had. I understand that it’s minimalistic but I felt that they didn’t develop flavor profiles and if you really want to stick to a minimalistic concept where you really let the natural flavors of the vegetable ingredients shine and capture the palate then I probably won’t have used so much jelly and so many Gastro techniques which made the food much more mucousy and slimey. The teas and sakes were all divine. Also, the food didn’t sit well with either of us and we got sick, I think this was mostly because of the textures. I wouldn’t recommend this tasting menu at first, I would try one of the smaller menus to see if you like the food. We are both adventurous eaters and love trying new dining experiences but I haven’t been this dissatisfied with food in a while, but I did enjoy the experience. There are many other tasting menus out there that cater to vegetarians and I would put those ahead of this.
I would also add the portions are huge with the biggest tasting menu, we wanted to take food home but some items wouldn’t travel well and really struggled to finish.

Had to come back and enjoyed another perfect meal! Amazing how they change the menu every month. This restaurant is the true essence of what a Michelin star restaurant is. No place in the city can recreate these authentic Japanese flavors. HANDS DOWN BEST JAPANESE RESTAURANT IN NYC! Anyone who gives this place subpar reviews is not used to what real Japanese cuisine is and expects a large platter of sushi smothered in sauce so they do not get it. The intricate flavors and plating is incredible. The August 2015 menu was delicious. My tip is to order the vegetable chirashi sushi and not the somen because you get more bang for your buck. My favorite course was the corn miso soup-​so simple yet so inspiring. But only come here if you are willing to be open minded of what real Japanese food is.

I brought my GF here for her bday dinner. I feel like we’ve been having bad luck with bday dinners lately, as Daniel also failed to meet out expectations.
Anyways here my star breakdowns, as everyone’s star ratings are subjective, so if this is TLDR then at least this can give you a summary as to my experience.
1 star: You couldn’t pay me to come back.
2 star: Good to try, not good enough to come back.
3 star: Good, not amazing, but would come back as a regular spot.
4 star: Good enough that I want to recommend to my foodie friends so I they think I’m hip.
5 star: Once in a lifetime meals. I almost don’t wanna come back in case the second time just fails to astound me as the first time has.
So Kajitsu is the type of place that you always hear is amazing, but when you get there the dishes just fail to give any oomph to it.
I ordered the Omakase w/​tea pairing, my GF had the Omakase w/​sake pairing. I am not a big Sake drinker, but with every dish I will say the Sake tasted quite good and went down smooth. The Omakase on the menu said it was the «August» Tasting Menu essentially ($ 195). The Omakase is the same as the «Hana» meal ($ 120), which doesn’t come with any beverage pairing nor the «black truffle rice pot» (supplemental $ 40).
Omakase Review:
The meal started out with a plum vinegar type drink. I thought this was interesting to start the night off with as it isn’t really a drink and both me and my gf had a sake/​tea pairing with this dish. It was quite refreshing for the summer though. **
Next came a corn based broth which was quite amazing actually. This was one of the better dishes and it was like a japanese corn cream soup, but no cream. The flavors really came out quite nice and it was a good beginning to the meal. ****
Then came the vegetable tempura/​assorted grilled shishito peppers and various other prepared vegetables. The vegetable tempura was fried perfectly and it was paired with a homemade worchestire japanese sauce. Again was good, but forgettable. ***
Fourth dish was this tofu based dish mixed with a leaf plant based in jelly. The tofu was quite odd. I am asian and love asian food, but have never seen tofu prepared this way. It was cold, mushy, and essentially tasteless. It was placed in this jelly filled plant that had a really strange consistency. I am pretty adventurous but this dish didn’t do it for me. *
Fifth dish was perhaps the highlight of the meal and came in a stone pot. BTW if you order the Hana menu this is a $ 40 supplement, but it comes with the Omakase. This was by far the best dish and it is essentially similar to korean stone pot rice, but they place freshly shaved truffles inside and let it steam. It is paired with amazing pickles and miso soup. The truffle shavings are EXTREMELY GENEROUS and it gives the most amazing aroma when they lift the stone lid and you can smelly the rice infused black truffles. My god this was lick eating truffle clouds in my mouth. The pickles were the perfect accompaniment (comes with 5 – 6 different pickles), and each pickle tastes so distinct. The miso soup is also quite unique and you can tell it is not the usual miso soup from powder. ****
Lastly, the sixth dish was cold soba noodles essentially with dipping sauce and various vegetable accompaniments (pickles, daikon, etc.). This dish was quite bad I thought and I was upset I had to end the meal on this note. After the black truffle rice all the flavors here just were muted, perhaps it would have been good earlier in the meal. The dipping sauce seemed like a vinegar/​soy base and just wasn’t fulfilling. Me and my gf barely finished a couple bites. *
Desert
3 forgetable dessert dishes came out. Needless to say, I probably would have been more satisfied eating homemade mochi, but the deserts were all not even worth describing. If you are coming here for dessert, rethink your decision. *
Summary
All in all, I never had a more fulfilling vegetarian meal, I really didn’t miss the meat at all and was quite stuffed by the 3 – 4 dish. However, that being said, the highlight of the meal was the black truffle rice but that dish alone couldn’t makeup for the lack of creativity, disjunct journey this food journey was. The meal as a whole felt like individual dishes that was slapped together with no central theme other than the fact this was a vegetarian meal. It was great to try once, but perhaps the loss of their head chef a couple years ago has really made it difficult to bounce back. Furthermore, you can really taste the loss of their second michelin star (now one). I would recommend you to try this if you are vegetarian, but I honestly wouldn’t go back nor recommend this to anyone (unless you have money to burn).

