The chef admired a certain chef in Kyoto as a youth and burnished his skills to try to measure up. That spirit shines in details such as the charcoal brazier and wood-fuelled stove installed in the kitchen. Rice served in clay pots ranges from barely-cooked (niebana: ‘when the first steam rises’) to scorched; enjoy savouring how its character changes depending on the moment it is dished out. White miso soup infuses dashi stock of vegetables and kombu kelp, a staple of shojin ryori. Kyoto vegetables are used in takiawase. The chef breathes Kyoto cuisine into his menu, creating memories that linger.