With a history of more than a thousand years, Kyoto has earned a reputation as a food capital, but it’s not limited to the city. All manner of tasty gastronomical experiences await further afield across Kyoto Prefecture. From the fresh seafood of the Sea of Japan to the wild plants and game of the central mountains, from delicious rice and vegetables nurtured by pristine countryside water to some of the best green tea in the country, and the rising-star of health-conscious eating, fermented foods, there’s so much to enjoy throughout the region. So dig in as we introduce some of Kyoto’s deeper food culture organized here into three categories.
1. Farm-to-table: Fresh Vegetables Straight from the Field
As we become more aware of food safety, food miles and other environmental aspects of eating, more restaurants are choosing to use local ingredients. Locally sourced vegetables are not only better for the planet but also fresher and sweeter. Restaurants are focusing on simple cooking that lets the natural flavors of the ingredients shine.
Maizuru Fururu Farm (Maizuru City)
A Farmers Restaurant with an Ocean View
Maizuru Fururu Farm in northern Kyoto Prefecture is located on the Oura Peninsula that juts out above the port city of Maizuru. Blessed with fresh seafood from the Sea of Japan and rich natural environs that produce an abundance of fruit and vegetables, the area is a veritable playground for foodies.
The farm itself is an agricultural theme park with expansive grounds. The numerous facilities and attractions include an animal farm, two restaurants, a market selling local agricultural and marine products, a dessert shop, and gardens where the farm grows its own produce largely pesticide-free.
Particularly recommended is Fururu Farm Restaurant. The restaurant offers buffet-style dining with about 80 to 100 dishes made with local seafood and seasonal vegetables from Fururu and nearby farms, so you can feast on all the tasty goodness that Maizuru has to offer till your heart’s content. The ingredients are all freshly picked or caught, as you can tell with just one bite!
Take in the beautiful view of the sparkling blue waters of Wakasa Bay from the restaurant and go for a post-dining stroll in the clean air of the farm grounds. The nourishing fare and soothing natural surroundings will refresh both body and soul.
Furufuru Farm is located away from Maizuru’s city center, surrounded by mountains and the sea.
Multiple cottages are available for rent, and there are a variety of ways to enjoy your time here, from …
Kizugawa City is one of the southernmost parts of Kyoto Prefecture. It is a historical region in which Kunikyo, the so-called “phantom capital” was located in the mid-8th century. The area is also known for its agricultural products. The Kizu River, which runs through the city, provides fertile farmland around it. People grow delicious tea, rice, fruits, and vegetables including bamboo shoots. Don’t miss out on savoring some of these local delights after exploring the area.
Gallery Café Hito to Ki is a great place to enjoy delicious local vegetables and rice. Located in a quiet residential area with rice fields spreading out, it offers a relaxed atmosphere. Furthermore, it was renovated from an old traditional Japanese house, which may feel as if you visited an old friend’s home from the moment you take off your shoes to go inside.
Lunch is cooked by the café owner Katsumi Morita. There are two options: one with a bowl of steamed rice using Hinohikari, delicious rice from Kizugawa City, and the other with fluffy toast using bread from a local bakery. Both come with plenty of seasonal vegetables from local farmers.
Their lunch is a colorful feast for the eyes. The main dish on the day I visited was a flavorful pork cooked with ginger and miso (traditional Japanese fermented bean paste). When enjoyed with rice, it was so delicious that I couldn’t stop eating. The salad included a variety of vegetables, beans, and fruit, including red-tip leaf lettuce. The miso soup, the fritter made with tofu (soybean curd) called hirousu, and the sesame-dressed spinach all showcased the wonderfulness of Japanese culinary traditions. Moreover, I was excited and curious to taste the yellow carrot and the three-colored konjac balls. The cheesecake made by Katsumi’s wife was also delicious, and it went well with coffee.
The great meal is best followed by a good time at the gallery, which displays wonderful works by local artists, including ceramics and other handicrafts. They are also available for purchase.
Gallery Café Hito to Ki
This café, renovated from an old traditional Japanese house, is full of charm and well worth the visit. There are two lunch options: one features Hinohikari, delicious rice from Kizugawa City, and the …
When it comes to food, Kyoto might be known for dishes like yudofu simmered tofu or elaborate kaiseki meals, but they are the mere tip of the region’s epicurean iceberg. For a next-level gourmet experience, the blessings of the forest are the key. Home to beautiful mountains, forests and rivers, the inland areas of Kyoto Prefecture are the place to visit for rustic, seasonal flavors such as mountain plants, wild game and river fish.
Miyamotoya (Kameoka City)
Fruits of the Forest to Stimulate all Five Senses
Miyamotoya is a restaurant in Kameoka City just over the mountains to the west of Kyoto City. Close to the Yunohana mountain hot spring resort and boasting a history of over 90 years, this eatery is well accustomed to feeding discerning-palated travelers and locals alike.
