Zen Kyoto Apartment Hotel

His father was an artist specialising in maki-e, gold and silver decorations on lacquer; his mother the latest in a long line of tea-ceremony instructors. Overseas, he spread the word about the virtues of shojin-ryori. ‘En’ means ‘swallow’; the chef named his restaurant for this migratory bird in reference to himself, a man who had lived away from Japan but had come home to Kyoto. The menu is broad in scope and includes some dishes incorporating Western elements. The swallow is said to bring good fortune, and the chef’s personality and the reputation of his cooking bring customers flocking to

The chef honed his craft in northern Italy as well as Kyoto. Pursuing original interpretations, he tacks Kyoto ingredients onto hometown Italian recipes. His passion leans toward the pasta dishes of the Piedmont region. His skill in making pasta by hand, factoring in the day’s weather, humidity and the condition of the ingredients, is craftsmanship personified. Flavours of Italy, reimagined for Japan’s four seasons.

The chef oversees every aspect of the menu, which changes monthly. The restaurant evolves from moment to moment as seasons shift and the day’s ingredients are chosen; this impermanence inspires the passion and the flavours at the core of the chef’s creativity. He embraces the principle of shuhari, the three stages of mastery: first, master the basics; next, break the mould with creativity; finally, set out on your own to blaze a new trail. Guest and chef merge time and space, sharing a mutually felt joy.

The proprietor loves sake above all other beverages and caters to his guests by pairing sakes of every region with compatible dishes. ‘Delicious sake and prized delicacies’ are the stars of the menu, a tapestry of kaiseki offerings interwoven with the chef’s imagination. One such creation features sashimi served as aemono—veggies or seafood, dressed with various seasonings. Appetisers arrive not on a platter, but one by one, freshly cooked. The meal concludes with chub mackerel sushi and somen noodle soup instead of the traditional rice and soup. Dishes designed to go well with sake keep the r

In a teacher-and-student quest, Hiroshi Sasaki and his understudies vie to create the greatest flavours. Combining Sasaki’s wealth of experience with the youthful sensitivity of his disciples, the restaurant builds a menu that surprises and delights, suffusing classic Japanese cuisine with fresh technique and imagination. The counter becomes a theatre that brings cooks and diners together, each playing their parts. The performances of ‘Sasaki Kitchen Theatre’, fun for eyes and tastebuds, have a presence that keeps the house packed night after night.

Seasonal notes and playfulness abound in the menu. Simple preparations etch themselves in the memory. During the Gion Festival, SEN displays a replica of the Naginata Boko, the first float in the festival’s parade, reflecting the city’s traditional events and customs. At the close of the meal, choose from an assortment of comfort foods such as mackerel sushi, chazuke and ramen. The chef learned to ‘read the room’ as an apprentice and is known to change ingredients and preparation styles based on guests’ conversation. The spirit of graceful service, expressed in cooking.

The chef, a native of the Goto Islands, weaves the flavours of Nagasaki into his prix fixe menus. He beguiles his guests with the fish of his native region, served as sashimi and wanmono. ‘Hatoshi’ is minced shrimp between two slices of crispy fried toast; Goto udon is a beloved local old favourite. With cultivated kappo technique, the chef turns common dishes into pictures of elegance. ‘Hakuran’ is an amalgam of his parents’ names. Sharing the charms of Nagasaki with the diners of Kyoto is an act of gratitude to his hometown.