Mokubee

We had the concierge in our hotel call in a reservation at this wonderful restaurant. We booked a lunch reservation for 4 people. When, arriving we were warmly greeted and seated by the staff. The place at this time, seemed to be run only by two people. Both were wonderful, helpful, super insightful, and very accommodating to our lack of Japanese language skills. All of the courses were beautiful and were incorporated with a unique piece of Japanese culture. I was able to try foods & fish that I have never tried before, and I thoroughly enjoyed much of it. We really appreciated the flavor and the time that went into preparing and presenting the meals. They explained their creations thoughtfully and did an amazing job of answering our questions. Overall, it was a very enjoyable and intimate experience. The food, service, and atmosphere were impeccable. We really recommend trying this place, and can guarantee you will not be disappointed. Wish all the best to this lovely place and the amazing staff!

Excellent experience with their kaiseki dinner course. Chef is super friendly, he tried his best to explain each dish by showing us the picture in the fish book, and the ingredients, even though we were not fluent Japanese speakers. The food was great, fresh, perfectly balanced flavor, definitely WOW to us. We would definitely love to come back here again and recommend it.

It is a ninety-year-old restaurant passed down through four generations in Hanami-koji, Gion. June and July is the season for pike eel, and I have the pleasure of enjoying plump and tender eel. Each dish embodies the season and culture. It is exactly the kind of Kyoto cuisine I had imagined. Thank you to all the staff today for their kind and attentive service.

Had a wonderful meal for my first kaiseki experience. The service provided by Chef Terada and his staff was impeccable. He had an English translator on hand to explain each dish and did his best to converse and explain as well. Each dish was meticulously prepared and the balance of flavors was very well thought out. All the dishes were excellent and the desserts really closed out the meal very well.

This is my first time going to any Michelin star restaurant. This is a one-star Kyoto style kaiseki restaurant ran by a family. The chef is the 3rd generation. We had the cheapest lunch set and it was amazing! The food was great and even though we don't speak Japanese, the chef still made an effort to explain each dish to us.

Excellent multi course dinner, the 4th generation chef/owner was friendly and prepared the dishes with skill and wonderful presentation. The tuna was some of the best I’ve had in my life and the dessert with sake sorbet was delightful. Would definitely recommend if looking for kaiseki in Kyoto.

My girlfriend attended a conference in Kyoto for her work, and I tagged along for the week since I can work remotely. We were fortunate that the concierge at our hotel was able to help us get a reservation at Mokubei for dinner on Saturday June 17, 2023. As the chef-owner explained to us, Mokubei has been owned and operated by the same family for 96 years. Given the quality and creativity of the food and the staff's attention to detail, we hope we can visit again one day, perhaps to help celebrate the restaurant's 100th anniversary! The restaurant is modest in size and understated in decor, with counter seating for around 10 people. The small staff was friendly, accommodating, and polite (perhaps not surprisingly), and while we would likely have had a more engaging interaction with the staff if we were able to speak more than a handful of words in Japanese, everyone on staff made a real effort to explain each dish and to chat with us during the course of the meal, even using botany books and dictionaries to help us understand what we were eating. We greatly appreciated the team's efforts, and thank you for this kindness! The food was exceptional: each dish was thoughtfully composed of seasonal flavors with interesting flavor and texture combinations, starting with a small bite of poached shrimp topped with caviar served with a light sauce of fresh tomatoes and accompanied by a short poem transcribed by the head chef himself, and finishing with a light mochi-based dessert. If you are a fan of tasting menus (think French Laundry, Atelier Crenn, and Manresa), you owe it to yourself to try Mokubei if you come to Kyoto. Many thanks to Chef Shintaro Terada and his entire staff for a wonderful dining experience!

The food and service quality well deserved its Michelin rating. The chef was so dedicated to prepare our meals and explained the ingredients to us. I would recommend this restaurant to my friends.

This was such a nice experience! And unexpected. I wanted to try Kaiseki but hadn't made a previous reservation in any of the other restaurants. Here they received me the following night. I sat at the bar. And let myself enjoy every movement the chef and the helper did to Gould and cook my food. I am very picky about what and where I eat. I don't like fish. But here, everything tastes so amazingly well that I only asked what I was eating AFTER I ate it. I was not going to let my close mindedness about food ruin my experience. The love. The attention to detail. The perfection. And the taste. All your senses will be delighted when you come here. Service was very nice. I don't know about other Kaiseki restaurants but here they gave me a written poem in the middle of dinner. You MUST try Kaiseki and here is a good option. Disclaimer: if you are tall, you might not fit in the tiny bathroom.