Cha-Ya Menu (Update 2025)
Welcome to Cha-Ya, a hidden gem on Shattuck Avenue in Berkeley, renowned for its fully vegan Japanese menu. This cozy restaurant, which has been delighting patrons for over two decades, offers a harmonious blend of flavors and textures, perfect for both vegans and vegetarians alike.
The menu is a celebration of Japanese cuisine, featuring dishes that highlight fresh, seasonal ingredients. Standout items include the Cha-Ya Nabe, a comforting hot pot with vibrant vegetables and noodles, and the Taku-Sui, a flavorful broth filled with potstickers and vegetables. Don't miss the delightful Agedashi Tofu, perfectly crispy and bathed in a light sauce.
With a charming ambiance and exceptional service, Cha-Ya delivers not just a meal but an experience. Be prepared to pay with cash or Venmo, and prepare for a culinary journey that respects the planet while satisfying your cravings for authentic Japanese flavors.
Small Dishes Kozara
Gyoza
Vegan potstickers, pan-fried and served with gyoza sauce, 6 pieces.
Hasami Age
Sweet corn and organic atsuage tofu wrapped in a soybean sheet and nori seaweed, lightly battered, and fried with tempura style. Served with an organic almond sauce.
Ten Bou
Sticks of yam, carrots, banana squash, assuage tofu, and green beans, lightly battered and deep-fried, served with tempura sauce.
Haru Maki
Fried spring rolls with asparagus, shiitake, carrots, long beans, atsuage tofu and silver noodles. Side of sweet and sour sauce.
Agedashi Tofu
Deep-fried tofu in special sauce, garnished with grated daikon and ginger, kaiware, scallions, and shredded nori. 4 pieces.
Mikuri-Age
Breaded and deep-fried asparagus, eggplant, onions, kabocha pumpkin, mushrooms, and atsuage tofu on skewers, and a vegetable croquette. Served with special miso-based sauce.
Robatayaki
Broiled pieces of Portobello mushroom, red onion, asparagus, eggplant, and zucchini. Served on two skewers with robata sauce.
Cha-Ya Delight
Seasoned organic brown rice topped with carrots, kabocha, broccoli, cauliflower, lotus roots zucchini, snap peas, snow peas, hijiki, atsuage tofu, shiitake, broccolini, pickled burdock, and daikon, and aware.
Curry Rice
Organic tofu, kabocha, onions, celery, carrots, broccoli, snap peas, cauliflower, zucchini, and mushrooms, asparagus, kaiware, vegetable croquette with golden curry rice sauce. Choice of white or organic brown rice.
Dengaku
Broiled eggplant tofu, and portobello mushroom with miso paste glaze.
Soba Sushi
A roll made up of buckwheat noodles (in place of sushi rice), spinach, atsuage tofu, asparagus, cucumber, pickled burdock, and seasoned kampyo gourd and shiitake.
Taku-Sui
Potstickers, tofu, zucchini, napa cabbage, snap peas, asparagus, broccoli, cauliflower, silver noodles, and mushrooms in a light broth.
Hangetsu
Portobello mushroom layered with atsuage tofu dipped in a light batter and deep-fried. Served with kiwi fruit sauce.
Cha-Ya Sushi Plate
One kappa roll, one nigiri each of shiitake, eggplant, and sea vegetable salad.
Vegetable Tempura
Eggplant, yam, asparagus, carrots, kabocha, mushrooms, green beans, and broccoli, lightly battered and deep-fried. Served with tempura sauce.
Cha-Ya Nabe
Napa cabbage, spinach, red onion, carrots, mushrooms, kabocha, broccoli, cauliflower, lotus roots zucchini, snap peas, snow peas, silver noodles, and tofu in sukiyaki broth.
Moon Garden
Steamed tofu custard with broccoli, carrots, shimeji mushrooms, kabocha, atsuage tofu snow peas, asparagus, zucchini, broccolini, soybeans, and gingko nuts.
Hana Gomoku
Sushi rice served in a medium bowl, mixed with seasoned shiitake, green beans, lotus roots, carrots, tofu pouch, yam cake, and hijiki. Topped with various cooked vegetables.
Tonchi Nasu (stuffed eggplant)
Eggplant stuffed with tofu, satsuma potato, corn, hijiki, carrots, and soybeans. Lightly battered and deep-fried, tempura style. Served with a special ginger sauce.
Full Moon Sushi Plate
One kappa roll, half vegan roll, and one inari.
A la Carte
Soup
Kinoko Miso Soup
Miso soup with portobello, shimeji, eryngii mushrooms, tofu, scallions, and kaiware sprouts.
Vegan Soup
Organic beans, split peas, lentils, and brown rice, 10 oz. size.
House Miso Soup
A small bowl of miso soup with wakame sea vegetables, tofu, and scallions.
Dobin Mushi Soup
Clear soup with spinach, shimeji, eryngii mushrooms, tofu, carrots, and ginkgo nuts.
Goma Ae
Blanched spinach and broccolini, topped with a sesame dressing.
