Kakimaru Shichijō — Restaurant in Kyoto

I had high hopes for this restaurant during my visit to Japan, but unfortunately, it was one of the worst dining experiences I’ve ever had.

First, the service was shockingly rude. As a foreigner, I was treated with clear indifference—and even hostility. I was ignored for a long time while local customers were seated and served immediately. When I finally got a table, the server barely spoke to me, rolled their eyes when I asked questions, and never checked back once the food arrived.

Now for the food: completely underwhelming. It was bland, cold, and poorly presented. I’ve had better convenience store meals. The sushi tasted like it had been sitting out too long, the rice was dry, and the miso soup was lukewarm and watery. For the prices they charge, the quality is inexcusable.

This place clearly doesn’t care about non-local customers, and based on the food alone, I wouldn’t recommend it to anyone—local or tourist. Save your money and go somewhere else that respects its guests and takes pride...

We had high expectations due to the location and menu, but unfortunately they were not met. The seafood (oysters and mussels) was of good quality, but the preparation showed an astonishing lack of understanding of the product. We ordered a platter of raw oysters, and unfortunately the cook decided to pour out the oyster liquor and instead added olive oil (this was not specified in the menu). The fruity, peppery olive oil ruined the umami taste of the oysters. All of this was not helped by the fact that the air conditioning was out of service and the room felt like a pizza...

Great place for drinks with oysters, as well as shellfishdishes in general. The restaurant has a half-half italian osteria atmosphere which it doesn't need. It doesn't work either: the pasta carbonara is al dente and great in flavour but not a true italian carbonara, more a Japanese adoptation. Same story with the tiramisu. The dough of our shellfish pizza was undercooked, though the toppings were great. No coffee available...