I had been wanting to go to Cha-Ya in Berkeley for a while, then one night I just decided that I was going to make the trek and that I didn't care if it was a let down I had to know for myself just how good the food there was. So my partner and I packed up the car and began driving to Berkeley. The restaurant was easy to find, but parking was a little more tricky. I got a spot about a block away and we walked on down to get ourselves some grub. Once inside this tiny little shop I began to notice that it was packed with folks on dates, but it wasn't too loud. We sat down at the counter and got menus fairly quickly. I ordered a soup and have since sampled a few of them here. The food came after about 20 minutes, which felt like forever since everyone else was already eating and I was starving. I had the Curry and tofu. It was good, but it had nothing special or out of the ordinary. It tasted like a curried ramen chicken broth. The ingredients were all fresh and yummy, but in all honesty it's something I could have made at home. The Kinoko, (Mushroom) on the other hand was a much better choice by my partner. She was nice enough to share some and the vegetables were great. We had red bean puree dish with mochi for desert and while I don't especially like red beans, it was pretty rich so I ate a few spoonfuls before relinquishing my spoon and the rest to my partner. All and all, this spot was nice, but not worth the travel. The service was good, but the food took a while. The atmosphere is decent and the crowd is normal as can be. I will probably go back if I am in the neighborhood, but I don't think it's worth the drive from San Leandro. At least not on a Friday night when I'm tired. If you are in the area and haven't been Cha-Ya is a great stop to try out. CHAD read more

Just like all the other reviewers, I love the food here. (26Dec08) I met a friend here for a late lunch after having been away from the Bay Area for a couple of years. The luxury of having so many vegan choices, prepared so artfully and with such savoryness, WOW, it is simply divine. Please note what everyone is saying, THE PLACE IS VERY VERY SMALL. They do have another outlet in SF with a more spacious dining area, go there if you have a party larger than 3, limited time or are chewing table legs to abate your hunger pangs. Otherwise, wait for another day when those aren't your current conditions. A large bowl of Soba noodle soup with a nice variety of veggies is $7.50. A 14oz pot of tea (good selection and taste) is $2.00. An appetizer plate of 6 small potstickers is $5.00. Almost everyone in here speaks Japanese, seemingly as their primary language, so enjoy feeling that for a brief moment, the world is not populated only by English speakers. Dang that feels good. It may effect communicating for your meal, but STAY POLITE, they are Japanese and place a high priority on it. Oh, and don't forget to sign in outside if there are no empty seats. Truly, a unique and DEElicious experience!!!!!!!!! read more

CHA YEAH! did someone* already write that? i'm too lazy to check. CHA YA!! Cha Ya has proven that if it is anything approaching a tempura'd yam, i'm in...all the way. The bean soup, made with something like 40 varities of beans, is fantastic (if you like beans). The Cha ya roll is a classic: the crispest and sinfully tempura'd roll topped with some mystery sauce that confuses my palate. Is it yeasty? Is it malty? The Soba Noodle Salad was love at first taste and a must have: light, simple, colorful, and I'm constantly surprised by the addition of strawberries in the mix. We can usually leave there feeling full for around 30$. There are some misses, like the weird earthy roll that tastes like some guy in Berkeley's garden. Or the weird creamy dressing on some salad that I've forgotten because it was really gross. Try out the spacious bathroom sometime: it is roughly the size of the entire seating area. The only downside: when you find yourself waiting for a table and are standing outside and you see a couple slow-poking their way to paying their bill...or finishing their waters...or sitting and chatting AFTER they've left a tip. It makes you feel hate, and that is a sad thing. Resist that urge to feel the hate. _______________ *damn that Laura B. read more

Warning, we did not eat there but TRIED to it after reviewing it on Yelp, getting all excited, and studying the menu very carefully... only to be told as we ordered that they cannot make any dish gluten-free :( So, we had to pack up our family of 5 and find another place to eat... How about using tamari sauce, instead of soy sauce!? read more

i LOVE this restaurant. How do they make their vegan dashi? So much flavor and depth in this stock and thus also in their soups and sauces. The regular menu is awesome and the specials are often through the roof. Chaya are true tempura masters. Clean oil that is not tarnished with fish and meat fat heated to exactly the right temperature gives their fried foods a perfect texture with no lingering greasiness on the food, your fingers or tongue. Been a while since i have returned but have to change that soon :) phil read more

