Gion Shinbashi Nakatani — Restaurant in Kyoto

Excellent kaiseki format restaurant in Gion district of Kyoto. Chef was personable, precise and food was incredible. Dinner was a fixed price 10 course, crescendoing to either a fish course or beef course. The preceding courses featured an incredible array of delicately prepared and beautifully presented courses, each with subtle flavors layered upon superb ingredients, carefully prepared. Our first course was baby quid with miso sauce over a light and delicate matcha tofu, with prawns, blanched radish and snap peas in pod. We then paraded through courses including a crab dumpling soup with spring onions, sashimi including shima-aji, tuna & tai, and a cherry blossom themed bowl of duck, fish eggs, beef and vegetables before coming to the closing courses of fish or beef. The chef was very attentive to our needs, and catered to our 12 year old daughter's tastes. The chef also has an excellent local sake collection. Last but not least, we finished the night with a light dessert of fresh fruit, strawberry ice cream and yuzu jelly delivered with an artistic flourish to send us back to our home away from home completely and...

Delicious. This place is by far the most impressive restaurant I have been to. I have a huge aversion for just about all seafood, but Nakatani prepared everything such that it was all delicious. I never thought fish could be so soft, moist, and buttery. And the blowfish was like a smooth silk. My husband and I reserved ahead of time online and got the dinner course. Apparently, they get all the ingredients fresh the morning of your arrival. I have no doubt as the food was indeed extremely fresh. To my surprise, I ate blowfish, turtle, crab, squid, mackerel, and other seafood that I had never tried or always disliked. Nothing had a "fishy" taste and everything had a nice texture. The place is kind of down a hidden alley, but I highly...

Best dining experience I had in Kyoto during Sakura 2019, by far! I loved the hospitality, quality of food, presentation, and attitude of the chef—the latter quality makes a big difference. The chef was calm and happy throughout the meal, which really set the tone for the atmosphere. All of the staff made a positive impression on me. As for food, I have to say—best miso soup I’ve ever had in my life!! I had quite a few nice dinners in Japan on my trip, but this particular miso soup stood out above the rest. I will be dreaming about it for months to come. All in all, I would absolutely come back...