Kyoto: a tasting tour with Ignatius Chan

Konnamonja is a stall in Nishiki Market that is famed for its mini donuts made with soymilk. I would recommend having a box of six of donuts coupled with their intensely creamy and fresh soy milk to start the day.

While Ogawa Coffee has many outlets, my favourite is the one located in Sanjo for its welcoming and cosy atmosphere. I head here for the breakfast set, which has very soft and fluffy brioche-like bread with a helping of fried eggs and chicken sausage on top. It also comes with Japanese potato salad and their perfectly made coffee—whether you like their house blend Americano, a café latte or cappuccino.

This zen washoku-style restaurant has a long communal table where diners are able to enjoy rice-based dishes paired with savoury tofus in soy sauce and a rotating selection of four to five cooked dishes like grilled fish and meats, all packed in a bento set.

Hyotei is a historic 400-year-old restaurant that makes excellent cold porridge during the summer. Even though the porridge is plain, they are truly masters of getting the texture of the rice just right, and each grain is always very pearly-looking. The porridge is often eaten with different pickles and side dishes.

Kyono Tsukuneya is a homey family-run restaurant with the most amazing oyako-don, fully of juicy chunks of chicken in a dashi broth,and chicken-based dishes. Their oyako-don comes with a fresh egg that you can mix on your own.

Serving the unique sanuki-style udon, Yamamoto Menzou is one of my personal favourites for their QQ (or al dente) noodles. They make their udon thicker so each strand has more bite. I usually order the standard udon with Japanese rice cakes, but their kare (curry-based) udon and spicy miso udon options are also popular. Prepare to queue for up to an hour.

The two Michelin-starred Roan Kikunoi is not only historic but also offer well-priced seasonal kaiseki menus. Third generation chef-owner Yoshihiro Murata always uses the best seasonal produce like conger eel, ayu and prawns that he pairs with some of the best rice dishes I’ve tasted.

Chef Sakamoto’s distinctly Japanese take on fine Italian food is what makes Cenci stand out. Details like making his own mozzarella and curing hams in-house means that each dish is truly stellar. His flavours are so fine and subtle, and pastas like the sardine and fennel linguine or ayu pasta are divine.

“This hole-in-the-wall ramen joint only seats about six people, so expect a bit of a line. Their prawn tsukumen, ramen that comes with a side of thick dipping sauce, has an intense prawn broth that is almost bisque-like. The spicy noodle soup comes with juicy char siew, and the noodles are also very QQ, or al dente.”

“Takocho is an oden restaurant that is more than a century old. They make excellent bites such as cheese wrapped in cabbage, duck balls, konnyaku (a Japanese chewy potato-based dish), fish cake, and even simple boiled eggs. The dashi that he makes is absolutely superb, and each dish comes with a little bit of dashi with English mustard, chopped negi and sansho pepper.”

“Tagawa is an excellent kaiseki restaurant that was opened by a chef who has worked extensively at three Michelin-starred restaurants in Tokyo. The specialty here are chargrilled ingredients like Hida beef, bamboo shoots and seasonal vegetables.”

“Uzuraya is a great yakitori bar that is open until 1am. They make delicious chicken wings, as well as skewers of different parts of the chicken like the hearts. Always ask the staff for recommendations on sake as they have an excellent collection that is always changing. Go late, at around 10pm, when the crowd has died down.”

“Located next to the Ritz-Carlton, Cave de K is an elegant and comfortable wine bar with a private room. They specialize in Champagne and Burgundy, and have an amazing wine list that is reasonably priced. I love that they provide whole cheese platters or dessert platters once you order a bottle of wine. This is the perfect place for a nightcap after a lovely kaiseki or tempura dinner.”