Absolutely delicious and authentic! Even my fish/meat-loving husband loves this place. Very friendly staff, great service. Highly recommend!

i came here on a sunday a while ago. there's was plenty of parking available. after opening the door at 5, the waitress disappeared for 10 minutes (bathroom break?). when she reappeard, she took my order and the order appeared 20 minutes later. this eatery is completely vegan. this place is very small and can fill up very quickly. entree:#37 vege tofu (8.75) #33garden roll (7) -vege tofu: looked like curry soup, had soft tofu and lots of different veggies within. fresh veggies good, curry so-so. -garden roll: looks like a futomaki, i was huge and filled with lots of veggies. it soon fell apart when i grasped it with chopsticks. no sauce provided. they have a large menu so i'm sure something here will satisfy me. for now, it's a disappointment. read more

Read about this place in someone's blog, so I convinced my BFF to try it out with me. It wasn't hard. She has a big crush on Davey Havok; so she figures the more vegan places in Berkeley that she knows about, the better! I ordered their namesake roll, which was really good (of course it was, it's deep fried!), even though the sauce had a slightly bitter aftertaste. The agedashi tofu was done perfectly. The ice cream could have been better if they had used coconut milk instead of soy. Soy ice cream never seems to taste right. I love this place, but it has kind of ruined other sushi places for me, now that I've seen the variety that they have and others don't! Sushi restaurants! There is more to "vegetarian" sushi than cucumber roll! read more

This might very well be my new favorite place to go in Berkeley. A vegan restaurant that tastes great! Eating here, I wouldn't even think about meat. Or cream. A place you can be proud of eating at. We tried the sea vegetables salad, the cha-ya roll, the vegan roll (quite oddly named, since everything is vegan), and the cha-ya rice bowl. Why not 5 stars? The major flaw in execution is that things are too salty. Especially the rice bowl and the cha-ya roll. Cut the salt and it would be great. Also, the seaweed in the vegan roll could have been fresher; it seems like it was made a long time ago and just sat around until they brought it out. Service was fast, scarily fast, which made me think that everything is mostly pre-prepared in the back and they bring it out when you order it. Our 4 dishes literally all came within 2 minutes of each other. I wouldn't mind paying a little more for a more sushi bar type atmosphere, but they probably rush things to increase turnover, seeing the long waits. Still, I would eat here all the time, bring all my friends here, etc. Vegan is just too seductive. read more

The Good: **Food was OK The Bad: **The atmosphere was gross. **The "sushi chef" was grimey looking. Yes, he really was rockin' a stained T-Shirt and a puzzled look. He was totally using cue cards/cheat sheets to make my roll cause he kept glance off to the side of the counter. **Our waitress could not speak a lick of english, so trying to get a noodle bowl with out broth was impossible. If you're gonna take peoples food order, please speak the language. AND the menu clearly reads on the front, "If you have any questions please ask any of our staff", riiiiight. **I would guess about 80% of the menu had a deep fried or tempura element to it, so while you're cutting out meat, you get a healthy dose of deep fried oily goodness, yum. The Ugly: ** The prices, it was really steep for the poor appearance of the settings, staff, and menu. Left a $1 tip, and will not return here on my own free will. Do yourself a favor and walk just a few more paces in any direction and get a good meal elsewhere. read more

Aside from an unreserved adoration of the vegan sushi at Cha Ya, sushi has become complicated for me. As a sailor, animal lover, and informed citizen, I just can't participate in the "seafood" market, riddled as it is with fraudulent labelling, irresponsible over-fishing, and the stress of rising acidity and warming ocean temperatures on sea life. At Cha Ya, I can enjoy sushi without any moral hazard. It's delicious! Casual! Ethical! Very consistent and high-quality and impeccably clean! Kids love it. Vegetables abound. The gyoza are a favorite, although I could eat anything on the menu with pleasure. Almost all our companions love the place and would happily go back any and every day (with one inexplicable exception). Miso soup is perfect (mushrooms are a delicious variation). For a healthy, light, authentic, satisfying Japanese meal that happens to be vegetarian *and vegan*, this place can't be beat. read more

