Higashiyama Yoshihisa

Down a small alley in Kyoto lies this Michelin-starred kaiseki (traditional dining) restaurant where diners can never fully predict what they’ll be treated to. The menu’s overarching theme changes depending on the seasons: sometimes with a distinctly French slant, sometimes celebrating Chinese food, sometimes centered around seasonal delicacies such as wild game, eel, crab, or soba. Although the dishes are highly changeable, dining here is by no means a gamble. No matter the theme, every dish is prepared with top quality ingredients, and expertly applied Japanese techniques. One regular fixture is the cheese, smoked on the premises, and served with whiskey. The dynamic approach at Higashiyama Yoshihisa transcends tradition, and makes for incredibly entertaining dining which spans an ever-expanding range of cuisines, all mastered with apparent ease by the culinary polymath chef.