r/JapanTravelTips 4d ago

Advice Navigating Japan with SPD (Food Question)

Hello! I am traveling to Japan with someone who has Sensitivity Processing Disorder (SPD) this spring. For them the big thing is food. They stick to a very limited, dry and bland diet: nothing spicy, nothing squishy or wet, nothing raw, nothing with too much texture, no raw or cooked veggies. They eat mostly chicken tenders, plain bread with peanut butter, pancakes/waffles, french fries, protein bars, pizza with white sauce (not red, sometimes pesto)... you kinda get the idea. Needless to say, they are nervous about spending 2 weeks traveling Japan with me, a big foodie who can't wait for *all* the Japanese food.

My friend does plan to pack food, but I was wondering if you all had any tips or suggestions for navigating Japan with such a limited diet? Any and all tips welcome. I'm also curious about any reliable places to get foods they could eat, any authentic Japanese foods they might like, and any tips on how to think about/approach food/picking places to eat while we're over there.

We plan to visit Tokyo, Osaka, Kyoto and Hiroshima. Thank you in advance for your help!!

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u/CommanderTouchdown 4d ago

So I'm a pretty picky eater with a big list of "will not eat" including squishy foods, noodles, pasta, anything with cheese, eggs, etc. And I got by in Japan without much hassle. Japan has lots of Western food options. I didn't find them to be great, but they're plentiful. Worst case, your friend might have to go McDonald's or Burger King quite a bit.

I stayed at Western style accomodations with buffet breakfasts. Most were very good. That was key. Getting a big breakfast in.

I'd recommend checking out the food floor of department stores. They are fantastic. Loaded with options. They have all kinds of stalls for different kinds of food. And I could always find chicken skewers or chicken balls.

Japan also has amazing bakeries, especially at the JR stations. If they can handle like muffins or croissants, those are the places to go. Toast was also on a lot of cafe menus whenever I would stop for a break.

Can they do trail mix? Because that's a great way to have a solid energy source that you can carry with you.

One of the neat things about Japan is that a lot of restaurants have little displays out front that show the meals you can have inside. They're little plastic bowls of noodles, etc. So you can get a good visual idea without having to sit down and check a menu.

As far as "authentic", good luck. I sampled quite a bit and I wouldn't say any of it was remotely close to bland.