DAY 1
Hotel: Tokyo Edition Toranomon
“The bar at the Edition has the best Earl gray gin cocktail. So refreshing! Not sure about the food, but the cocktails are on point.”
Dinner: Otsuna Sushi
“Incredible sushi spot in Tokyo. The chef was very well-educated about celiac and washed his hands between each piece of fish he prepared for me. The fish is incredibly fresh.”
DAY 2
Breakfast: 7-Eleven
“Breakfast at 7-eleven is elite—I got the smoothies, iced coffee, and the salmon onigiri, which was the only gluten-free onigiri I found. It’s great for breakfast or a snack.”
Dinner: Gluten-free Kushiage Su
“Dinner at Kushiage Su was absolutely incredible. The place is small and only seats 6-8 people, but it is 100% gluten-free. We had a multi-course tasting menu of karage, or fried items in a light batter that was gluten-free. The chef was super kind. Definitely worth going to, but make a reservation! They don’t take walk-ins.”
Sightseeing: Asakusa Food Market
Sightseeing: Senso-ji Temple
Sightseeing: Akihabara
DAY 3
Breakfast: 7-Eleven
“We headed to the Harajuku district on our second day and started out with a peaceful (but hot and humid) stroll through Yoyogi Park after grabbing breakfast at 7-eleven.”
Dinner: RiceHack Gluten-Free Bakery
“We were exhausted and grabbed a pizza and some savory pastries to go from Rice Hack. No joke, this was probably one of the BEST gluten-free pizzas I’ve had in my life.”
Coffee Shop: Koffee Mameya
“WOW. Koffee Mameya was incredible, but the lines will probably be out the door!”
Sightseeing: Yoyogi Park
Sightseeing: Harajuku
Sightseeing: Meiji Shrine
DAY 4
Breakfast: 7-Eleven
“We had a light breakfast and coffee from 7-Eleven.”
Dinner: Gluten Free T’s Kitchen
“Dinner was at Gluten Free T’s Kitchen, which is a certified gluten-free restaurant in Tokyo. I think I’ve been spoiled with incredible gluten-free Asian food over the years because I didn’t find it THAT great. But it’s a nice place to check out for those of us with celiac, since everything is gluten-free.”
Drinks: Tokyo Edition Hotel Bar
“We ended the first part of our trip at the hotel bar at the Edition with some Earl Gray and gin cocktails that blew our minds. SO GOOD!”
Sightseeing: Tsukiji Fish Market
Sightseeing: Ginza – for shopping!
Sightseeing: Tokyo Tower
DAY 5
Hotel: Ritz Carlton Kyoto
“We splurged and decided to stay at the Ritz Carlton Kyoto, in honor of our anniversary, and I can honestly say it is the second best hotel I have ever stayed at in my entire life (the St. Regis Maldives can never be beat honestly). We let them know of celiac ahead of time, and they made sure to keep gluten-free bread and pasta on hand.”
Breakfast: 7-Eleven
Lunch: CoCo Ichibanya Nakagyo-ku
“We had lunch at this Japanese curry chain restaurant, CoCo, which actually had a celiac-safe curry!! It was super good—lots of Indian flavors!”
Dinner: Enyuan Kobayashi
“Absolutely incredible one Michelin star restaurant in Kyoto with tempura kaiseki cuisine. They are able to accommodate celiac with advanced notice!! Definitely recommend coordinating a reservation through your local hotel.”
Coffee Shop: Elephant Factory Coffee
“Delectable coffee. Wow. The Japanese know how to brew the perfect cup. They have food, but it’s not gluten-free. Worth a visit for the coffee and vibes.”
Sightseeing: Bullet Train
Sightseeing: Kamo River
Sightseeing: Walking around Kyoto
DAY 6
Breakfast: Ritz Carlton Kyoto
“We hiked around for about 45 minutes and biked back to a DELICIOUS breakfast at the hotel. They even had gluten-free toast and potatoes for me! The food at the Ritz is SO fresh and high quality. They even presented us with a plate of desserts from Pierre Hermes (inside of the hotel) in honor of our anniversary!”
Dinner: Ritz carlton Kyoto
“We ended the night at our hotel for a delicious Italian meal. The hotel made me an incredible spaghetti with vodka sauce—definitely one of the best pastas I have ever had. Their wine list is also out of this world. My tummy was super happy.”
Sightseeing: Fushimi Inari Taisha – bike ride there
Sightseeing: Candy making class at hotel
Sightseeing: Custom fragrance making experience
DAY 7
Breakfast: Ritz Carlton Kyoto
Coffee Shop: Maccha House and Kyoto Coffee
“Definitely recommend getting at least one matcha drink at Maccha House! The frozen ones were our favorite.”
Drinks: Hello Dolly
“We ended the night at a super cool bar in Pontocho called Hello Dolly. Their gin-based cocktails were amazing.”
Sightseeing: Arashiyama bamboo forest
Sightseeing: Tenryu-ji Temple
Sightseeing: Philosopher’s path and Gion
DAY 8
Hotel: The Prince Gallery, a Luxury Collection – Tokyo
“We took the bullet train back to Tokyo and stayed at the Prince Gallery, a luxury collection Marriott property. The hotel was a little disappointing because they truly couldn’t accommodate ANYTHING gluten-free. They literally said they couldn’t ensure even eggs were safe—this was a huge bummer after getting spoiled at the Ritz Carlton.”
Breakfast: Ritz Carlton Kyoto
Lunch: Ritz Carlton Kyoto
“Our hotel arranged a final lunch for us with the most incredible sushi and sashimi.”
Coffee Shop: Café Agaru – Kyoto
“We ate breakfast, walked around Pontocho, and found an incredible coffee shop right on a creek called Café Agaru. It was so peaceful to sip cold brew and hear the creek trickle by.”
Sightseeing: Kyoto – pontocho
Sightseeing: Shinjuku
Sightseeing: Golden Gai District
DAY 9
Breakfast: 7-Eleven
“Ah, our last day in Japan. While breakfast was celiac safe, I was so over onigiri at this point lol.”
Lunch: Sakurai Japanese Tea Experience
“We did some more shopping in Ginza and went to an INCREDIBLE Japanese tea experience. We did a summer tasting menu of 7 different styles of tea paired with small bites of food. Every course was incredible.”
Dinner: Aman Tokyo Restaurant
“By this point, we were craving burgers and American food, so we went to the Aman Tokyo for burgers and cocktails. Both were amazing.”
Sightseeing: Shopping in Ginza
Sightseeing: Japanese tea experience