Senroppon Salad
Shredded daikon, turnip, cucumber, carrots with atsuage tofu, radishes, soybeans, kaiware, and toasted pine nuts. Soy vinaigrette dressing.
Edamame
Soybeans boiled and lightly salted.
Sunomono
Cucumber and radish salad with golden raisins, wakame, and silver noodles. Non-oil rice vinaigrette.
Soba Salad
Soba noodles topped with various seasonal vegetables. Sesame-oil vinaigrette dressing.
Sea Vegetable Salad
A variety of marine vegetables including seasoned hijiki served with a creamy sesame dressing.
Shira Ae
Blanched spinach with seasoned root, carrots, shiitake, green beans tofu pouch and yam cake, served with a tahini-tofu dressing.
Salad
Sushi Dinner
Sushi Combo Dinner
One kappa roll, one vegan roll, and two inari. Served with a small sunomono salad and small house miso soup.
Hosomaki Combo Dinner
Choose any three Hosomaki rolls. No substitutions please. Served with a small sunomono salad and small house miso soup.
Cha-Ya Roll
The entire sushi roll, filled with asparagus, yam, avocado, and carrots, is lightly battered and deep-fried, tempura style. Served with special house sauce.
Vegan Roll
A large roll with spinach, atsuage tofu, cucumber, broccolini, pickled burdock, seasoned shiitake, and campy gourd, and pickled ginger.
Vegetable Tempura Roll
A large roll filled with tempura of banana squash, carrots, yam, and green beans.
Summer Green Roll (gluten free)
A large reverse roll with avocado, cucumber, and kaiware sprouts, topped with sea vegetable salad.
Shattuck Roll
A large roll with asparagus and yam tempura.
Haku Roll
Sushi rice with fried yam, shiitake mushroom, rolled up with an outer layer of avocado.
Garden Roll (gluten free)
A large roll with asparagus, spinach, avocado, cucumber, broccoli, pickled burdock, and kaiware sprouts.
Starlight Roll
Organic brown sushi rice, eryngii mushrooms, spinach, and asparagus, rolled up with an outer layer of avocado.
Subaru Roll
Organic brown sushi rice mixture (with hijiki, wakame, and other sea vegetables), carrot, asparagus, atsuage tofu, and seasoned shiitake, rolled up with an outer layer of mustard green.
Boya Roll
A sushi rice with avocado, cucumber, rolled up an outer layer of sea vegetables salad on top sriracha hot chili sauce. (Gluten free)
Specialty Sushi Rolls
Hosomaki Rolls
Avocado Roll (gluten free)
Reverse roll rice on the outside
Oshinko Roll (gluten free)
Pickled daikon
Kappa Roll (gluten free)
Cucumber
Shiitake Roll
Reverse roll rice on the outside
Yamagobo Roll (gluten free)
Pickled burdock
Asparagus Roll (gluten free)
Reverse roll rice on the outside
Spinach Roll (gluten free)
Reverse roll rice on the outside
Umekyu Roll
Sour plum and cucumber
Natto Roll
Fermented soybeans and green onion
Eggplant Roll
Reverse roll rice on the outside
Kampyo Roll
Seasoned gourd
Sea Vegetable Salad Roll (gluten free)
Reverse roll rice on the outside
Kaiware Roll (gluten free)
Radish sprouts
Inari
Stuffed seasoned tofu pouch
Atsuage Tofu Nigiri
Fried firm tofu
Shiitake Nigiri
Hijiki Nigiri
Seasoned sea vegetable
Sea Vegetable Salad Nigiri (gluten free)
Seasoned sea vegetable
Kaiware Nigiri (gluten free)
Radish Sprouts
Avocado Nigiri (gluten free)
Eggplant Nigiri
Portobello Nigiri
Broccolini Nigiri
Asparagus Nigiri
Nigiri Sushi
Uramaki Rolls
Avocado and Shiitake Roll
Avocado Tempura Roll
Shiitake and Spinach Roll
Avocado and Cucumber Roll (gluten free)
Asparagus and Spinach Roll (gluten free)
Portobello and Spinach Roll
Vege Tofu Curry Noodles
Curry soup topped with tofu, kabocha, onions, celery, carrots, broccoli, cauliflower, zucchini, mushrooms, and snap peas.
Kinoko Noodles
Mushroom medley: shimeji, eryngii, portobello, and oyster mushrooms.
Sansai Noodles
Served hot or cold. Edible bracken, bamboo shoots, carrots, and enoki, and wood ear mushrooms.
Kake Noodles
Served hot or cold. Plain noodles topped with scallions, kaiware, and shredded nori.
Vegetable Tempura Noodles
Served hot or cold. Vegetable tempura served with a bowl of udon or soba. Noodles and tempura are served separately.
Yasai Noodles
Cooked Vegetables. Vegetable tempura served with a bowl of udon or soba.
Kitsune Noodles
Seasoned tofu pouch.
Wakame Noodles
Wakame sea vegetable.
Noodles
Desserts
Yellow Moon
Deep-fried organic banana, topped with azuki bean sauce and green tea sauce.
Pear Compote
Lightly sweetened fresh bosc pear served with vanilla-flavored organic soy milk and green tea sauce.