It just so happens that a friend of mine is vegetarian so this is the only kind of sushi he can eat. I was happy to oblige and have some vegetarian sushi with him. The rolls were good. We ordered the cha-ya roll, garden roll, and avocado maki. If you're vegetarian you will think the rolls are amazing because most sushi restaurants don't make the effort to cater to vegetarian customers. Aside from the common avocado maki there aren't many options for veg heads. If you eat fish and are accustomed to 'regular' sushi you may not be as impressed with this place. I'm trying to cut down on my consumption of anything with a face so I like this place, hence, four stars! Note: Some of the rolls are sliced into giant pieces so they end up being hard to eat. Expect to make weird faces as you try to stuff them into your mouth and half them end up in your lap. Not a good first date restaurant ladies =) read more

I was blown away last night on my 3rd visit to Cha-Ya. It was 6pm on a Friday and we were able to get a seat right away. The service was immediately friendly, and efficient throughout, and the space was vibrant and bright. We ordered Cha-Ya rolls (addictive deep fried vegan sushi heaven), the braised eggplant, tofu and mushroom dish - with barbecue miso glaze (the mushroom on this plate was one of the best bites of food I've ever had.), and the vegetable noodle curry bowl with soba noodles (perfectly seasoned and chock full of veggies). Everything was outstanding and we left feeling satisfied and nourished. So grateful for the many food options for vegans in the east bay. Cha-Ya is one of the best. Can't wait to go back again! read more

I'm a bit perplexed by why this place has such high reviews... Came here on a weekend around dinner time with a few friends and the place was completely empty. When we walked in, we expected somebody to seat us but we ended up seating ourselves at one of the many open tables. After we received menus, we made our selection and we let 20 minutes pass by before we got up and found somebody to take our order. Another 40 minutes later, our food arrived. I do not believe vegan, vegetarian food has to taste this bland. Needless to say, I was very disappointed. Everything we ordered, tempura, buckwheat noodles, and sushi, all of it lacked any seasoning. For the $$ that this place is rated, you do not get your value here at all. read more

Some dishes I would pass--like the eggplant appetizer..but the miso soup alone will keep me as a retuning customer. Does not taste processed and had a refreshing note--had no idea miso soup was supposed to taste this way. read more

Finally got around to trying this place today after hearing raves about it for quite some time. Service ranged between perfunctory and nonexistent. For example when we walked in the door no one paid us the slightest attention, so we decided to just seat ourselves at the bar, at which point some of the waitstaff apparently then noticed us and seemed slightly concerned / confused that we'd taken the initiative to seat ourselves. Not a huge deal, but more attentiveness (and maybe a welcoming "Irashaimase!") would have made for a better initial impression. I ordered the Dengaku set. (eggplant, tofu and portabello mushroom with red miso sauce) Came with miso soup which was quite good. A little thinner and lighter than most other restaurants tend to serve, (not a complaint at all, I quite liked it) but very tasty, with a good and prominent konbu flavor to it. Good start. Unfortunately, my entree just wasn't that impressive. For starters, the rice was mushy. Not a great sign. The dengaku plate itself consisted of 2 diminutive wedges of portabello garnished with a single boiled green soybean on each. Flavor of these (what little I actually got) was okay... a little earthy, a little smoky, a nice "meatiness" to them. (then again, it's portabello mushroom... not exactly a surprise there) Would have liked to have had more of this, and the menu description could be a little more forthcoming about the fact that you're not getting an entire portabello cap. The eggplant was, as others have noted, of the American/European variety. It was lightly broiled and the top smeared with a sickly sweet red miso and garnished with toasted pine nuts. The eggplant itself I found unremarkable, and the red miso overpowered any flavor the eggplant might have had. The tofu was a long rectangular block of rather flavorless curd with a firm, somewhat crispy outer shell, but lacking any savoriness or custardy mouthfeel to the inside. Again this was topped with sweet red miso and garnished clumsily with a few daikon sprouts. (they apparently forgot the sesame seeds on mine that I see pictured in the gallery here on Yelp, which was funny as the container of them was sitting directly in front of where I was eating at the bar) And again, I found the miso cloyingly sweet and the rest of it bland. Presentation of the dishes was just okay. Portions were a bit on the small side. I would have liked to have seen a small salad or complimentary appetizer included in the lunch set to make it feel like a better value. I was also a little surprised that a pot of genmai-cha cost $2, and ended up just being brewed from a YamaMotoYama teabag. Can't recall the last time I ate at any Asian restaurant where they charged for basic tea. Overall, it wasn't terrible, but it wasn't particularly memorable, either. I wanted to like it more than I actually did. My friend gave me a couple of the gyoza from his taku-sui and although they were on the soggy and sloppily assembled side, the filling wasn't bad. Towards the end of the meal some people nearby who came in after us received an order of tempura which both looked and smelled far more interesting than either of our dishes, and I imagine their gyoza might fare better pan-fried than they did in soup, as well. I might give it another shot at some point and gravitate more towards the "gaijin crowd pleaser" type of dishes such as the vegetable tempura and the goofy battered and fried sushi rolls, but based on this experience I hardly feel the urge to rush back right away. read more

