Kobe Beef Steak Mouriya Gion — Restaurant in Kyoto

I want to first start off by complimenting our wonderful chef! Watanabe Tomoharu definitely made our experience at Mouriya memorable. He prepared our food with extreme care, presented it well and he waited for us to finish parts of our dish before adding more so the food was always fresh and hot. He also made suggestions of which condiment complimented the beef and vegetables best. He worked with a smile on his face, hummed to himself a little, and it seemed like he really enjoyed his work. At some point I just watched him cook because it was a pleasure. Definitely 5 stars!! 11/10!!

The atmosphere of the restaurant was not spectacular but it was relaxing. We ordered the Mouriya select sirloin and fillet steaks. We plan on going to one of the Kobe branches to try the Kobe beef cuts so wanted to try the select cuts in Kyoto. The beef was cooked to perfection, the fillet tasted much better than the sirloin, the starter pumpkin soup was delicious and the fried vegetables were lovely, the sweet potato was especially exquisite. Dessert was more of a pallet cleanser with some fruit and yuzu sorbet but I was very happy they presented a birthday plate for my sister which included a bit of tiramisu and a whole shine muscat instead of half.

However for the overall experience, it was a 4. We arrived as soon as it opened and the waiter at the door was not welcoming at all. He was curt, didn’t smile and just seemed like he didn’t want to be there or started the morning on a bad note. I was worried that unwelcoming customer service would be the standard of the restaurant as first impressions count and commented quickly on the lack of welcome to my sister. Additionally, my sister ordered Rosé and the same waiter poured a little into the glass, about a quarter (picture included). Thinking again that this was the restaurant’s standard (even though we both knew he should have poured up to half a glass of not just under from experience of wine serving), we didn’t say anything but noticed that another customer that had arrived later and had also ordered Rosé received a half full glass poured by a different waiter. After that, maybe sensing we had commented on his attitude, the later happy reactions from him felt forced and insincere. From that first impression, we could not honestly give the restaurant 5 stars.

The other waitress serving us was lovely, welcoming and very kind. Had she been the one greeting us at the door, we would have had a better first impression and...

I am one who seldom write reviews but after the horrendous experience today, I do feel obliged with this duty to warn everyone as I chose to dine here after seeing such great reviews.

Firstly as a wine merchant, I was utterly horrified when a customer asked for a full bodied wine and the clueless waiter recommended a Pinot noir, a first warning and tell tale sign of non-professionalism. I was extremely shocked coming from a restaurant charging at these price tags. The first wine (a merlot) I ordered was very acidic as recommended and urged by the waiter (kept convincing that it's very balanced but was completely acidic)and did not go well with the meat and worse on its own. The waiter tried to offer other wines for tasting (after I expressed my disappointment as they were not balanced per his recommendation) but did not get any better, they are poor quality table wines charged at vey high prices for what they are. I give my word am not the fussy sort but this restaurant really broke it.

I have ordered the Kobe chateaubriand fillet of 130grams and to be honest, this is the worst meal I've ever had. Paying for this price do come with certain expectations but Very clearly, this restaurant is a complete rip off and tourist trap. From the very poor wines selections to the very poor mediocre starters (corn soup and salad that's completely unexciting with measly vegetables that accompanied the meat) AND the beef was definitely not melt in the mouth as what Kobe is known for though the pushy waiter kept saying that it's the best cut. It was in fact very chewy, had to bite till was able to swallow.

In short, please save your $$$! Eat somewhere else with better quality ingredients and operates...

I debated on 3 or 4 stars. So here’s the deal... they provide a great Kobe steak, but in the end it’s really a terribly overpriced Benihana with controlling service. Don’t get me wrong, the food is really good and the service is nice. But having said that if the food wasn’t good at $200 per person then this would be a 1 star review. There are a few things that bother me most about this place. -Being told how you should eat things because you are an ignorant foreigner gets a bit annoying. And it’s more than their trying to help... I was chastised more than twice for not doing things how they think a foreigner should behave. I practice my Japanese and know how one should dine here and I certainty wasn’t being loud or disrespectful... it’s just clear they are used to inconsiderate foreign customers and if you try to not be that they will sort of call you out for trying to not be an inconsiderate foreigner. The entire restaurant was clearly not Japanese, which is always a good indication. But it was even more than that strange.... If they see you picking up the soup cup to consume soup as is normal here they will chide you for not using the western spoon they provided. If you don’t dip your steak in all the sauces they think you should you will be told you need to dip it here and then here.... more than once. Frankly it’s disrespectful. I will eat my damn $200 meat how I want, and it speaks volumes as to the mentality of the restaurant... charge top dollar and treat customer as an object that needs counseling. Now, having said all of that. My husband whom doesn’t give an F about integrating when traveling thought the steak was top notch! So decide which camp you’re in and chose...