Cha Ya: What’s Vegetarian Editorial Review

Cha Ya is a Japanese restaurant at 1686 Shattuck Ave in Berkeley, and everything on its menu is vegan. The owners spell out the rule themselves: no dairy, no eggs, no gelatin, no fish, no poultry, and no honey. You can order sushi, tempura, noodle soups, and small plates without a single question.

What’s vegan and vegetarian at Cha Ya

Every dish. Cha Ya bases its cooking on the vegetarian cuisine that, by the restaurant’s account, monks at a Zen temple in Fukui, Japan, began in the mid-13th century. The owners mark gluten-free dishes with “g/f.” You’ll find that mark on the Kinoko Miso, the house miso soup, the Garden Roll, the Summer Green Roll, and several salads.

What to order at Cha Ya

Order the Dobin Mushi first. For $9.75 you get a clear soup with spinach, shimeji and eryngii mushrooms, tofu, carrots, and gingko nuts. For the Cha-Ya Roll ($12.65), the cooks fill a roll with asparagus, yam, avocado, and carrots, then batter and deep-fry the whole thing.

For a full meal, order the Taku-Sui ($16.10). You get pot stickers, tofu, vegetables, and silver noodles in a light broth, with ponzu on the side. The Dengaku ($14.35) is broiled eggplant, tofu, and portobello with a miso glaze. Gyoza cost $9.75 for six. Can’t decide? The Sushi Combo Dinner ($23) gets you a kappa roll, a vegan roll, and two inari.

How to order at Cha Ya

Bring cash. Cha Ya takes cash or Venmo, and nothing else. You can eat in for lunch from 12pm to 3pm and for dinner from 5pm to 8pm, seven days a week, with last seating at 7:30pm. Cha Ya now opens on Tuesdays too. For takeout, call (510) 981-1213 or order through Uber Eats or DoorDash.

Before you go to Cha Ya

Mind the gap. Cha Ya closes from 3pm to 5pm between lunch and dinner, so don’t plan a 4pm meal. Dinner seating ends at 7:30pm. Cha Ya also runs a San Francisco restaurant at 762 Valencia St, so check the address before you set your map.

Our verdict on Cha Ya

Go, and order more than sushi. You’ll eat well for under $20. Most specialty rolls cost $12 to $13.25, and the biggest hot dish, the Cha-Ya Nabe, costs $16.60. Bring cash, arrive before 7:30pm, and start with the Dobin Mushi.