I walked by this restaurant for 3 years and wasn't tempted enough to try it out, judging from the pricey vegetable menu, always packed place with too many tables in too little space. But one day, my friends and I decided to give it a shot, just to figure out why it was so damn crowded all day long. Then, we realized that this place offered unique, delicious veggie sushi and other Japanese dishes like Udon. The whole place smelled so fresh and fragrant. Although I am still not convinced about the price, the food is definitely interesting. I think the big part of the deliciousness was the fresh ingredients they used. Also, there had a whole bunch of deep fried stuff....and you just can't go wrong with that right? Am I coming back again? Maybe, I still want to try their steamy big bowl udon. I have enough of their "fancy" sushi. By the way, be prepared for slow service as this place is always packed. read more

Per suggestion of my vegan friend I got the vegi-tofu curry udon and it was delicious! I don't usually order curry at restaurants because it usually contains meat so it was nice to finally have good vegetarian curry udon made by people who know their stuff. The curry isn't thick like curry rice curry but it's more like soup curry and the broth is super flavorful and full of veggies. The noodles didn't taste fresh though and a bit of chewiness was left to be desired. For desert we got the banana tempura and it was disappointing. The bananas and the batter were flavorless and oily and there sauce didn't do much to help the blandness. The service was pretty good and I'd come back again to try some of their rice stuff. Also don't forget... CASH ONLY! read more

This is a vegan classic. Been around before the whole trend of a 'plant based diet' became a thing. Just a solid vegan restaurant. My go to is the Cha Ya Roll. It's a deep fried veggie roll with this amazing sauce. I could seriously eat 5 of these in my sitting. It's a pretty small place and there can be a long wait at times for both a table and then for your food to come out. But it's worth the wait. In my opinion, it's a tad pricey but I guess as the only vegan Japanese restaurant in the Bay Area, they are allowed to set their prices slightly high because it's worth it for the food! read more

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Just went last night after reading mixed good reviews on the place. I gotta say I'm kinda in the middle on this. The food was pretty good, I must say. Yet I also agree with the other people who have said this place is a bit too pricey for some vegetables and rice, but the food was good, so it wasn't a total rip off. Sure, the place was small, crowded and the waitresses could have been a bit more friendly and attentive. But the food is good and that's what matters in the end! read more

This place is great for vegetarians. I had a soup with all sorts of veggies and it was really tasty, a brown rice bowl with veggies and tofu it was good but not a lot of veggies and tofu, and a sushi roll with broccoli, carrots and other stuff, that was really good. Its a little pricey if you order a bunch of stuff, the restaurant is tiny, but a great restaurant especially for vegetarians. read more

I've changed my mind. I love this place. We didn't go back after our first review/visit, because we weren't real impressed and didn't want to wait in line. But on a whim last week we went in because we had a sushi craving. Now that gluten is the devil, I half expected them to say they couldn't accommodate (i keep GF soy sauce in my bag with me, so I was jus thoping they could make us some plain/unseasoned sushi), but I was pleasantly surprised and so thrilled. The server didn't bat an eyelash when I asked if she could accommodate glutenfree people who were also vegan. She pointed out all the rolls that were glutenfree, and told us they had glutenfree soy sauce (tamari), too. She even doublechecked with the chef on a couple items she was unsure about. We went on a weekday not long after they opened, and it was empty and quiet. The garden roll (i think that was it?) had a million (safe!) veggies and was the biggest sushi roll i'd ever eaten in my life. also it was DELICIOUS. I'm not sure about the non-sushi menu (maybe i should give it another shot-- it's been years now) but the sushi was amazing and i can't imagine going there and NOT having sushi at this point. who cares about the rest of the menu? get the garden roll. read more

