Luana Sanjusangendo

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.

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

Situated on the south side of Kennin-ji Temple, the restaurant looks out on Yasaka Pagoda. Pass through the elegant gate, have a seat in the waiting area, and relax in the courtyard cooled with sprinkled water. The proprietor welcomes guests with the four-fold etiquette of the wabi-cha school of tea ceremony: harmony, respect, purity and tranquillity. In cuisine, he prizes the five unseen senses, with care paid to light, sound, temperature, fragrance and taste. Even the water is steeped in history, tradition and the four seasons. Unseen yet deep and strong are the roots of Kyoto culture here.

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 selects ingredients in a way that treasures interaction with food producers. Against a backdrop of kombu boxes, decorating his walls like hanging scrolls, he prepares his dishes in a spirit of gratitude. His principle is that true flavours are subtle. In wanmono, he aims for a light flavour that brings out the umami of the makombu. But cooking is not the only thing that bewitches diners at Gion Nishikawa. The sukiya design of the interior makes the mood of old Gion palpable, while the chef’s affable personality keeps the room ringing with conversation and laughter.

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 ryotei sits on a sprawling 6,600 sqm property. The aesthetic of old Japan pulses through the veins of this establishment, from the impressive gate and garden sculpted by a gardener of rare talent to the house crafted by a master of sukiya-style construction. The interior includes private rooms, some complete with counters-style setups reflecting modern preferences. Ingredients are carefully selected from producers throughout Japan. The restaurant tries to be subtly ahead of the times by, for example, applying Western flame techniques to meat dishes and serving them as accompaniments to sak