After arriving in Kyoto, I headed to Masuya Saketen for a light drink.
A liquor shop I stopped by on the way
Surprisingly, they were selling Yamazaki. The 12 Year and the Limited Edition were out on display, while the 18 Year was tucked away out of sight. (The 18 Year was 40,000 yen…) If you’re interested, make a note of this… here’s the keyword: Kent Boys & Okashi no Megu, Kawaramachi branch (ケントボーイズ&お菓子のメグ 河原町店)
As you can see, it’s a very stylish space.
With a reservation you can eat inside; otherwise you eat and drink at the standing counter in front. We stood for now. You can’t see it in the photo, but to the right of the entrance the sake is laid out by type, so you can browse the bottles and pick what you want to drink.
Menu
I ordered a couple that looked about right.
Hmm… very satisfying.
Inside the shop
Snacks you grill yourself
A little tabletop grill comes out, and it goes incredibly well with sake.
Assorted sake snacks
Really satisfying.
Two more glasses
I had the feeling that if we kept drinking like this there’d be no end to it. So we retreated for the time being, decided to come back at night, and booked a table inside.
Lotus root
This was the otoshi, the little starter that comes with your first drink.
Firefly squid okizuke
The degree of curing matched the sake perfectly. The kind meant for eating with rice is saltier. I could tell this place really knows what it’s doing.
Whelk with wasabi
This was clean-tasting too, a perfect nibble with sake.
More sake
Both were so excellent it was hard to pick a favorite.
Nikomi
Lightly seasoned, so it went nicely with the sake.
Grilled bacon
Well… not a single dish misses.
Sake again
You end up drinking to your heart’s content.
Ankimo, I think…
Gorgonzola yuba pizza
A very Kyoto-style dish. Delicious.
A fish too
The explanation on the blackboard
When the sake is good and the food is good, there’s nothing more you could ask for. It reminded me once again what a great town Kyoto is.
Join the Discussion