YUGEN

Phenomenal experience at Yugen. We were looking for matcha and stepped into this space without knowing what it was. We were offered seats at their bar and the friendly staff explained their tea menu and pairings. A wonderful and delicious experience.

Dropped by this place on the last afternoon of the long weekend — lucky for us, there was no wait at all. I originally came for the pottery, but figured I might as well try their matcha while I was here. To be fair, both the usucha (thin matcha) and the walnut wagashi were quite good. The wagashi had a nice chewy, springy texture and wasn’t overly sweet like some traditional ones can be. What was disappointing, though, was the service. The staff didn’t really pay attention to basic things like refilling water or reminding us when it was time to pay. Maybe it’s because they were very young, so they didn’t seem passionate about matcha or knowledgeable about tea ceremony. They even whisked the matcha away from the guests, which really breaks the whole spirit of omotenashi — all they did was tell me to pick my favorite tea bowl after ordering. Also, I didn’t manage to get any of Naoya Arakawa ‘s works this time — next visit, I think I’ll just come to browse the pottery instead of sitting down for tea.

This place is simply amazing. The atmosphere is so calming, matcha very high quality with more traditional way of preparing from the staff, the wagashi was the best we ever had, staff very kind and the interior? Splendid. Checkout the other floors too.

We absolutely loved the atmosphere in this quaint tea shop. They didn’t have an English menu, but the staff was so friendly and explained all of the options and made some recommendations. The atmosphere was impeccable and we loved the tea and sweets that we ordered. We also appreciated their selection of dishes on the third floor.

Ceremonial, modern, aesthetic. My favorite tea spot in Kyoto so far. The level of care is what you’d expect from a matcha house in Japan.

Great service with extremely kind and friendly staff. Got to see staff make traditional matcha. Tried a jelly and red bean cake accompanied with my matcha. Super strong matcha that was balanced with a slightly sweet dessert. A few other dessert choices were given accompanied with oolong tea or barley tea.

As a first-timer, I decided to go in completely blind and ordered their matcha and sweets set of the day. I didn't know what is coming, it was a total trust fall with no questions asked. The staff asked me to choose a mug (or a bowl?) from a selection displayed on the wall (my decision-fatigued brain froze while the staff patiently waited, I probably was their 20th victim of the day), then proceeded to make my order and delivered it right away. The matcha is on the more bitter side and very fragrant with floral hints. The snack of the day was kurumi mochi (rice cakes with walnut). The texture is somewhat between rice cake and jelly. It's not too sweet, but effectively balanced the sharpness of the matcha. Together they make each other make sense. It was a satisfying leap of faith. Now I understand why adults go to omakase.

Nice selection of tea. Very friendly staff. Wish that the air conditioner can be colder. Worth the price if you appreciate Japanese tea ceremony. It's better when you come during non-peak hours.