SEKAIYA — Restaurant in Kyoto

One of the best restaurants in Kyoto. The pasta was delicious and had the perfect flair combination of Italian food with a fun, local, l Japanese twist!

If you're craving Italian food and kind of want a smaller restaurant, I highly recommend giving this place a try... You won't regret it. I do recommend you get a reservation as the restaurant is very small especially if you have a large group. The flavors are nicely profiled and exquisitely, flavored and seasoned.

Accessibility Notice: There is a noticeably high step into the restaurant, so I parked my wheelchair outside and sat at the bar.

They graciously covered my wheelchair with a trash bag since it was raining, which was very nice of them to do.

The staff here goes above and beyond to create a very memorable experience and they had a lasting impact on my trip to Kyoto. The service here is exquisite and it's one of the best dining experiences I've had while visiting Japan

Also, a really unique thing about this restaurant is you can sign your name or draw a little drawing on the wall of the restaurant after you're done with your meal before you leave! Note: If you can, I recommend bringing your own black permanent marker so you can sign your name or create a small drawing/artwork on the wall with it as the pen that was available at the restaurant was almost dried out.

I highly recommend this restaurant to anyone looking for some Italian dining while...

A total disaster from start to end. First, we ordered drinks and it took the waiter at least 10 minutes to realise they were out of stock. Then, they aked us to take appetizers (not for free) as they were running late. After the appetizers we waited for more than 20 minutes to get the first course. After we finished it, I got my main course but my girlfriend was still waiting. I finished it and she was still waiting. A few minutes minutes later she was informed that her course was no longer in the menu. In the end she ordered the same course as I did and waited at least 15 minutes to get it. We were hopping for a discount but we were charged the full amount. WE DO NOT RECOMMEND THIS PLACE! THINK TWICE...

The food is not bad. What’s really unacceptable is the service. They forgot orders from our table and two others as well. All three groups were very unhappy but what can we do? I get that they’re busy Saturday evenings but they are always be busy on Saturday evenings. They should be prepared for rush hours. The appetizer, which was ordered at the beginning of the meal, came after the main. How difficult is it to cut cheese?! Anyway, it’s not a bad place to go eat but don’t have high expectations so you won’t be...