I appreciate the large, all-vegan menu at Cha-ya, but was not thoroughly impressed with the food. My kitsune noodle soup was a bit too salty and didn't stand out in any way. The tempura didn't taste right and the miso soup seemed more like a veggie soup than anything else. My chocolate mousse cake was dry. Prices at Cha-ya are good, and the space is quaint and inviting. But the food was only decent and nothing special. The service was wonky and curt and all of our dishes came out at random times. I appreciate any all-veg restaurant, but this one has some room to improve. read more

Overrated and overpriced. We have been there 3 times and had bad to unmemorable experiences: Visit #1 when they first opened: Staff was stiff and indifferent. I politely asked for more tea FOUR times and they just smiled and did nothing. Food was okay but the portions were teeny tiny. There were about 6 staff people and 6 diners in the restaurant but the service was very slow. We paid $45 for dinner for 3 and had to eat a COMPLETE 2nd dinner when we got home since we left so hungry. Rice was overcooked. Visit #2 Feb 2005: We decided to try it again because of the rave reviews and since several of our friends loved it. We also had a gift certificate a friend had given us. We had lunch there.....food was okay but the portions were still miniscule. Service was slow and sterile (even though the place was nearly empty) Rice was undercooked. Visit #3 November 2005: We decided to try it a 3rd time...... just in case......food was good; portions still small. Crowded but no line outside.....Felt pretty claustrophobic and cramped. Service was friendlier but inattentive. Rice undercooked. Sorry.....3 strikes and they're out. Maybe we've just been unlucky or we're too picky??? But c'mon even I know how to cook rice properly! The claustrophobic atmosphere bugs me but yet I LOVE Rick & Ann's which is just as crowded but seems cozy. (Maybe because I LOVE R & A's food and staff?) I 'm trying to avoid giving low stars but I think it's important for the reviews to express different points of view. I really want to like Cha Ya but so far..... When we want Japanese food we go to Katanaya in El Cerrito. read more

Just realized that I've never written about my favorite sushi place ever. Cha ya is one of those understated places that look sketch from the outside but is actually delicious and well priced. I have dreams of the Chaya roll and chocolate cake, which was surprisingly moist. They have another roll I love but can't remember- think it might be the Shattuck (avocado on the outside). Miso soup is yummy and not too salty, service is fine. Restaurant is pretty quiet itself with plain lighting. Cash only. Great place for a quick, delicious eat. read more

I wish this was closer to San Jose - its a bit too far to make a regular trip out of it...but then again, having the option for vegan sushi might warrant driving out every once in a while. We were there for a late lunch so lines weren't a problem for us... read more

On a normal weekday I would rate this place a 4. Today seems to be one of those days the waitress is extremely disorganized and cannot prioritize taking orders. Sadly to say, I am disappointed in their quality of serve. This is usually one of my favorite spots to go to on any evening I happen to be in Berkeley. The food is definitely amazing! I love their curry soba and their Cha-ya roll. Those are the main two items that make me want to stop by. But I am not sure if I am willing to have to constantly remind the waitress that I need to put my order through after I have been seated for at least 20min without further service. Only up side is that their noodle soups are made in less time than it is for you to get your order taken. What I want to know is if their veggies they use is organic because I have no idea how they can still charge so much for their rolls.+$8 for veggie rolls.... there better be at least 1 gold flake in there. read more

CASH ONLY! but they have an ATM inside, it will charge you $2.50 though. Food is great! I love going here with my Vegan friends. Food is always fresh and great. Friendly service. read more

CHA-YEAH! So you have to wait in the cold for a while, it only makes the warm, flavorful miso taste even better. Of course it's not comparable to fish sushi, Cha-Ya does no attempt to simulate sushi, it reinvents sushi. It's simply delectable. It makes you feel good all over. You leave feeling satisfied, but never over stuffed. DO NOT LEAVE WITHOUT ORDERING THE CHA-YA ROLL. read more

This place is AMAZING!! I will only eat sushi from cha-ya, no where else because I'm really picky when it comes to my sushi. I can't wait to go back read more

Very tasty miso soup. The chay ya roll was perfect. If you're lookin for a vegan sushi spot with a variety of options including noodles this is the place to be. CASH ONLY! They have atm inside too read more

