kaiseki motoishi is a pop-up inside sushi yamamoto serving soba and tempura at lunch and kaiseki for dinner.
sergio, kazushige motoishi, trained at kitcho arashiyama for six years and then started making soba at yen in paris for seven years.
tried the soba lunch last week and also the kaiseki dinner
my favorite was the simple zaru soba with tsuyu dipping sauce and tempura.
seared katsuo
kake soba
assorted tempura
zaru soba
japanese kumquat rice cake
matcha
I very much liked the soba lunch (complimentary seconds and thirds tempura pieces available for the asking during the tempura zaru soba course). Dessert today also included my first sakura-themed dessert sighting in 2024…
#SakuraMochiByMotoishi
highlights
soba
sashimi
crab rice
kumquat rice cake
misses
over cooked belt fish
shabu shabu greens were overwhelmingly bitter
seasonal small appetizers
grilled belt fish in dashi soup
wild akashi sea bream
wild himi yellowtail shabu shabu
abalone, caviar, soba
“hirousu” fried tofu cake with dashi soup
managatsuo (butterfish) saikyo-yaki
hairy crab rice
simmered wagyu beef, marinated salmon roe, and marinated egg yolk
grapefruit gelée
japanese kumquat rice cake
i went for the kaiseki dinner. i liked it. and if you like kaiseki too, you should try it — the food is good, and the people that work there are kind and care about the guests having a good experience. but it’s not on the level of hayato. (i haven’t tried uka, so i don’t know how it compares.) and it felt like there was not a lot of variety in the dishes — i felt like i got served the same fish several times over. also, given the intimate and formal nature of kaiseki, the quality of your experience is sometimes really at the mercy of your fellow diners. when i went, two people came about half hour late, and then continued to talk over the assistant when he was explaining the dishes. it was awkward, and then annoying.
