Halal-Friendly Food in Furano: An Honest Guide for Muslim Visitors

Halal-Friendly Dining in the Furano Area

Furano is one of the easiest places in Hokkaido to fall in love with and one of the harder places to eat if you avoid pork and alcohol. Rural Japanese cooking leans on both: mirin and cooking sake turn up in sauces that look completely plain, and pork is the default meat in ramen, katsu and much of the izakaya menu. Visitors from Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore and the Gulf tell us the same thing every winter, which is that the skiing was the easy part and dinner was the puzzle.

Nepal Dining is in Nakafurano, the next town north of Furano, about six kilometres from Furano Ski Resort and roughly fifteen minutes by car. Our kitchen is Nepalese and Indian, which means the food we cook every day is already built around lamb, chicken, lentils and vegetables rather than pork, and around yoghurt and spice rather than sake and mirin. That is the honest reason we can help, and it is worth understanding before you read the rest of this page.

What "Halal-Friendly" Means Here, and What It Does Not

Nepal Dining is halal-friendly. We are not a halal-certified restaurant, and we will never tell you otherwise, because the difference matters to the people who ask. Certification means an outside body has audited the supply chain, the kitchen and the handling. We have not been through that process. If certification is a requirement for you rather than a preference, you should know that before you make the drive.

What we can tell you is specific. A great many of our dishes are prepared without pork and without alcohol, our staff know what goes into every plate, and if you ask, you will get a straight answer rather than a reassuring one. Please mention your requirements when you order, not after the food arrives, so the kitchen can work with them from the start.

What You Can Order

The chicken and mutton curries are where most Muslim guests start. Butter Chicken is the mild one and the safest choice for children. Chicken Tikka Masala is our best seller. Mutton Curry and Mutton Sag Curry are the ones our Nepalese regulars order, and Chicken Rara Curry is a Nepalese preparation you will not find in the chain curry houses. Tandoori Chicken and Chicken Tikka come off the tandoor rather than out of a pan, if you would rather have something drier.

For vegetables, Mix Vegetable Curry and Mix Vegetable Soup Curry are both entirely plant-based in their main ingredients, and momo can be ordered with a vegetable filling instead of chicken. Rice and freshly baked naan come alongside. Our standard naan dough contains dairy and egg, but the kitchen will prepare dishes without them on request — and the same goes for allergies and nut-free cooking. Ask when you order.

Getting Here from Furano, Kamifurano and Biei

From Furano town and from Furano Ski Resort it is about six kilometres, near enough fifteen minutes on a normal winter road. From Kamifurano it is a similar distance in the other direction. From Biei, the run down through the hills takes longer and is worth allowing around thirty minutes for in winter. There is free parking on site, which is a small thing until you are in ski boots with a car full of gear.

If you are travelling by train, Nakafurano Station is about 1.4 kilometres away, which is a short taxi ride or a walk in better weather. In deep winter, with snow banked up along the pavements, most guests drive.

Hours, Booking and Practical Tips

We serve lunch from 11:00 to 15:00 and dinner from 17:00 to 21:00. We are closed on the second and fourth Wednesday of each month, and open on the first, third and fifth. In ski season the hour after the lifts close is our busiest of the day, so if you are a group of more than four, a phone call ahead on 0167-44-2444 will save you a wait in the cold.

Our staff speak English, and menus are available in more than one language. Tell us your requirements when you book and again when you order, and we will do the rest.

Frequently Asked Questions