The first thing to say about Temarizushi to Nihoncha Souden is ... it's a mouthful of a name. From henceforth, Souden shall suffice. The second is that Souden is a gorgeous and luxurious restaurant space informed by a simple aesthetic sensibility from door to table. Simply put, Souden looks, feels and tastes great.
Opened in early April by chef Kazuya Yokota, Souden still has that new-restaurant feel. The interior design is distinctively Japanese and over a long communal table in the middle of the restaurant hang half a dozen paper lanterns. At the back of the restaurant, beyond the open kitchen and counter seating, in a space that might otherwise have been ignored, they've installed a Japanese-style garden behind a pane of glass. On the day we visited, it was fed by torrential rain.
Chef Yokota has both form and experience, with two other restaurants in Kyoto under his belt, both casual izakaya taverns. Souden is more extravagant than his previous ventures and marries temari-zushi (ball-shaped sushi) with cups of Japanese tea. It's also, I would venture, inspired by the success of celebrated Kyoto restaurant Awomb — not connected to chef Yokota — which opened a few years ago and has attracted round-the-clock lines since.