Kyoto stole a little piece of my heart, and if I’m being honest, most of it was through my stomach. Between the temples, the bamboo groves and the slow walks along the Kamo River, what I keep coming back to in my memories is the food. This is a city that does quiet, careful cooking — broth simmered for hours, noodles made fresh that morning, beef treated like something sacred — and somehow it still knows how to be fun.
So here are the Kyoto food spots I’d happily send any friend to, the ones I’d build a day around. I’ve tucked a little Nara gem at the end too, because if you’re in Kyoto, you really should hop over for the day. Come hungry.
Jinrui Mina Menrui — the sake-kasu ramen you didn’t know you needed
I’ll start with the bowl that surprised me the most. Jinrui Mina Menrui is an Osaka legend famous for the kind of queues that stretch down the block, and its Kyoto outpost sits just a short walk from Kawaramachi Station, a little set back off Shijo-dori so you have to look for it. Worth the hunt.
The one to order is their Kyoto-only bowl, built around sake kasu — the lees left over from brewing sake, here sourced from a long-established local brewery. The result is a cloudy, creamy white broth that reads exactly like a rich tonkotsu at first glance, then opens up into something gentler and more fragrant, the sake aroma drifting up at the very end. It’s deeply umami without ever tipping into heavy, and the famously thick slices of chashu are as meaty and satisfying as everyone promises. A genuinely new flavour, which is a rare thing to be able to say about ramen.
Rating: 5⭐️ — a one-of-a-kind bowl you can only find here, generous chashu, and the kind of broth you’ll be thinking about days later.
Ozuru — handmade udon & tempura in the heart of Arashiyama
After a morning lost in the Arashiyama bamboo grove, you’ll want somewhere warm and unfussy to land, and Ozuru is it. You’ll spot it by its big paper lanterns, a few minutes’ walk north of the Togetsukyo Bridge, right where the crowds and the souvenir shops thin out.
What makes this place special is the discipline behind something so simple: the udon is handmade on site, and they only make as much as they’ll serve that day. The noodles come out supple and silky with that lovely springy bite, swimming in a clear dashi broth built from mackerel, herring and bonito. Order it as a set and you get the full Kyoto treatment — crisp prawn and vegetable tempura that stays light rather than greasy, plus little local touches like yuba (delicate tofu skin), seasoned rice and Kyoto-style pickles. Portions are generous, prices are kind, and the staff are as warm as the broth.
Rating: 4.5⭐️ — fresh, springy, made-that-morning udon and a perfect refuel after the bamboo forest.
Wagyu Miyoshi Akebono-tei — wagyu hitsumabushi near Kiyomizu-dera
Tucked into the atmospheric slopes leading up toward Kiyomizu-dera, Miyoshi Akebono-tei is where I’d send anyone who wants to taste proper Japanese wagyu without committing to a full multi-course splurge. The setting is calm and traditionally Kyoto, the perfect pause between temple stops.
Their signature is wagyu hitsumabushi, and the joy of it is that you get to eat one bowl in several different ways. First, you taste the marbled black wagyu over warm rice exactly as it is, letting that buttery richness speak for itself.
Then you stir in the condiments for a brighter, sharper bite. Finally — my favourite part — you pour the fragrant dashi broth over the top to finish it like a soothing ochazuke. The set rounds things out with miso soup, pickles and little tofu dishes, so it feels indulgent and balanced at once. A lovely, accessible way into Kyoto’s love affair with beef.
Rating: 4.5⭐️ — melt-in-the-mouth wagyu, a fun three-ways-in-one ritual, and a serene spot on the Kiyomizu walk.
Chao Chao Gyoza — every gyoza variation you can dream up
Now for pure, joyful fun. Chao Chao Gyoza is a buzzy little gyoza specialist (you’ll find branches around Shijo-Kawaramachi and Sanjo-Kiyamachi) where the staff are loud in the best way and the dumplings keep coming. Expect a queue — and trust me, it moves, and it’s worth it.
The menu is gloriously deep. Beyond the crisp-bottomed signature pork gyoza, there’s shrimp, chicken, ginger, kujo green onion, curry, cheesy mozzarella-stuffed, and even a fried chicken-skin version that became an unexpected highlight. Vegetarians are looked after too, with vegetable and yuba dumplings, and yes — there’s a chocolate dessert gyoza if you want to end on a giggle. Half the fun is mixing your own dipping sauce at the table from soy, bean paste, chilli oil and miso. Grab the set with a plate of the signature gyoza, a side and a drink, and settle in. It’s cheap, lively and the most fun you’ll have over dinner in Kyoto.
Rating: 4.5⭐️ — endlessly inventive dumplings, brilliant value, and the kind of warm, rowdy energy that makes a night.
⭐ Bonus for Nara: Zagin Kintetsu-Nara — chicken shoyu ramen worth the day trip
If you make the easy hop to Nara to meet the famous bowing deer, build your lunch around Zagin Kintetsu-Nara, a short walk from Kintetsu Nara Station and Nara Park. Grab your ticket from the machine outside, then settle in at the counter to watch the chefs — smartly turned out in shirts and ties — work in the open kitchen.
The star is their chicken: a soy-kissed tori soba broth packed with deep chicken-bone umami, sometimes finished with an airy, almost foamy lightness on top, paired with chewy homemade noodles, tender chicken chashu and a beautifully seasoned eggyolk. Add a little beef nigiri on the side (a quietly genius move) and you’ve got one of the most memorable, lovingly served bowls of the whole trip. The hospitality alone is worth the train ride.
Rating: 5⭐️ — soulful chicken broth, gorgeous noodles, and warmth in every detail. A perfect Nara lunch.
Kyoto rewards the hungry and the curious in equal measure. From a sake-laced ramen you can’t find anywhere else, to udon made fresh that very morning, to a gyoza joint that feels like a party — these are the spots I’d happily queue for all over again. Eat slowly, order the thing you can’t pronounce, and let the city feed you. Your itinerary (and your stomach) will thank you. 💛
