Tsujirihei Honten - Kyoto Uji Main Shop — Restaurant in Uji

I can wholeheartedly recommend this place. We went to Uji on a Sunday to enjoy some time away from Kyōto, which is full of tourists like ourselves. Uji itself is also a big tourist attraction by now, but at this teahouse we found a peaceful space to unwind and admire the beautiful garden.

We arrived at 10:15 and were the first customers. We got very comfortable chairs overlooking the garden through a big glass window. We were able to watch some birds and insects and the wind whistling through the leaves.

The menu had a lot of options, we both decided on a matcha drink and something sweet. My boyfriend had the strongest matcha and I chose an iced matcha. For dessert my boyfriend had matcha chocolate cake and I had a hojicha cake roll.

The pure, Very strong matcha my boyfriend had came with a traditional sweet as well and we both really enjoyed both the drinks and desserts. Not too sweet, Perfectly balanced and I had the option to sweeten my matcha to my taste with some syrup. The service spoke some English and were very kind. You get the opportunity to buy some matcha products from the teahouse, which we did, you could also pay by card.

One thing I want to add:

I forgot my ring in the bathroom and only realised it later. When we got back to ask for the ring, one staff member brought it back to me and was so kind and understanding when we explained what had happened. I was pretty upset and she comforted me in Japanese and I am very, very grateful for her! Also, thanks to the woman that picked...

FEB 2024 (Re-visit)

This place is a must visit for me when I am in Uji. Compared to the other teahouses in the morning hours, Tsuji Rihei is relatively quiet, maybe because it is quite a walk from the JR station away from the main shopping strip. However I really like the quiet and relaxing atmosphere with a comfortable seat and a view of the garden. The parfait here is luxurious, definitely on the top for matcha parfaits. This time I had the seasonal strawberry matcha parfait and it was sweet and delicious, maybe not for everyone as the bottom is jelly infused with champagne. Also they have many types of tea at different price points to choose from.

APRIL 2023

Visited the teahouse twice and both times I was seated at the front counter seat, highly recommend if you come by yourself or with one other person as you get a great view of the garden and a comfy cushion chair. It was not busy when they just opened so it was quiet and relaxing. Tried a few matcha sweets and two different parfaits; one was matcha and the other was first harvest green tea leaves (seasonal). They were all delicious and not too sweet but I particularly enjoy the parfaits more; delicate yet strong tea flavor, rich and sweeter components at the start and light and refreshing towards the bottom of the parfaits. The tea drink also included a sweet bean paste wagashi on both occasions (not sure if it applies to all or only selected drinks). Staffs were friendly and service was...

I did my research before arriving Uji, the famous region for Japanese Matcha, and knew where I wanted to go for some awesome matcha desserts.

We took the train to the downtown Uji and checked out a few different tea shops, and they were all jam packed with tourists and the experience was not pleasant. So I told my husband I wanted to walk to Tsujirihei Honten and had dessert there instead.

The walk was a bit long, as you have to walk through the town to get to Tsujirihei Honten. It was located in the middle of residential area but you can’t miss it. You will walk thru a few stairs to the main garden area, then enter by the main entrance which was a bit hidden from the sight.

Once you enter, you were greeted by the traditional japanese decor and it was very pleasant and comfortable inside. We opted to sit by the big window and the view was quite calming.

We ordered the Delux Uji Matcha Parfait and Matcha Zenzai with jelly. Both were good but we liked the parfait the most, as it came with many toping and champagne.

Overall, we highly recommend Tsujirihei Honten. You’ll definitely get a better...