It was a local atmosphere despite being a tourist spot. They served Kansai-style dashi, Kansai-style pressed sushi, making it easy for those from Kanto to experience Kansai at a reasonable price. The cost performance is good, making it a recommended lunch spot in this area.

On the way to Byodoin Temple, I stumbled upon a quaint little restaurant where I was greeted with cheerful voices. They served various homemade pickles that were delicious. The tempura was freshly fried and tasted great with green tea salt. The soba noodles were soft and smooth. Even though I was already full, I couldn't resist eating the onigiri that came with the meal. The prices were also very reasonable.

Tea soba sushi set for 1,000 yen. This restaurant is located on the route to my elementary school. I've known about this place for about 50 years. It's near Byodoin Temple (not the most popular spot, but still a tourist destination) and the prices are quite reasonable. I wonder if it's been about 45 years since I last had tea soba here? The tempura included shiitake mushrooms, eggplant, snow peas, pumpkin, and sweet potato (a bit disappointing...). The sushi tasted like the nostalgic flavors of Showa-era sushi I had as a child. Pickles were self-serve at the counter (I couldn't eat much since I was only about 70% full), but I was satisfied and felt nostalgic. Thank you for the meal.

I visited this restaurant for the first time because I wanted to see Byodoin Temple in Uji. It was a bit hard to find as it is located in a residential area near the temple. I arrived a little after 12 o'clock and ordered the Cha Soba, Vegetable Tempura, and Sushi Set with two locals. The pickles served before the meal were all-you-can-eat, so I tried all varieties. The food was served in about 10 minutes, and the tempura even came with matcha salt. It was a great value for 1000 yen and very delicious.

A small eatery with a fluttering curtain in a narrow alley. There were no other customers yet, and we were seated at the counter. We ordered the tea soba and tempura rice ball set for 800 yen. The tray we received included tea soba, plenty of chopped green onions, tempura (eggplant, sweet potato, pumpkin, green beans, shiitake mushrooms), simmered taro, cucumber and myoga vinegar dish, and 2 rice balls. And for dessert, we had matcha warabi mochi. All of this for 800 yen? It was quite a generous portion. The soba and rice balls were average, but the tempura was crispy and delicious, especially with the matcha salt. The building has some history, but the cost performance is excellent. They offer very reasonable prices, especially in a tourist area. If you happen to visit the Byodoin Temple, why not give it a try?

You can avoid the long line for lunch at this place near Uji excursion. The all-you-can-eat pickles were nice. The hand-made matcha udon was not so great. The 1,000 yen set meal was not bad though.

I feel like cold tea being green tea is unusual. It must be because it's in Uji. They also served roasted tea with rice. I'm happy that the soup was new noodles.

We stopped for lunch at the halfway point of Byodoin Temple's Phoenix Hall.

I visited this restaurant for lunch as part of my sightseeing trip to Byodoin Temple. It was a July long weekend and we were the first customers as we arrived a little after 11 am. The restaurant is a bit hard to find, but Google Maps will guide you there. The menu offers a variety of tea-based dishes such as "Matcha Udon," "Tea Soba," and "Tea Leaf Tempura." My family and I each ordered different dishes and enjoyed them all! I highly recommend the Matcha Udon, which has a subtle matcha flavor and is quite delicious! The noodles are thin, which I think is just right as thicker noodles might make the flavor too strong. The Tea Leaf Tempura is crispy and has a chewy texture from the tea leaves, which is a unique and enjoyable experience. For 800 yen, you can enjoy a tea-themed meal with your family by sharing different dishes!

I headed towards Byodo-in Temple from Matsusaka Suishodo and stumbled upon a restaurant that was hard to tell if it was a sushi or udon place. It was around 10:50 am and the restaurant was open, so I decided to have lunch there. I ordered a set of green tea udon and sushi. When asked if I wanted the udon warm or cold, I chose cold. Shortly after, an old lady brought out cold tea and a paper towel, and bluntly said, "If you want, you can use this." The chef was polite, but the old lady's attitude surprised me. The green tea udon was thin but chewy, similar to Sanuki udon. The tempura had a light and crispy batter, which was delicious.

I wanted to eat the soba at Nakamura Fujikichi Hon-ten, but it was too crowded with a long line, so I gave up and came to this restaurant instead. Byodoin Temple looked beautiful and there were a lot of tourists, making the whole town lively. Naturally, all the restaurants were very busy. The soba at this restaurant was delicious as well. I really wanted to have a drink with it. Next time, when I come here again, I would like to pay attention to the day of the week and time, and try the soba at Nakamura Fujikichi Hon-ten.

On July 5, 2016, I had some errands in Uji and had lunch at Torikiku, located not far from Byodoin Temple. The restaurant is situated off the main path from Uji Station and operates quietly. I ordered the soba set, which came with a choice of hot or cold soba. The set also included tempura, two rice balls, cucumber, and small shrimp for 800 yen including tax. The owner was working diligently behind the counter. The soba, tempura, rice balls, and shrimp were all delicious, although not exceptionally so. The restaurant is tucked away in a residential area near Byodoin Temple, and I left hoping for its continued success. It was a cost-effective and satisfying lunch.

It is located on the right side of the road that splits into two from Uji Station towards Byodoin Temple. It's very close to the tourist spot! It was hot that day, so I chose the cold green tea soba with onigiri and tempura. Maybe it was the tempura and soba set meal? It was around 850 yen, not the tourist spot price. The pickles and delicious Uji tea, as well as the onigiri made with tea, were tasty! Despite being cheap, the tempura was fried right in front of us and was very crispy. The guy working there was friendly and it was enjoyable! It's not far from the tourist spot, so you should definitely go there. I want to go again!笑

Yesterday, after a long time since my elementary school field trip, I went to visit Byodoin Temple in Uji. It was already past lunchtime, but on the way back to the parking lot, I stopped by this restaurant. Inside, there were long counter seats and two tatami rooms, creating a cozy atmosphere despite the small space. I ordered the tempura bowl set for 1000 yen, while my wife ordered the tempura and soba set for 800 yen. First, a complimentary pickles set was served, and we enjoyed delicious Uji tea while waiting for our food. It seemed like there were two cooks in the kitchen, both looking like cool, rugged older gentlemen. The tempura and soba set used matcha soba, and the rice ball was made with hojicha tea, which was a unique touch. The minced chicken and leek in bamboo ring dish was also quite tasty. Perhaps due to the reasonable pricing that doesn't feel like a tourist spot, there were also locals dining there. Overall, I would say the food was definitely satisfactory.

There is a Japanese restaurant in Uji City called "Torikiku". It is located near Byodoin Temple, but in a quiet residential area away from the main street. The restaurant has a traditional Japanese atmosphere both inside and outside. Although not very spacious, it offers counter seats and tatami seating. During lunchtime, they serve various set meals, including one called "Tenzaru" which consists of zaru soba and tempura as the main dishes, along with rice balls, small side dishes, and pickles. The soba they serve is made from green tea, and the tempura mainly consists of vegetables such as sweet potatoes and pumpkins. Overall, it is a set meal with a lot of vegetables. It was nice to have Kyoto pickles as well (apparently they are all-you-can-eat). Restaurants located near famous tourist spots are often expensive, but this one seems to cater more to local residents, so the prices are reasonable. You can enjoy a fulfilling set meal at a reasonable price, making it a hidden gem.

There is a shop called Torikiku near the Phoenix Hall of Byodoin Temple in Uji. It is located down a narrow alley, making it a hidden gem. There is a coin parking lot nearby, making it convenient for visitors to Byodoin Temple to stop by. They are known for their original matcha croquette. You can see a sign that says "Matcha Croquette" as a souvenir, and there are flyers in front of the whiteboard. They fry the matcha croquettes here. They also sell homemade pickles and hand-baked rice crackers. The owner is usually in the back of the shop, so you may need to call out to get their attention (lol). This is the freshly fried matcha croquette. At first glance, it looks like a regular croquette, but when you take a bite, it's green! Since it's freshly fried, the hot croquette is quite salty, but the matcha flavor adds a refreshing taste. It's actually quite delicious. If you're visiting Byodoin Temple, definitely give it a try!

There are many tourist attractions in Uji, and today, after seeing the hydrangeas and lotus flowers at Mimuroto-ji Temple, we headed towards Byodoin Temple. The road was quite crowded near Byodoin Temple, so the parking lot was also expected to be crowded, so we parked at a nearby coin parking lot. As we walked through the narrow streets towards the main gate of Byodoin Temple, we noticed a prominent sign that read "Torikiku." We wondered what kind of shop it could be - a yakitori shop? It seemed out of place in Uji. The shop had an elegant atmosphere with a black background, glossy fans, and butterfly curtains. However, the menu sign on the side seemed mysterious. Despite the charming atmosphere of a Kyoto back alley, it was still a bit early for lunch, so we decided to pass. On our way back from Byodoin Temple, we felt hungry, so we decided to look for a place to eat. All the shops on the main street seemed to have set meals priced at over 1,000 yen, typical of tourist areas. Therefore, we made a bold decision and entered through the curtain of "Torikiku" that we had seen earlier. The shop had a counter and a small tatami room, and we settled at the counter. The owner, a man with a chin beard who looked good in a navy workman's jacket and a navy hood, the landlady, and an old man who seemed to be the chef welcomed us. The signboard of "Kazenoakari Nagareboshi Ryoutei Torikiku" caught our attention. The humor and the personality of the owner impressed us. We ordered the Tea Leaf Tempura Set Meal. It had been a while since we had tea leaf tempura, which we had enjoyed at Mitoyo Takase. We eagerly awaited the fragrant tempura being fried in front of us by the owner. While waiting, we were offered various appetizers in small dishes on the counter, such as delicious pickled cucumbers, kimchi, and simmered shiitake mushrooms. All of them were good. We were the first customers of the day, and when asked if we wanted to dip them in soy sauce, the old man replied, "It's Kyu-chan" (a pun on cucumber in Japanese). We enjoyed this humor as well. After a while, the Tea Leaf Tempura, crispy and delicious, was served. The tempura of other vegetables was also freshly fried. There was a small bowl of warm tea soba in a small bowl, and later, rice cooked with roasted tea and two side dishes of pickles. We were satisfied with the combination. The owner told us that he was a supporter of Byodoin Temple and shared enjoyable stories about the duties of supporters. He also talked about the lesser-known World Heritage Site, Ujigami Shrine. Although Kyoto is known for its expensive food, we discovered a great restaurant with excellent value for money. We would like to visit this place again. It was a delightful meal.

This restaurant, Torikiku, is located in a very inconspicuous place, one street off the main street in Uji. The restaurant has a sushi restaurant-like setting with counter seats. There are also sunken kotatsu seats on the right side of the entrance, which can accommodate evening banquets, although there doesn't seem to be a specific evening menu. The lunch menu includes Uji specialties such as tea leaf tempura and green tea soba. This time, I had sushi set, eel bowl, and tempura set. They are not at tourist spot prices, and Uji is not known for its abundance of seafood, so I wouldn't call it luxurious. However, considering the prices, it could be a good option. On the main street, tea and dango sets are offered for over 1000 yen and there are long lines, so I thought it was impressive that tea leaf croquettes were offered for 100 yen. Thank you for the meal.