松韻堂 — Local services in Kyoto

Avoid Here! Contrary to many reviews, we had a very negative and physically aggressive experience from the store. We politely asked to see a couple of local matcha bowls which we planned on purchasing. We had a look after asking one of the younger gentlemen if it’s okay, which he was happy to assist with. However another older gentleman came along and shouted quite loudly and later started physically hitting the paper bag I was holding. He then pointed to the door asking us to leave. We said thank you twice and exited, dumbfounded by what just occurred. I think it was some sort of misunderstanding that he could’ve been communicated. In addition, the rationale behind his behaviour may be multifaceted and may involve specific profiling, aggression to tourists in general, or other prior negative emotions and ideas that were projected onto us. Regardless, the aggressive behaviour and public shaming was certainly unprofessional and unacceptable in any context.

We ended up purchasing two excellent quality Raku matcha bowls from the Kyoto Ceramic Center not too far away, which had better quality locally made pieces with reasonable pricing and are beautiful...

Our visit to this wonderful family-owned ceramic shop was a truly exceptional experience. The two gentlemen working there were incredibly helpful and professional. They assisted me in selecting a beautiful kitsuji matcha bowl and cup, while my husband chose the traditional wave design. The items were wrapped with great care, and they even included a brief biography of the artist who created the kitsuji pieces. While we were in the shop, a large group of tourists entered. Unfortunately, two children in the group were repeatedly banging on a glass display case with coins, and their parents and grandmother did not intervene. This group purchased nothing and created a negative atmosphere. Despite this disruption, the shop's staff remained professional and polite, and they even apologized to us for the children's behavior. We are delighted to report that our purchases made it safely back to Australia. We extend our sincere thanks for a wonderful shopping experience and for sharing your lovely...

Guys, Shoindo doesn't mess around. I ordered my Matcha bowl DAYS ago (it's the ADORABLE one with the playing foxes and fall leaves). Even if they had one ready-made, it took them just DAYS to ship it from Kyoto to California. I am more than impressed. They include literature for care of the bowl, written out in Kanji, the box (a very high-quality cardboard gift box) was immaculately wrapped it gorgeous paper, and everything was expertly packaged. They even included an additional thank-you note, and perfectly folded the invoice and presented it in an envelope, not a wrinkle in sight. It would be rude of me NOT to buy from them again, this has been a wonderful experience....