Ryoriya Maekawa Kyoto

Ryoriya Maekawa sits in Benzaitencho, deep within the Higashiyama Ward. It holds a Michelin star, which separates it from the busier thoroughfares of the city.

The restaurant serves creative, traditional Japanese cuisine that prioritizes precision over the showmanship found in the nearby Gion district. The room runs smart and elegant, but the focus remains on an intensity that many of its more tourist-heavy neighbours have abandoned. It is a twenty-minute walk from the clamour of Nishiki Market, a distance that preserves the quiet necessary for this level of cooking. Choose this spot if you prefer the deliberate pace of a tucked-away kitchen over the frantic pace of the city’s landmark hubs.