Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Kyoto's Restaurant Scene
Kyoto punches way above its weight in the culinary arena. Among the reasons for this is
that Kyoto was the centre of the country for most of its history, and its chefs had to please
the most demanding palates in the realm: the imperial court, the nobility and the heads of
the main religious sects.
Even after losing the imperial court to Tokyo, Kyoto remained a major sightseeing des-
tination for both domestic and international visitors, meaning a continual stream of de-
manding diners passing through. In addition, Kyoto sits atop excellent groundwater (es-
sential for making good tofu, sake and tea) and has excellent soil for growing vegetables
in the city and surrounding areas. In fact, you can still find several distinct subspecies of
vegetables in the city's markets known as
kyo-yasai
(Kyoto vegetables). The result is a re-
latively small city packed with excellent restaurants.
Naturally, Kyoto is packed with restaurants that specialise in local cuisine (see Kyoto
Japanese cuisine and regional specialities represented in Kyoto: sushi,
rāmen,
tempura,
okonomiyaki
(savoury Japanese cabbage pancakes) and a lot of things you may not have
heard of.
In addition to Japanese cuisine, Kyoto is packed with good international restaurants,
particularly French, Italian, Chinese and Thai, as well as the usual international chains
that you'll find elsewhere.
At the time of writing, the yen is very strong, but you shouldn't worry about going
broke to eat well in Kyoto. There are scores of restaurants offering full meals in the ¥600
to ¥800 range, especially at lunchtime. Even some of the city's esteemed high-end eateries
have been forced to slash their prices and offer various specials in hopes of luring cost-
cutting clientele.
NEED TO KNOW
Price Ranges
In our listings, we've used the following price codes to represent the cost of a meal for one person, not includ-
ing a drink:
