Tokuha Motonari

Chef Matsumoto Shinya’s Michelin-starred restaurant is named after — and themed on — a single four-character proverb in the Confucian text The Great Learning. “Striving is the essence of virtue”, it reads, and accordingly, Chef Matsumoto strives so his guests can relax at the counter of his restaurant. Having trained at one of Kyoto’s most vaunted series of restaurants, Wakuden, Chef Matsumoto applies what he has learned accordingly at his own kappo restaurant beside Kamigoryo Shrine. For instance, in accordance with the belief that quality of ingredients is the soul of Japanese cuisine, he dutifully sources the finest ingredients from all over Japan, such as seafood from off the Hokuriku coast. Every dish of his is immaculate, from appetizer selections to stews, but the heart of his kaiseki courses is charcoal grilling. It’s a spectacular sight: Chef Matsumoto performs irori-style grilling in miniature, spearing fish, mushrooms, tofu and other ingredients on stakes before standing them upright in a sand-filled brazier around a careful arrangement of bincho-tan charcoal. The end result is a beautiful, crispy crust and a smoky aroma. Michelin Guide: 2024 - 1 Michelin Star