Third-generation owner Kunitaka Kido says that Tamba, as the central part of Kyoto Prefecture is called, has long held a reputation as a treasure house of delicious ingredients. For example, there are bamboo shoots and mountain plants in spring, the summer delicacy of sweetfish (known also as “fragrant fish” due to its fresh fragrance), and plump wild boar in winter. In addition, Kameoka City is famous for quality vegetables and rare Kameoka beef. Miyamotoya’s course meals feature the best of this Tamba seasonal produce.
“Ingredients taste very different depending on the topography of the field, the sunlight, and the producer’s approach, so I always examine them carefully and select the very best for the restaurant,” says Kido. You can also experience luxury ingredients at Miyamotoya such as the prized matsutake mushroom, an autumn delicacy dubbed “the truffle of Japan” that is renowned for its fragrance. There is even a menu option where diners can go matsutake-picking and then eat their matsutake in a beef hotpot.
The authentic full course meals are served at traditional-style floor seating. There is also table seating where customers can enjoy casual Japanese meals for about 1,000 yen per person without a reservation. Please be sure to take a Japanese speaker with you to translate.
Address: 32 Dainichido, Hiedanocho-saeki, Kameoka City, Kyoto Prefecture
Hours: Lunch 11:30 am – 2:00 pm (until 3:00 pm on Saturdays), Dinner from 5:00 pm
Closed on Thursdays https://www.miyamotoya.jp/(Japanese only)
Miyamoto-ya
Miyamoto-ya is a restaurant in Kameoka City. Boasting a history of over 90 years, Miyamotoya’s course meals feature the best of the Tamba area’s seasonal produce, such as mountain plants in spring, an …
A visit to the Japanese countryside wouldn’t be complete without eating somewhere unpretentious frequented by the local crowd. After all, nothing beats an inexpensive meal full of ingredients from the area enjoyed amidst the chatter of the regulars!
One such place is Yamanoue Shokudo in Yosano-cho in the northern part of the prefecture that is known as “Kyoto by the Sea.” The restaurant itself is about 20 minutes from the coast by car partway up the verdant Mt. Oeyama. It’s part of Kaya Yamanoie, a guest house that opened in 2021 in a newly renovated accommodation facility that has served the area for more than 40 years.
Manager and head cook Hiroshi Aoki is Yosano born and bred. Aoki’s food includes lots of local ingredients prepared with his own unique epicurean sensibility developed by working in Japanese, Italian and Vietnamese restaurants and backpacking around the world in search of the delicious.
Aoki personally prepares fresh deer and boar meat from animals caught in the nearby mountains in a game meat processing facility on the premises. The meat is served in the restaurant as hamburgers and steak. The rice and vegetables also come from surrounding farms and taste fantastic.
Local craft beer made with fresh Yosano-grown hops is available at the bar. The restaurant also serves coffee roasted by a local roaster and its own house-made juice. The friendly staff speak English and are a good source of travel information.
Address: 1401 Atsue, Yosano-cho, Yosa-gun, Kyoto Prefecture
Hours：Lunch 11:00 am – 2:00 pm (last orders), Dinner 5:00 pm – 9:00 pm (last orders) Reservations are required for dinner.
Closed on Sundays, Mondays and Tuesdays https://kaya-yamanoie.com/
Kaya Yamanoie
We are located in Tango in northern Kyoto, surrounded by the Oeyama mountain range. Our inn is nestled in the middle of the mountains. It is a pristine rural setting, tucked away from the hustle and bustle of the city. The air is clear and you can sometimes see a sea of clouds in the early morning. Lend your ears to the sound of the wind and the songs of the birds and insects, and experience the nostalgic way of life of Atsue. Using rice from the terraced fields below, seasonal produce, and game meat from our own butcher shop, we serve dishes that are good for both the body and soul.
Our final category is an eclectic collection of culinary experiences that reflect the breadth of Kyoto’s gastronomy culture—food and sweets containing green tea, the fermented food trend, and finally a super-spicy dish that also packs something of a punch in entertainment value.
Itohkyuemon Uji Main Store (Uji City)
Chill Out with Elegant Matcha Sweets
When it comes to Japan’s national beverage, tea undoubtedly takes the spotlight. The Kyoto Tea Country region, the southern part of Kyoto Prefecture, is one of Japan’s top producers of high-quality tea. There are many wonderful tea shops and cafes here. The Uji-cha (Uji tea) is highly fragrant, and has a mild flavor, delicate sweetness, and umami (delicious savory taste). This region also boasts high production of finely ground green tea called matcha, which is gaining worldwide popularity as a superfood. The authentic matcha has a mellow taste and relatively low bitterness. Visit this region to enjoy the celebrated tea, and indulge in amazing matcha sweets.
Established in 1832, Itohkyuemon is one of Japan’s great tea purveyors and a favorite with fans of matcha sweets. Two of its three locations in Uji City have tea rooms offering a range of matcha parfaits, cakes, traditional Japanese sweets and so on. The main store even has its own kitchen where pastry chefs specializing in matcha sweets create delicious sweets.
Their matcha parfaits are especially popular, and the seasonal specials are fascinating, too. For example, you can enjoy a cherry blossom-themed parfait in spring, and a hydrangea-themed one in the rainy season. Fruits are featured in summer, and Mont Blanc in fall. In winter, chocolate and strawberries are used. Not only do they have divine tastes, these creations are visually exquisite. You’d be forgiven for thinking the beautiful delight in front of you was actually a collection of colorful jewels.
Savory light meal options are also available. Their soba (buckwheat noodles) and curry udon (thick wheat noodles) have matcha kneaded into the dough, giving them a green color.
Furthermore, you can find wonderful treats to take home at their gift shops.
Itohkyuemon Uji Main Store
Itohkyuemon was founded in 1832. Their tea, processed with meticulous attention to quality, has been favored by many renowned temples and shrines. The main store is located on the right bank of the Uj …
Amid a global health boom, Japanese fermented foods are rapidly gaining attention for their benefits to the immune system. There are many different kinds of fermented foods around the world, but the Japanese diet includes an especially wide variety of them. Some of the more famous ones are condiments such as miso and soy sauce, sake (rice wine), and pickles, but there’s even fermented sushi.
Emi Nonaka is a firm believer in the power of fermentation and runs a grocery store and café in Muko City that specializes in fermented foods.
Nonaka is especially interested in koji malt, a kind of mold unique to Japan that is cultivated on grains such as rice, barley or soybeans (see the image above). Koji is the key to fermentation in Japan, having played an essential role in the making of miso, soy sauce, sake and the like since ancient times. Nonaka explains that the fermentation process not only enhances ingredients’ umami and sweetness, but also makes them effective in promoting digestion and healthy gut flora. Additionally, she tells us that fermented foods are rich in vitamin B and therefore beneficial for combating fatigue and maintaining healthy skin.
The store carries a range of condiments and foods made with koji that Nonaka spends three days cultivating. Some of the more popular items include enzyme juice made with seasonal fruits and sweets containing healthy okara (soy pulp).
The most popular product is fermented amazake-based drinks (amazake is a drink made from rice koji). They’re offered in eight different flavors including matcha, cocoa, and frozen fruit and are delicious warm or chilled. “Amazake is Japan’s own traditional ‘energy drink’ and a wonderful pick-me-up when you’re tired,” says Nonaka. “It’s so nutritious it’s dubbed the ‘intravenous drip that you drink,’ and healthy because it’s naturally sweet so there’s no need to add sugar.” A glass of amazake at Kyoto Hanakoji sounds like just the ticket to recharge during your travels!
Address: 3-2 Nishitanakase, Teradocho, Muko City, Kyoto Prefecture
Hours：11:00 am – 6:00 pm
Closed on Saturdays, Sundays and Mondays (and occasionally on other days) https://kyotohanakouji.com/ (Japanese only)
Kyoto Hanakoji
Kyoto Hanakoji carries a range of condiments and foods made with koji (a kind of mold used for fermenting food products) that spends three days cultivating. Some of the more popular items include enzy …
One of the joys of eating in Kyoto is the huge variety of food available. Not only can you sample all the subtle flavors of traditional Kyoto cuisine, but there’s almost any kind of domestic and international cooking you can name. One of those is extremely spicy food. Spicy food booms occur regularly in Japan, and in recent years one has been sparked, at least in part, by Muko City southwest of Kyoto City.
In 2009, the city set out to revitalize its flagging shopping district. They named it “Super Spicy Shopping District,” and the local traders started selling various types of extremely fiery food they devised in their shops and restaurants. The idea was a sizzling success, and now Muko City is something of a holy land for lovers of spicy food who make the pilgrimage there from around the world.
Kirin-en’s Tan Tan Ramen, also available in a take-home kit.
One of these foods is tan tan ramen noodles by Kirin-en, a Chinese restaurant that has been in the neighborhood for over 50 years. The dish has the distinction of being the winner of the inaugural “Kara-1 Grand Prix” held by Muko City in 2012 to determine Japan’s best super spicy dish. It has enjoyed unwavering popularity ever since.
Tan tan ramen as they are known in Japan evolved from a spicy, soup-less noodle dish that originated in Shicuan, China—the soup is a Japanese addition. Kirin-en’s owner Ryo Miyachi explains that the restaurant’s tan tan ramen soup consists of a chicken and sesame broth with five types of chili peppers, including bhut jolokia, a variety 800 times hotter than jalapeno. This combination of ingredients gives it both depth and spiciness. Indeed, with the rich, deep flavor of the sesame and niku miso (minced meat fried in miso) amid the searing heat of the spices, it tastes superb.
First-time visitors to Kirin-en can choose from five levels of spiciness (level 2 is the most popular). If you finish a whole bowl of level 5 noodles successfully, you’ll be allowed to attempt levels 6 to 10. Spicy food is the perfect way to work up a cooling sweat in summer or boost your body temperature and metabolism in winter, so why not add some spice to your trip with a hot energy boost?
Kirin-en is a Chinese restaurant that’s been in business for over 50 years. It serves tan tan ramen noodles, a dish that has the distinction of winning the inaugural “Kara-1 Grand Prix” held by Muko C …
