Janken is a small Japanese cafe on Jervois Road in Herne Bay, Auckland, built around one philosophy: you are what you eat. Every dish is cooked with no added gluten and is dairy- and lactose-free (the only exception is coffee milk), so customers with different dietary needs can order almost anything on the menu.
The kitchen leans on organic ingredients, in-season local produce and the fermented staples of the Japanese diet — miso, shoyu, sake, koji, amazake, sakekasu and tsukemono — with most sauces and dressings made from scratch in-house and minimal food waste composted rather than landfilled. Weekends bring the signature miso waffles, weekdays bring rice bowls and 'ramen-ish' rice noodle soups, and Friday and Saturday nights add a reservation-only dinner of sushi rolls, hot pots and karaage.
There is also a cabinet of muffins, mochi wraps and rice balls, house-made ice cream, a long list of lattes and tonics, retail goods such as sake-kasu cookies, tea and granola, and catering for morning tea through dinner. Call or email to book a table, pre-order or enquire about catering.
Janken is a small Japanese cafe on Jervois Road in Herne Bay, a leafy pocket of inner-city Auckland, built around a simple idea: you are what you eat. The team here cooks Japanese food designed to fuel your body and leave you feeling energised — every dish is made with no added gluten and without dairy (the only exception is milk for coffee), leaning on organic ingredients, fermented staples and produce that is fresh, in season and local where possible. Breakfast might be a traditional Japanese set, lunch a salmon rice bowl or a 'ramen-ish' noodle soup, and dinner on a Friday night a bubbling hot pot.
What sets Janken apart is how thoroughly it caters for dietary needs. Rather than offering one or two gluten-free options, the entire menu — breakfast, lunch, dinner, drinks and even catering — is made with no added gluten, and is dairy- and lactose-free apart from coffee milk. Vegans are well looked after too, with plant-based versions of everything from eggs benedict to karaage. The kitchen is honest about limits: as a working cafe it cannot guarantee dishes are 100% free from contamination, so it asks anyone with allergies or special requirements to let staff know when ordering.
Behind the menu sits a clear set of values. Ingredients are chosen organic where possible to support environmentally friendly farming. Fermented foods — miso, shoyu, sake, koji, amazake, sakekasu and tsukemono — appear throughout, reflecting their central place in the Japanese diet and their reputation for supporting immunity. Most sauces and dressings are made from scratch in-house, and minimal food waste is composted rather than sent to landfill.
On weekends the miso waffles are the draw: fluffy, crispy waffles made from buckwheat flour, rice flour, black sesame and soy milk, topped with battered karaage chicken — or tofu and tempeh for vegans — with miso maple syrup, vegan cream cheese and fresh salad. There is a sweet version too, with matcha ice cream, coconut mochi cream, berries and caramelised buckwheat groats. From 10am the kitchen turns out rice bowls (teriyaki chicken, teriyaki salmon, yakiniku beef, Angus beef tataki) and rice noodle soups in vegan creamy black sesame, seafood spicy miso or chicken yuzu lemon shio broths.
Breakfast runs all day, from the Asa Gohan set — miso soup, steamed multi-grain rice, nukazuke pickles and the daily osozai — to eggs benedict on a house-made potato cake with vegan miso hollandaise. The cabinet is stocked with muffins, mochi wraps and rice balls, and the shelves carry Janken-made retail goods such as sake-kasu cookies, tea and granola. The drinks list is a destination in itself: matcha, hojicha, black sesame and red velvet lattes, a yuzu tonic, a ginger-espresso, and amazake, a probiotic fermented rice drink.
Dinner is a more intimate affair. Janken opens for dinner on Friday and Saturday evenings only, with a menu of Japanese pickles and small plates, sashimi and sushi rolls, mains like chan-chan garlic miso salmon, crispy shojin tofu and nanban-style karaage, and hot pots in creamy garlic soy miso, seafood miso or free-range chicken yuzu. Seats are limited and booking is required — the cafe asks diners to reserve by 3pm. There is a Friday dinner takeaway as well: pre-order before 3pm and collect between 5pm and 6pm.
Catering is another string to the bow — Janken can cater morning tea, lunch, afternoon tea and dinner (except Fridays) to your requirements, with platters of sushi rolls, imo mochi and more.
Find Janken at 158 Jervois Road, Herne Bay, Auckland. Breakfast and lunch run Tuesday to Sunday from 8am to 3pm (last order); dinner is Friday and Saturday from 5pm to 8pm by booking; the cafe closes on Mondays and public holidays. Call 09-360-0555 or email janken.order@gmail.com to reserve, pre-order or discuss catering. As the team puts it, they hope their menu will be one of the choices you make for your wellbeing — and add some bright colour to your daily life.