Tokyo is huge, and the places on this page sit in a handful of neighbourhoods, often far apart: by our estimate Senso-ji and Meiji Jingu are more than two and a half hours apart on foot. So plan one area a day and take the train between them. Fifteen of the seventeen places say, in their own words or in their name, that what they serve is gluten-free. In Asakusa, Otaco is about 5 minutes on foot from Senso-ji, Tempura Asakusa SAKURA about 10, and Shochikuen Cafe in Nishi-Asakusa about 10. In Kanda, Oh Nana! is about 10 minutes on foot from Akihabara, and Gluten-free Izakaya SHION in Nishikanda about 20 from the East Gardens of the Imperial Palace. Around Harajuku and Aoyama, RiceHACK is about 5 minutes on foot from Takeshita Street and L for You about 15. South of Shibuya, towards Daikanyama, Ebisu and Nakameguro, Premium SOW is about 15 minutes on foot from Shibuya Crossing and Yamano Hitsuji about 25, and & OIMO TOKYO CAFE and Miller Cake Store are about 5 minutes apart on foot in Aobadai. In Azabudai, NANAN TOKYO is about 5 minutes on foot from teamLab Borderless and from Tokyo Tower. Jiyugaoka Bakery in Meguro, Biossa in Kasuga (Bunkyo) and MASHIKAKU in Osaki (Shinagawa) are further out, each a trip of its own.
A day that works, in Asakusa: breakfast at Shochikuen Cafe, a vegan café whose menu and kitchen are entirely gluten-free in its own words; it opens at 9:30 by its own site. Senso-ji is about 10 minutes on foot. Otaco, about 5 minutes from the temple, sells rice-flour chiffon cakes from a kitchen that, by its own site, keeps no wheat flour at all, but it opens on set days only, so check its monthly calendar first. From there Tokyo Skytree is about 25 minutes on foot. Walk back, about 20 minutes, for an early dinner at Tempura Asakusa SAKURA, close to the Kaminarimon gate, where tempura is cooked without wheat; its site gives hours of 12:00 to 20:30. Ask about the soy sauce and the tsuyu dipping sauce. On a Harajuku day, start at Meiji Jingu, which opens at sunrise; the shrine says it takes at least another ten minutes from the entrance to the main buildings. RiceHACK, an entirely gluten-free bakery with pizza, is about 5 minutes on foot from Takeshita Street (closed on Tuesdays and Wednesdays). For dinner, L for You in Minami-Aoyama is about 15 minutes on foot from Takeshita Street; its English page says «Gluten Free 100% GF Menu». Its English and Japanese pages give slightly different hours, so check before you go.
Japan labels wheat, not gluten: wheat (小麦) must be declared on packaged food, but barley (大麦), rye (ライ麦) and oats are not on the allergen lists, and restaurants have no duty to label allergens at all. Rice-flour bread (米粉パン) is not automatically wheat-free, and almost all shoyu (醤油) is brewed with wheat. The label rules, the gluten-free marks and the shop chains, with sources: our Japan page.
Tokyo runs on wheat and soy sauce: ramen, tempura batter and the shoyu that goes into almost every broth and glaze. Ask about the soy sauce everywhere, even at an entirely gluten-free place: several of the cards on this page say to ask whether it is tamari. Soba is usually made with wheat too; only juwari soba (十割そば, 100% buckwheat) is made without it, and many shops cook every noodle in the same pot. Ask about the fryer (& OIMO TOKYO CAFE also serves sweet-potato fries) and the drinks (Tempura Asakusa SAKURA serves local beer, and beer is not gluten-free). Most of the places here are bakeries and sweet shops, several of them takeaway only; Yamano Hitsuji serves lunch only, and Jiyugaoka Bakery, MASHIKAKU and Otaco open on set days, so check their calendars. Gluten-free Izakaya SHION gives Saturday evening hours only, so book ahead. For dinner, plan around Oh Nana! in Kanda, opened in March 2026 by an owner with coeliac disease according to its about page, which serves dinner from 16:00 to 22:00 by its own site, and around L for You and Tempura Asakusa SAKURA. The two places with a gluten-free option need questions first: Alchemy says gluten-free is its rule, and BEYOND SWEETS says wheat-free, which does not rule out barley or oats.
Sources: Consumer Affairs Agency (消費者庁), allergy labelling summary and handbook (April 2026) and leaflet on rice-flour products, caa.go.jp, read 29 September 2026 · Kikkoman, kikkoman.com, read 29 September 2026 · Meiji Jingu, its own site, read 29 September 2026 · the venues on this page, in their own words · walking times: our estimate from the map · food traps and opening hours: “Good to know” and the venue cards on this page.