Bononsha

Top choice in Kii Peninsula


This chill spot – more Goa than rural Japan – with great wooden beams serves vegetarian dishes like tofu cheesecake that seem indulgent compared to temple food. Come after 11am for the daily lunch plate, only served until they run out. Good coffee and chai, too.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby Kii Peninsula attractions

1. Kongōbu-ji

0.27 MILES

This is the headquarters of the Shingon sect and the residence of Kōya-san's abbot. The main gate is the temple's oldest structure (1593); the present…

2. Ichi-no-hashi

0.39 MILES

This simple stone bridge marks the entrance to the sacred Oku-no-in complex.

3. Reihōkan

0.44 MILES

Several important artworks from Kōya-san's temples are collected here, most notably some Heian-era wooden sculptures of the Buddha and Fudō Myō-ō…

4. Tokugawa Mausoleum

0.47 MILES

These adjacent mausoleums were completed in 1643 at the behest of the third Tokugawa shogun, Tokugawa Iemitsu, for his grandfather, Tokugawa Ieyasu, and…

5. Konpon Daitō

0.5 MILES

The most interesting structure at the Garan is the Konpon Daitō, a 50m-tall, bright-vermilion pagoda seated at what is considered to be the centre of the…

6. Kondō

0.53 MILES

The Garan's kondō is the temple's main hall and enshrines Yakushi Nyorai, the Buddha of medicine and healing. First constructed in the early 9th century,…

7. Garan

0.55 MILES

The name of this temple, which is sometimes called Danjo Garan or Dai Garan, derives from the Sanskrit saṅghārāma, which means monastery. With eight…

8. Chūmon

0.55 MILES

This temple gate was renovated for Kōya-san's 1200th anniversary in 2015, after an 1843 fire. Two of the original statues of guardian kings enshrined in…