Kyo Aji is the longstanding pagoda in kanto’s kaiseki. Almost every chef who ‘graduated’ from Kyo Aji will have a spot in Tokyo’s kaiseki culinary scene, for example Morikawa, Hoshino, Kurogi, Iyuki… And the list goes on.
Kenichiro Nishi San, chef of Kyo Aji, is a very kind old man. He very talkative and friendly, dining at Kyo Aji makes you feel like home.
Nishi San’s family is originated from Kyoto but his style is slightly different from Kansai’s style Kaiseki. For me the flavour has a little bit more of a punch and portions are slightly smaller.
I enjoyed every dish, especially the taro and kuzukiri.The ingredients that he use are unpretentious, such as taro, salmon… but he just made these ordinary food into amazing delicacies. I guess that is a very difficult task but Nishi San managed to nailed the challenge.
At the end of the meal. Nishi San offered us an an apple called ‘the Miracle Apple’. It’s an apple farmed without chemicals and fertilisers in Japan by Kimura Kakiniri.
Kyo Aji is the kind of restaurant that you should visit as much as you could, just like Jiro. These old men are so good at their job that you would want to remember all their legendary flavors.
Kyo Aji (京味)
Address: 3-3-5 Shinbashi, Minato, Tokyo, Japan
Tel: +81 3-3591-3344 (they do not accept reservations from first timers)
Chef: Kenichiro Nishi (西健一郎)
Visited on: 19 Nov, 2015
K's Luxe Dining Table 