Had the June seasonal tasting menu — as in Japan, they cook with the seasons. Ambiance was very minimalist as is their theme. No music but very peaceful. Almost like eating at home. Service was very tentative and the waiter/​chef knew what they were talking about as the food arrived. Also checking up on the tea at the perfect time to serve.
Had the summer season iced tea — which is unlike any tea I’ve had before. It was as thick as milk and very strong. The Yuzu Sake was also a pleasant surprise — like a super high quality Mike’s Hard Lemonade.
Before I go on with the food, I have to tell you why this restaurant is different than other vegetarian/​vegan spots: none of the foods try to imitate the taste meat. They serve the veggies as they are, the tastes being very unique but delicate. This is a place for true vegetable lovers!
I had the Hana tasting menu. The seasonal plate was diverse, having items such as gooseberries, baby peach, and mushrooms. The corn stew was thick at the perfect consistency — like a chowder. It’s demeaning to compare the corn croquets to hush puppies but that’s basically what they were: the best skillfully-​prepared «hush puppies» you’ll ever eat. Yuba roll was just like how my grandma made — the soup was like comfort food. The udon is better than any ramen joint I’ve eaten at in the city and the green tea rice had a distinct, light flavor. Dessert was a red bean mochi that was very fresh and paired with a tart apple leaf. The last dish was paired with a sweet candy/​cookie and an unsweetened milky green tea.
At the end, I realized I had lots of unique flavors I’ve never tasted anywhere else.
I can give this establishment five stars without hesitation.
Also, a very small detail, but the chopsticks here are the best I’ve ever used.

I came to this place for work lunch. The front hosted a tea drinking parlor. It appeared very simple and elegant. When the servers came and placed the menus along with the drinks made it look like a dance. It looked very poetic!
I loved how the whole place looked: very zen and peaceful. The design exhibited a symbolic value. It shows respect for meaning and purpose for nature. The use of wooden tables, wall treatments, and even decorations made the whole place feel inviting and welcoming. Even the menus looked beautiful!
The food tasted delicious! I never tasted the curry udon prepared that way before! The chefs prepared the dish as a soup. I took my time in enjoying every little bit of the udon. The place made me feel like aristocracy.
I definitely recommend this place!

Came for dinner. Very interesting experience.
Personally the best part was the presentation of the food — each course is very thoughtfully designed down to each detail, and seems to carry symbolic meaning beyond purely visual elements. I’m sure a lot of it was lost on me due to cultural gap and lack of familiarity with shojin cuisine (Japanese Buddhist cuisine). But whatever I could pick up was still delightful with plenty of surprises.
Google did tell me that shojin tries to highlight a sixth taste (sour, salty, sweet, bitter, spicy + «delicate»). And taste wise, as someone who’s used to eating meat + especially seafood in my Japanese food, it almost felt like it was unexpectedly missing a dimension (salty fat?). I imagine during a different season the meal may consist of eg. more mushrooms or taro or something which would be easier on meat eaters. But the mid April seasonal flavor profile they try to highlight is bitterness which is pretty orthogonal to the typical American diet.
We didn’t get the sake pairing but the tea pairing featured some of the best tea I’ve ever had in my life. Which is no surprise since the tea comes from Ippodo which is a 300 year old Kyoto tea shop.
Finally, the service was enthusiastic but just a tad uneven. For instance, i noticed that waiters bring out the day’s ingredients in a giant basket to show you at the start of the meal but somehow they forgot this step for our table. We also never saw the printout of all the courses and ingredients. And I had to ask two different waiters for more tea.
But overall a memorable experience. I suspect I’ll be back at least three other times to try the other seasons.

I’ve been wanting to try this place ever since I learned about Michelin stars. I mean, a purely vegan restaurant (and Japanese vegan, at that) getting TWO stars?! MUST be something special. Unfortunately, it’s rating has now been reduced to one star after the head chef changed a few years ago (or so my sources tell me).
The most important part of this place is the attention to detail. Every little thing, from the clean, authentic décor to the perfectly geometric, yet artistic plating to the impeccable timing of the wait staff, was spot on. Truly one of a kind.
We went all out, since it was my dining mate’s birthday, getting the 8 course tasting menu (Hana) with the sake pairing (menu picture attached). Our favorites were the Potato Cake with Burgundy Truffle, which had the most impressive plating, the Seasonal Assortment, which had a huge selection of extremely unique and flavorful items, and the Panko-​fried Wild Mushrooms, which most closely resembled dishes we knew and loved. They surprised us with a 9^th course birthday dessert, which featured blackberries and a cold dairy-​like mixture (the actual ingredients escape me). Overall, I’d say the meal peaked at the fourth course, surprising us each chance it got, and then dropped off with relatively mundane and strangely seasoned offerings.
Definitely worth a try, but probably won’t be back here until I make much more money than I currently do. If you’re trying to save some money, you could try the 4 course tasting menu without sake pairing. Unfortunately, the 4 course menu misses out on the seasonal assortment, which is probably the best part of the tasting menu.