This post was written in 2006. Shop details and prices may have changed since then.
This Kyoto trip was on a really packed schedule, so I didn’t get to prepare much. Even flipping through the tabearuki (food-crawl) guide series, nothing really grabbed me. From a quick look around, it seemed like the only options were tourist-trap restaurants that were either very expensive and tasty or a bit expensive and not tasty. Still, having come all the way to Kyoto I wanted to try some traditional food, but I’m a little tired of kaiseki like kyo-ryori by now -_-, so I was looking for somewhere else when I spotted a place in front of Nanzen-ji with a long line outside for some reason, and went in.
This is Okutan, a yudofu specialist with 360 years of tradition.
There’s one in front of Kiyomizu-dera and one in front of Nanzen-ji. They say they make the tofu themselves in the restaurant’s basement.
I order the safest option, the 3,150-yen set menu.
Sesame tofu.
It was just ordinary. It looks like Korean muk (acorn jelly), but it tastes like tofu.. ^_^
Tororo soup..
Tororo is grated mountain yam; it’s a bit sticky and usually goes on top of soba or udon. It was light and tasty.
Tea.
They serve it in the whole teapot, and it had a nice strong aroma..
Tempura
The frying skill was very ordinary. The ingredients weren’t anything special either..
Today’s main event: yudofu, tofu simmered in hot water.
What’s in the tokkuri (the little flask) in the middle is the dashi. You warm the dashi up too before eating.
You put tofu, green onion, sansho and dashi into your bowl like this and eat it. It’s a light flavor you don’t get tired of. It’s not punchy, so some people might not like it, but I was satisfied.
Grilled tofu (dengaku).
The sauce was spread on thick, so I scraped a bit off before eating. They brought out several kinds of tofu dishes, but since they’re all made from the same tofu, they all have a similar mild, light taste ^_^
Rice and side dishes
Kyoto is famous even within Japan for its vegetable side dishes.. Eating all this made me really full. Tasting Kyoto cooking in a traditional tatami room really made me feel like a tourist in Kyoto ^_^ A very satisfying meal.