The food here tastes awEEEEEsme. I love their curry soup, their weird ais sea vegetable salad and their Cha-ya roll makes me want to do a happy dance. So many options, so little time, so so good. You don't even have to be a sort-of-Vegan to love this place, their food is so tasty it doesn't matter that its animal free. You will especially like this place if you are into odd veggies not commonly found in normal recipes. So what's up with the 3 stars you ask? Its not the tight quarters or long wait. Just to note, I don't believe in down-rating venues for that. The reason, well I can't say it any other way so let me apologize up front for those that may get disgusted by what I am about to say: sometimes when I eat dinner, I don't really want to have a colonic directly following. Like seriously, WTF! What are you putting in the food? It sure taste good but man, last time I ate here I barely made it home and you know sometimes, that's just not okay and it happens literally every time. If you want some delicious vegan food, that is affordable and creative and you don't mind or possibly even want that in-depth colon cleansing following shortly after your meal go for it, Cha-ya will deliver on all fronts. Just make sure you can get to a bathroom within 10 minutes of your departure and plan on being there for some time. read more

Yum, Yum, Yum. Yum, Yum, Yum. Only negative? The long line Show up for an early dinner, and enjoy a superb vegetarian (no worry about fish sauce!) Japanese meal without the wait. Yum, Yum, Yum. read more

Disclaimer: I am not a vegetarian nor am I a vegan (I'm a "distant cousin" - a pescetarian) so I'll be writing from that perspective. I agree with Alexander L.'s review - the food was pretty good but all the good stuff was deep-fried this or tempura that. My friend and I tried a brown rice vegetable bowl, vegetarian gyoza, spring egg rolls, a gyoza + vegetable mix soup and the vegan chocolate cake. The gyoza and spring egg rolls get 4.5 stars - DANG good. The best vegetarian gyoza and spring rolls I've tried yet. *Droooool* The rice bowl - bleh. Sort of bland, too much ginger (doesn't help that I'm not a fan of ginger) and not enough veggies. But, the vegan chocolate cake - DAYAMN that gets 5 stars. Oh. Mah. Gawd. Becky. Who would've though - vegan chocolate cake at a vegetarian Japanese restaurant? Only in Berkeley. The cake was nice and dense (I love fudge-y cakes) and it wasn't too sweet - sooooo good. Oh - and Cha-Ya has a pretty good green tea selection (at least 5 types, I believe). The place is tiny and we had to sign up on a wait list but, we only waited for about 8-10 minutes. Although I thought some of the food was bland, I love the fact that I ate my fill and, for once, did not need to be rolled or wheelbarrow'ed out of the restaurant, nor did I wish I had worn elastic waist pants. It was a satisfying "full." read more

The food's pretty good (summer green roll, sansai soba + sansai wakame zaru soba), but I didn't quite appreciate the atmosphere. Feeling a little homesick for Japanese food, I came here with a friend, the other day, and I just didn't feel good vibes. That being said, we had already been given menus and water, so I didn't want to be impolite by just walking out of the restaurant. I think what put me off was that: 1. It was a bit quiet for me 2. With a small restaurant like that, I think it's only right for the restaurant employees to be more warm/home-y to their customers 3. I don't want to sound mean, but the fact that 5 out of 6 people working weren't Japanese, and were kind of fooling around in the back of the kitchen just kind of put me off. That being said. It's nice to know that I can enjoy my japanese food but still keep my vegetarianism, unlike at home where my mother still makes miso soup with bonito broth. read more

Update I gotta bring my 5 star rating down to 3. Though the food is still tasty I had a horrible take out experience bring my rating down to 3. I called in a to go order the restaurant told me it would be ready in 20 minutes. 20 minutes later my order is not ready they take my money and I get no change back. 15 minutes later I complain my order is still not ready and I still have no change. 10 minutes later I have food and no change. Good thing the order was $19 and change I gave them a $20. I will not be back for to go orders. Hopefully the in restaurant service is still ok. I love meat but who needs it when you have Cha-ya. Everything here is excellent. My favorites are the agedashi tofu, miso soup with mushrooms, seaweed salad, cold soba and avocado sushi read more

Okay, just go. Really. I'm so thankful to my friend John Jack because he brought me here once, and you cannot drag me away now before I get me my vegan sukiyaki dish with gyoza on the side. I am so serious here; I am not a vegan or a vegetarian so vegan shmegan. As my friend Jina mentioned once during dinner there, the vegetables are treated with the utmost respect, meaning that they are perfectly prepared - no soggy zucchini or squishy carrots. It all retains flavor and texture. Plus they serve lotus root, which reminds me of my grandparents' cooking, so props. Oh, and the avocado tempura roll? Delish. Do remember that it's cash only for lunch (right?). Oh, and the pear dessert thing I was not crazy about, but maybe that's just me. Update: Wow. I'm living in New York now, and I miss Cha Ya. So could you please go and take my tastebuds with you? (That'd be really creepy actually.) Just go enjoy it if you're at all close by! And then go down a block to get some Cheeseboard to go... read more

