Kyoryori Kinobu

If you are looking for Kobe beef or high end sushi in a convivial atmosphere, this is not the place. While some reviewers expressed disappointment because they arrived late and felt rushed, that is not the fault of this restaurant. This experience is spacious quiet luxury. A private room for two tha...t can fit 10 is a great feeling in Kyoto. A two hour meal that is not slow or fast but timed perfectly is a good meal! Knowing that the food is sourced from the best providers and is consciously prepared is luxury. I noticed the kintsugi (golden glue) repair on the bottom of a hand painted porcelain dish. Impressive! I think some of these flavors are challenging for foreign visitors. The amuse-bouche, an unusual offering, was soft chestnuts prepared in a sweet tofu sauce. The sashimi was perfect. The crab in broth was divine. They were provocative flavors and surprising, and if you love food, you will love this place.

Visited November 2025

With so many amazing places to eat in Kyoto I would not recommend Kinobu. Our reservation was initially made by our hotel concierge for 12.30, pushed back on our request to 13.30 - and accepted by the restaurant. We arrived early at 13.10. The lady who served us was kind and hospitable. However, o...ur meal was extremely rushed. At one point, we were still eating our sushi when our stew arrived, and we were still eating our stew when our barracuda arrived. We had three courses on the table at the same time. I do not think this is acceptable at any restaurant, but certainly not one with a Michelin star. We asked our server if we could have five minutes before the next course. Very soon after, our next course arrived. There was no time to sit and enjoy and let our food settle before we were required to eat the next course. We then asked our server again for a 10 minute break. This was quite awkward because she then told us that the kitchen closes at 15.00. We did not come to a ramen restaurant to eat quickly and leave. If there was not enough time for us to enjoy our menu, we should have been told at the time when we booked. Instead we felt very rushed, were not able to enjoy our food, and felt pressurised to leave the restaurant soon after we had finished. In fact, we were almost chased out! This was not the private dining Michelin meal that we had been hoping to enjoy. There were some other issues:- - none of the dishes stood out or were memorable, the food was just fine - there was very limited explanation of the dishes, just the main ingredients. When eating at a Michelin restaurant where people from all over the world come, I thought perhaps we could have received an English menu with some more detailed explanation of the food we were eating, even if run from Google translate - we received one dish of barracuda with some lotus root and sweet potato. The barracuda lacked flavour and was dry and not pleasant to eat - At the end when we received the bill, there were taxes, 15% service and another item in addition to pay. This was also not clear when we booked, or on the website Overall, we felt as though we paid more than expected (over JPY 25,000 per person with one drink each) for an experience that was very disappointing. When raising the above directly with the restaurant they refused to make amends and blamed our experience on the hotel concierge for not checking the kitchen opening times - a very sad lack of accountability and care over customer feedback.

Visited October 2024

But I could not stop thinking what I could have done with the money spent here. It is an experience and you are served in by a member of staff very meticulously, but it was not miles ahead of many other meals that had cost between a tenth and twenty percent what we paid for this experience. It will ...be a memory of Japan, but I’m sure there are other ways of experiencing the same at a fraction of the cost. I simply can’t justify the cost.

Visited February 2018

A small restaurant that service value for money food. Service is good except for their limited English ability. Good value place.

Visited August 2017

As part of a National Geographic Photo Expedition, our group had the pleasure of dining at Kinobu. The food and service were excellent.

Visited April 2017