Harvest Natural Food Buffet is a restaurant catering to a natural foods first approach with a main focus on select vegetables and other fresh ingredients seasonally. Their menu consists of over 60 varieties of dishes and it has become a very popular restaurant among locals and visitors alike who wish to savor the flavors of seasonal fresh foods and eat healthier.
Located in the Ikebukuro Lumine Mall it’s a direct walk through Ikebukuro Station to get to from the basement. Those who need accessibility like us with our little one in the stroller can find the elevators between the Lumine and Tobu mall entrances on B1 just past the JR lines.
We had tried out the yakiniku restaurant next door and were intrigued by the menu for Harvest before so we planned to check it out next time. It was hard not to notice the unique and calming atmosphere of the restaurant next door and the huge lineup to get in on the weekend. Between the relaxing and stylish entrance and waiting area we were certainly enticed for our next visit.
Not to mention how delicious the display food spread just outside looked. After a big yakiniku lunch the colorful spread looked a lot more appealing for our next visit to Lumine.
The prices vary depending on the day of the week and between lunch and dinner like most buffets in Japan.
Weekday Lunch
Adults: ¥2,099 (¥2,308 incl. tax)
Elementary School Age ¥999 (¥1,098 incl. tax)
Weekday Dinner
Adults: ¥2,399 (¥2,638 incl. tax)
Elementary School Age: ¥1,099 (¥1,208 incl. tax)
Weekend & Holiday Lunch
Adults: ¥2,399 (¥2,638 incl. tax)
Elementary School Age: ¥1,099 (¥1,208 incl. tax)
Weekend & Holiday Dinner
Adults: ¥2,399 (¥2,638 incl. tax)
Elementary School Age: ¥1,099 (¥1,208 incl. tax)
Under Elementary School Age: ¥599 (¥658 incl. tax) all day
Ages 3 and Under: Free
There was a special summer menu available that we were excited to check out. Unfortunately not everything listed was available when we went since it was lunch time but we still got to try a good bit of the menu.
The salad bar corner was the most colorful I’ve seen at any buffet place yet. I enjoyed the fact that they demonstrated on advertisements that customers could pile up a normal salad plate or place them in the cube containers to make their own fresh veggie dip experience. It was also nice to see them list the farms and farmers that the vegetables came from. This is a personal touch I’ve experienced at larger corporation cafeterias in Japan as well when they do farmers market or locally sourced salad bars which I also enjoy seeing.
The drink corner was fully stocked with cold and hot brew teas, juices, and coffee. True to the natural food and ingredient title there are no soft drinks to be found here which I found quite refreshing. The sheer variety of teas alone was very impressive and I could see why a lot of people probably use this buffet as a tea time getaway.
Some fried and stewed dishes next to udon noodles. Here the corn tempura probably went best as a topping for the cold udon noodles. I was pleasantly surprised by the size of the friend burdock root since it has become a favorite of mine while living in Japan.
Cold dish spread that’s great to mix and match on your plate or with salads. Once again the colors and variety really stand out here and I noticed everyone, including us, couldn’t help but scoop a bit of this and that onto our plates to try out first.
The chilled menu items corner. Half of the menu items were specially made for the summer menu and marked on the name cards.
Hot menu items corner where customers can steam their noodles too so they’re nice and fresh.
Some fried menu items corner. I was excited for the mochiko chicken which has become a favorite of mine on Japanese Hawaiian menus. They even had some sweet chili sauce to top it off with at the ready next to the bowl.
The dessert corner was filled with small guilty pleasure bites and healthy alternatives both from Japan and other countries. Since it was the summer and Hawaiian themed menu they also had a guide on how to make a Pitaya bowl.
What I picked up to share with my little one. She unfortunately was not a big fan of the buffet foods offered just yet and was a little fussy that time of day so I also couldn’t really get a full report on my meal. But my partner and I were able to eat our fill and keep her hydrated on the yummy fruit juices and we fed her our usual lunch favorites we bring in case of pickiness.
Overall the atmosphere was very relaxed and easy to settle into even when our little one was having a bit of a hard time settling. Thanks for it being a buffet customers were up and about or just chatting in their own little worlds so we didn’t feel too much pressure as new parents. Also going during lunch time on a weekday was the easiest way to slip in and out peacefully. On weekends be prepared for a longer wait as Harvest is a pretty popular buffet restaurant. For the price point, service, and menu spread this was definitely worth every yenny and we highly recommend for anyone looking for a seasonally sourced and fresh ingredient filled meal!
Useful Links
Ikebukuro Lumine Website: https://www.lumine.ne.jp/ikebukuro/
