Kansai Food Page

---

Yufuna/
Karasuma: Japanese
regional
▼075-211-3161
▽Data

---

From the entrance,
this unpretentious
little basement shop
looks like an ordi-
nary after-work
hangout, with a
solid wooden counter
lined with sake and
shochu bottles and a
blackboard announc-
ing the daily spe-
cials. Yufuna is
surprisingly spa-
cious inside though,
with several other
dining spaces beyond
the front counter -
all cozy and attrac-
tively decorated.
Wherever you happen
to sit, you'll get
great Kyoto home-
style cooking -
small, tasty dishes
made from the finest
seasonal ingredients
- plus a small but
impressive selection
of local sake to
wash it down.

The pride of the
kitchen is food and
drink from the Tango
region in the very
north of Kyoto Pre-
fecture, facing the
Sea of Japan. The
menu features a
constant stream of
fresh seafood and
vegetables brought
in from that area,
varying according to
the time of year.
The sashimi platter
of the day (Y1200-
1500) is a sensible
way to sample the
best of it. There's
also a good assort-
ment of grilled
dried fish - sar-
dines, flounder,
mackerel and squid -
and these go espe-
cially well with
sake. A Kyoto varia-
tion on the dried-
fish theme is called
"sakuraboshi," where
the fish are first
seasoned with mirin
and sesame, then
dried overnight and
grilled, resulting
in a much sweeter-
tasting fish.

A big section of the
menu is devoted to
the local cuisine
known as obanzai-
ryori - home-style
dishes from Kyoto.
Obanzai-ryori is a
free-wheeling style
of cooking with
plenty of room for
originality, and we
enjoyed some unusual
dishes like the
deep-fried salmon
and lotus root -
sort of a lotus-root
sandwich with
crunchy, thick
slices of lotus root
serving as the
bread. We were
pleasantly surprised
by the number of
spicy and garlicky
dishes on offer,
like the spicy green
beans in sesame
dressing, and the
very impressive
charcoal-grilled
pork belly. The pork
was beautifully
streaked with fat
and skillfully
grilled, with flavor
intensified by a
hefty dose of extra
garlic. Even a sim-
ple dish like zosui
(rice porridge) was
exciting, filled
with aromatic mush-
rooms and greens
that somehow cap-
tured the essence of
the season.

The sake list in-
cludes around a
dozen well-chosen
varieties, including
four very local
brews from the Tango
area that are well
matched to the food.
You can also choose
from various types
of shochu, ten kinds
of umeshu, and some
intriguing fruit-
based drinks, like
the very sweet momo-
shu (peach liquor)
and the more tart
yuzushu (made from
the yuzu citrus
fruit).

Yufuna's prices are
very reasonable -
you can easily get
away with Y3000-4000
per person with
ample food and
drink, or far less
for a quick snack
and drink. There are
also set menus
(Y3500), and an all-
you-can-drink shochu
deal. Although
there's no no Eng-
lish menu, the set
meal is an easy way
to order without
working your way
through the Japanese
menu.

Yufuna is located in
the basement of the
Kyoto Mitsui Build-
ing, on the corner
of Shijo and Karasu-
ma and just above
the subway station.

---

▼Photo
▼Google Map
▼Map for AU phones
▼Map for DoCoMo
▼Nearest restau-
rants
▼Nearest cafes/
bars

---

◎Shijodori
Karasuma-higashi-
iru, Kyoto Mitsui
Bldg B1F. [on Shijo
and Karasuma]
◎ Open 11am-2, 5-
10pm (LO) daily.

---

□Kansai Food top