Botan Nabe, or wild boar nabe ‘hotpot’, is a dish commonly found in cold, rural, mountainous regions of Japan today. It may surprise you to learn, however, that it was in fact invented in Kyoto by the founder of Hatakaku, a restaurant founded nearly 100 years ago, located just north of the Imperial Palace.
I have been meaning to introduce…
Archive for the ‘kaiseki’ Category
Kyoto Restaurant ‘Hatakaku’ – Botan Nabe (Wild Boar Hotpot)
Osechi Ryori: French Osechi by Restaurant Okumura
In 2009 we brought you authentic Kyoto osechi New Year’s cuisine and while Japanese style is the norm there are some restaurants that do Western, Chinese or fusion-type osechi. I had a chance to meet Chef Shinzo Okumura of Restaurant Okumura who is said to have invented ‘French…
Dinner at Yoshikawa Ryokan: Tempura Kakiage O-chazuke
The other day I was fortunate enough to be invited for a wonderful tempura kaiseki dinner by some new friends from San Francisco at one of Kyoto’s most famous ryokan inns: Yoshikawa Ryokan. While Yoshikawa Ryokan is a fine place to stay, it is perhaps more famous for its tempura cuisine. Many Kyotoites go there just for tempura dinner.
Now,…





