Since its opening of the first shop in Yokohama in 2006, nana’s green tea has been a successful tea salon that features Japanese tea, especially green tea and Matcha. Green tea was first imported from China as medicine, so the company still believes that great green tea and their nutritious food will make people healthier.
Of course, the restaurant is not Halal-certified so we cannot recommend their food for Muslims, but what about their desserts? There is a brochure saying that they are Muslim-friendly, but in our observation, there are some precautions all Muslims should know to ensure it is Halal.
Their signature Matcha latte with ice cream.
What is their menu like?
They have so many desserts in nana’s green tea. They have parfait, cake, beverage, ice cream and Japanese traditional sweets.
Their recommendation is of course green tea or Matcha, but their roasted tea series is also amazing. Green tea and Matcha are not bitter at all at nana’s green tea, but if you are not that into green tea stuff, then trying their roasted tea products is great, too.
They also have seasonal flavors, such as Japanese citrus during summertime, or Sakura flavor for springtime
Obviously, there are so many items with cream and dairy products, which may contain emulsifier from animal. We contacted the company and confirmed their resource.
So, is nana’s green tea Halal?
To answer your question short, their Muslim-friendly sweets are very limited.
They have emulsifier in ice cream and whipped cream. They have confirmed that the emulsifier used in their cream is plant-based, however, they did not have data to confirm emulsifier in ice cream is made from plant. So, we can only say that choosing dessert without ice cream sounds better for many Muslims.
Credit: https://www.nanasgreentea.com/
We have also asked them if there is any product that has no animal-derived ingredients. Their answer was that Warabimochi (わらび餅) and Mamekan (豆かん) have no animal-derived ingredients!
Warabimochi is a traditional sweet mochi, which uses a type of plant called Warabi. Unlike mochi, it is not chewy but soft. They have a unique and original flavor, so this is our recommendation because you can only enjoy this sweet in Japan.
Mamekan is not so much known as Warabimochi, but it is a very simple jelly like dessert. It can be found together with sweet syrup and fruits. They use a plant root called Agar to make it a jelly, so it is 100% Halal. Mamekan is not available in their menu, but they can make it upon your request. You can ask them directly at the cashier.
Some of their food menu look like Muslim-friendly, don’t they?
We have asked the company if there is any food menu that do not have animal-derived ingredients. Unfortunately, their answer was that all of their food menu contain animal-derived ingredients. They did not mention the usage of alcohol, but it seems like all of their products may have used soy sauce, which can have a residual alcohol.
Food menu at nana’s green tea should be avoided.
Credit: https://www.nanasgreentea.com/
In conclusion
It is one of the nicest places that travelers can go to in Japan, but as you can see their Muslim-friendly menu is very limited. Although you can find their name as Muslim-friendly, we ask you to double check if it is really acceptable or not before visiting.
Still, their simple beverage product with tea are Halal and Muslim-friendly. Just remember to ask the one without ice cream if you want to avoid the risk!
Information as of August 2023. We are here to translate their message and not judging if the product is Halal or not. please use your discretion to consume or not.
