Chao Chao Gyoza - Shijo Kawaramachi — Restaurant in Kyoto

There were mentions of this place being a tourist trap in other reviews and they were few and far between, so I had given it the benefit of the doubt considering how positive the other reviews were. But having eaten here, I’d have to agree with the few who think it is and question the pallet of those who gave this place 5-stars.

My partner and I were met with a queue of about 15 people (just before peak dinner service) when we had arrived, which was just about short enough to keep us interested. It would take another 45 minutes before we would be seated and in that time, the length of the queue trebled in size. It is not an exaggeration to say that the queue was 99% formed by tourists. By the time we noticed this, we had queued for too long to just leave and didn’t want to cast judgement purely based on the type of people in the queue.

Once seated we were given the option of a set menu or a choice from the main menu. We opted for the set menu as it appeared to be good value (up to 19 dumplings). The dumplings were small and very basic and the drinks menu very, different…

As someone who grew up eating proper homemade gyozas, the ones at ChaoChao fell incredibly short. At one point, I saw one of the waitresses pull a bag of pre-packed, branded gyozas from the freezer which suggested that they weren’t made freshly at the restaurant and I’m not surprised.

We left the restaurant still slightly hungry and went to find some ramen to fill the gap. It won’t be any surprise to you by now, that I would not recommend standing in a queue for so long only to be served below par gyozas. Oh, and the only positive thing I can say is that service was friendly, but that’s hardly any...

Waiting time - We arrived at around 18:30 to avoid waiting time. We still had to wait about 45 minutes so I recommend getting there 45 minutes earlier than the time you want to eat. I also recommend getting there before it's getting too busy because by the time we left there was a very long line.

Service - The staff were lovely and friendly, they were very welcoming and seemed to know a few words from every language so they can greet foreigners (like us) which was really nice! They were very energetic and seemed like they enjoy their work

Food - The food was good. I wouldn't say it's the best gyoza I've ever had but it was pretty good. They have many different types and flavours of gyoza, which reminds a little bit of a western Japanese restaurant but I don't mind that so it was fine for me. The gyozas are very small but don't cost much so I recommend ordering many different dishes. The chocolate gyoza was delicious, I strongly recommend ordering that for dessert

I've seen many reviews here complaining about this restaurant being a "tourist trap". Yes, there were only tourists in the restaurant when we were there but I think that's just the restaurant's way of making money, obviously as that's part of their goal (I assume..). This area of Kyoto has many tourists visiting so it makes sense they would make the restaurant "tourist friendly". Personally, I don't mind that there were many tourists there but I get that it can bother some people. If you want a "traditional" or "less western" gyoza meal then that's not the restaurant you should go to.

Overall, a really good restaurant, I strongly recommend trying it when you're...

The most mid experience ever and that’s an overstatement.

I was craving for some gyoza tonight and saw a huge line for this place every time I passed by, so I decided to give it a try. Mistake #1. Noticed the entire hour I waited in line that there was not a single local or Asian tourist, and none inside the restaurant. Questioned my decision at that point already, but stuck with it anyways since I wanted gyoza. Mistake #2. Saw that the entire menu was just gyoza (yeah duh it’s a gyoza place) but ¥300-¥450 for 3 pieces??? Mistake #3.

Finally got inside after an hour and they got the drink that I ordered wrong. The gyoza is crispy but tiny and the filling is MIA. The other gyoza we got was lacking in flavour and the filling fell apart. Whoever said the chicken wings were the best they ever had clearly never had good chicken before. They were juicy but basic in flavour and nothing special. Lemon sour was weak and watered down. This entire set was ¥1850 but it’s not even a meal, it’s basically three snacks put together.

Do yourself a favour and go somewhere that isn’t just tourists and non-Asians. It’s Japan. If you want good gyoza, go literally anywhere else and save yourself the wait. Even better, go to an izakaya and get something else along with your gyoza. If you haven’t had good food your whole life and think basic food is worthy of a 5 star review and fit the usual demographic then I guess this is your place. If you want to spend your time and money better in Japan, go somewhere else.

tldr: the epitome of a...