When I lived/worked in Berkeley, Cha Ya was on my walk home. I had a six-month unpaid internship and prayed I could pay rent, but I very often made room in my budget for Cha Ya. If I left work close enough to 5 that there wasn't a line as I walked by, I would call my boyfriend (now husband) and let him know to meet me there. Not having a line going down the block was infrequent enough that i didn't splurge too often. Everything here is great. I can't eat miso soup anywhere else now because they have completely spoiled me. Agedashi tofu? Gyoza? Over the top ridiculously good. But what I generally want when I come here is one of their enormous soup bowls. On a cold/rainy day, there's nothing better than one of their perfectly seasoned noodle bowls (soba or udon) -- with option add-ons (I usually get tempura along with it...I love fried food). And their sushi is equally amazing. I'm a big fan of the cha ya roll (See my above-mentioned love of fried food) and the sweet sauce they drizzle over it is absolutely perfect. Sweet w/o being cloying. They also have regular veggie sushi. And healthy things like delicious salads, etc. And everything is so beautifully plated. And the women who work here are super-friendly and quick. My only complaint is that it's so small but so popular that there's often a wait. And I never want to wait for it! But the location in the Mission is much larger and rarely do you have to wait for a table, no matter your party's size. read more

I looooooooooooooove Cha Ya! Great vegetarian/vegan option for Japanese food, but I gave four stars instead of five because it is cash only. At times where I'm really craving Cha Ya, I unfortunately can't go because I don't have any cash on me and I'd rather not be charged $3 on their in-restaurant ATM just to pay for dinner. The Taku-Sui is a great a la carte option for soup rather than getting the udon; it's my personal go-to when I crave some soup but without the heavier noodles (this one comes with silver noodles). Rather than a soupy broth, you can also get the Cha-Ya Delight which is delicious too, with the lightly seasoned brown rice. My sister and I went here to eat and ordered the tonchi nasu. The taste was good, nothing too special and we both agreed that we wish the stuffed eggplant was fried a little bit more. The ginger sauce kind of drenched the whole plate and made them a bit soggier than we liked. Besides the cha-ya delight and tonchi nasu, we also ordered the pear compote, which was realllllly tasty. Service can be really slow but it's understandable why: one waitress looks after all the tables in the restaurant and its clear she tries her best to care for every table. The food can take a little long to come out, but it's probably because the chefs are making sure the presentation is spot on, which it always is. read more

Eating at Cha-Ya is like having a celebration of vegetables in your mouth. I too read the mixed reviews of this place and wasn't quite sure, especially given that I love raw (fish) sushi. But since my girlfriend is vegetarian, and our last sushi experience was lackluster for vegetarian eaters, I figured we should give it a try. I must say, that even as a raw (fish) sushi eater, I was very impressed! Now that being said, do not try to compare the taste to having premium raw fish sushi as previous reviewers have mentioned, but rather be open for a new experience of taking vegetarian Japanese dishes to a whole new level. We started with some appetizers, including the Kinoko Miso (mushroom soup) and Sea Vegetable Salad. Both were delicious and were a great start to the meal. I will note that I was not a big fan of the creamy sesame dressing on the seaweed salad, but the salad itself was great. The highlight for the main dish was the Soba Noodle Curry Soup. This is where the tagline comes in- a celebration of vegetables in your mouth. The curry broth itself was rich in flavor and just enough spice. The vegetables were cooked to perfection, still very firm and very flavorful- sugar snap peas, carrots, cauliflower and broccoli all cooked to perfection in a curry broth. This is where I think this place shines. The vegetables are not just a side, but the focus of the meal. We also had a delicious Yamagobo (pickled burdock) roll which was giant and difficult to handle with chopsticks, but delicious. So if you are looking to experience some flavorful and new experiences in vegetarian Japanese dishes, I highly recommend you check this place out. As per previous reviews, I also did not find the service to be all that great. If it were, I might have been tempted to give it a 5 star rating. read more