Review excerpt: When Isoism, which focuses firmly on tsukemono (pickled vegetables), first opened in 2016 near Kyoto Tower, the long lines of people were impossible to miss.

Review excerpt: Opened last summer, Asano offers a reprieve from the crowds and conspicuous consumption. Besides the fridges full of sake from breweries all across Japan, there are two tasting menus: one for Kyoto sakes, and another from a brewery outside Kyoto.

Wakuden is quite formal; cellphone usage is not tolerated and there is no music. The lady next to me closed her eyes after each dish, as if she might have been in a temple.

Aoi-jaya doesn't seem likely to push the boundaries on washoku: Its slightly dated interior attests to that. However, its conservative but exacting approach to washoku, as well as a menu that is accommodating to all, means that if you are looking for affordable washoku, ...

Marumo styles itself as a Japanese "bowl cafe" serving Japanese "soul food." It's definitely a bowl cafe: The teishoku (lunch sets) include bibimbap, doria, donburi, om-rice -- standard and simple. The bowls are big enough to wash a newborn baby in. Marumo also has ...