Photo by Peter Thomas on UnsplashAn Arashiyama Evening — Fine Kyoto Cuisine, from Togetsukyo to the Atago Road
Three notable restaurants for Kyoto cuisine at night in Arashiyama and Sagano.
As the lanterns light over Togetsukyo
Once the daytime crowds thin, Arashiyama grows remarkably quiet. Kyoto cuisine enjoyed amid the murmur of the Hozugawa and the shadow of the mountains is a treat particular to Arashiyama. This article introduces three notable places for Kyoto cuisine at night in Arashiyama and Sagano. All are reservation-based and course-centered, so check before you go.
Kyoto kaiseki by Togetsukyo — Arashiyama Kumahiko
Arashiyama Kumahiko is a Kyoto-cuisine restaurant in a 100-year-old house by the foot of Togetsukyo. In the lineage of the noted Kyoto restaurant "Tankuma Kitamise" and in business for some 80 years, it serves Kyoto kaiseki — appetizers, yudofu, sashimi, a grilled hassun, simmered dishes — alongside the changing seasons by the bridge. Run by the Rihga Royal Hotel Kyoto group.
A sukiya-style ryotei on Nakanoshima, the Sakura-yado zen — Kyo-Arashiyama Nishiki
Kyo-Arashiyama Nishiki is a sukiya-style ryotei on Nakanoshima by the foot of Togetsukyo. Its signature "Sakura-yado zen" was devised and named in 1960, drawing on the building's former life as an inn (yado) and on Arashiyama as a place famed for cherry blossoms. Kaiseki courses are served in private rooms.
A roughly 400-year-old ayu teahouse — Ayu-chaya Hiranoya
Ayu-chaya Hiranoya is a ryokan-restaurant near the first torii on the Atago road, deep in Sagano. Founded in the early Edo period, it was a teahouse where Atago pilgrims rested and also an ayu (sweetfish) wholesaler — an establishment of roughly 400 years. Its weighty thatched roof speaks to that history. Salt-grilled ayu and sashimi courses are signatures, with yudofu and botan-nabe in winter. All private rooms, reservations required; dinner from 5 p.m. (last entry 7 p.m.).
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Before you go
All three are reservation-based and course-centered, at the higher end of the price range. Some have early dinner seatings or last entry. Be sure to check course details, budget, and open days on each restaurant's official site or a booking site and Google Maps. Transport in Arashiyama at night is limited, so plan your way back as well.