Matayoshi 祇園 又吉 @ Gion, Kyoto

Matayoshi is an up and coming Kaiseki restaurant located in Gion, Kyoto. I believe the chef already has a michelin star awarded to his restaurant. I was here during the winter season last year (2016) and was served a dinner course that was centered on vegetables. I know to some, vegetables may seem like a turn off; I was feeling that way initially, but halfway through the meal, I began to appreciate the use and mix of seasonal vegetables to enhance the overall flavour and aroma of the dishes he makes.

By the end of the meal, the dish that sealed the deal for me was his Daikon and Parsley rice. Sounds very simple and plain right? But that was the best rice I've had in a Kaiseki dinner at that point of my life. Before I elaborate a little on his vegetables, let's have a look at the pictures:

Assorted vegetables with mushroom and daikon

Buri and Sawara Sashimi

Hirame Sashimi

Shirauo Fish

Uni Chawanmushi

Grilled Snapper and Daikon

Daikon with Kani

Assorted seasonal fish and shellfish with vegetables

Stone fish with Mushroom in clear soup

Grilled sawara with seasonal vegetables

Grilled sawara with seasonal vegetables

I forgot what this was but I believe it was a mix of fish and vegetables

Sawara with Ankimo

Chef of Matayoshi with his Daikon and Parsley rice

Daikon and Parsley rice

Dessert

Now regarding the topic on vegetables, as a Chinese Singaporean who has eaten in many Chinese restaurants in Singapore and Hong Kong, vegetables have always been a key ingredient to accompany meat and seafood in their dishes. However, in Chinese food, the meat and vegetables have their own unique taste since more often then not, both are prepared separately before added into the final dish. But at Matayoshi, the flavour that I can taste from his dishes, though not as powerful as Chinese cooking, is a very fine blend of seasonal vegetables and fish that seems to have fused seamlessly together.

So unlike Chinese food where the taste of fish or meat is a lot stronger than the vegetables, Matayoshi's dishes are extremely balanced in the sense that you can still taste different flavours from the fish and vegetables but none overpowered the other.This was the first time I experienced eating vegetables and seafood like this, and boy did it open my eyes to what Japanese food can be truly capable of.

Restaurant website: http://www.gion-matayoshi.com/
Address (paste it on google maps): 京都府 京都市東山区 祇園町南側 570-123
Budget (Dinner): 18,000 Yen +
My rating: 4.5/5