I visited Kyoto for the first time in about 3 years. Since we love food, my friends and I decided to start our day by having an early lunch before heading to Sanjusangendo Temple to see the beautiful hydrangeas. We met up at Uji Station and went to a restaurant called "Kunugi" along the Uji River. We arrived a little after 11 am and the restaurant was not open yet, but they welcomed us in. We sat at a table with a view of the Uji River flowing outside. The restaurant had tatami rooms as well as tables and chairs. We were surprised to see ramen on the menu, but we decided to stick to our plan and ordered the "Green Tea Soba Set" for ¥1800 (tax included). The thin green tea soba had a great texture and the tempura had two shrimp which made us all happy. We enjoyed the crispy tempura freshly fried. The lotus root kinpira and pickled vegetables were also delicious. I'm not a fan of pickled vegetables, but these were not too sour which was nice. The chewy tofu was also included in the set. We had a great time catching up with old friends and enjoyed the Uji green tea soba set.

I visited during a weekday in the 3 pm hour, a popular time for outings. There were only two groups of customers ahead of me, which was a pleasant surprise as I expected it to be more crowded. I ordered the matcha fondue (tax included 900 yen) that I had been eyeing for a while. The fondue was not chocolate or cheese, but red bean paste. I was warned not to overheat it as it could burn, and there was no tool to extinguish the flame, so I had to blow it out. The ingredients for the fondue were mochi and fu (wheat gluten), with salted kelp and senbei crackers as side snacks. The matcha powder was mixed with sugar, similar to the feeling of sprinkling kinako powder on mochi. It was a bit monotonous as it was mostly just mochi, so I wished for more variety. The matcha flavor itself was not particularly strong. They accepted PayPay as a payment method.

Do you know about Dam Curry? It is a spicy and delicious curry where the rice is shaped like a dam. You can enjoy it while overlooking the Uji River at Ryokan Ichii. The curry includes healthy ingredients like lotus root, burdock, and root vegetables, along with two large shrimp tempura. Be sure to try not to break the dam of rice while eating it. You can also receive a Dam Curry card that looks just like a dam for posting on Instagram. It costs 1400 yen, but you can get a 100 yen discount with an Instagram post.

On my day off, I leisurely strolled around Uji. The autumn leaves are starting to change color, it's beautiful. On days like this, I like to have a leisurely Uji tea rice dish at Oak. The Uji River today is also calm. While gazing at the Tachibashi Bridge and the autumn leaves on the opposite bank, you can enjoy a delicious miso hot pot with minced chicken as the main dish, accompanied by eel, sesame tofu, and rice for seconds, and finish with tea rice dish. It will definitely leave you feeling full.

After exploring Uji and feeling a bit tired, I heard about a matcha fondue and immediately thought of chocolate. However, it turned out to be a matcha red bean fondue! I dipped mochi and fu in plenty of matcha red bean and enjoyed it hot. The leftover red bean was scooped up with a monaka, which may have been a bit too much, but it was delicious!

A great atmosphere with a view of the Uji River. The tea soba, tempura, and small dishes were all delicious! It was Saturday afternoon but not too crowded, with a nice turnover of customers, making it very comfortable.

It was a very nice restaurant along the Uji River! The Tenkase Dam Curry was incredibly delicious✨ For dessert, we had matcha chiffon cake and sweet red bean soup. The food was delicious and we had a relaxing and enjoyable time!

I wanted to try matcha fondue, like cheese fondue, so I came here. I searched around, and it seems like it's not that common. Located near the Byodoin Temple in Uji, along the river. I ordered matcha fondue and hojicha fondue. I thought it would be chocolate-based, but it turned out to be red bean paste-based. Well, that makes sense. It's a Japanese confectionery after all. But it was delicious in its own way. Thank you for the meal. My photo is bad and only shows the hojicha fondue.

I tried matcha fondue and roasted green tea fondue! In addition to mochi, there were also manju and powder, which made it fun and delicious. Both were rich and really warmed me up. However, the tea and hot towels took forever to come out, which was a bit of a downside. I wondered if they had forgotten about us (lol). The atmosphere of the restaurant was retro, and it was nice to see the Uji River and autumn leaves from the window.

Located along the Uji River, near the Uji Shrine, another World Heritage site in Uji, is a restaurant that primarily serves green tea soba and tempura, but also offers a variety of sweet treats made with tea. I visited this restaurant for a light snack. The Matcha Fondue (900 yen) is a popular item on their menu. Similar to cheese fondue, it comes with white rice cakes, fu (wheat gluten), and rice cakes, along with plenty of thick matcha sauce and matcha powder to sprinkle on top. The taste was as expected, and I would say the satisfaction level was moderate. The Matcha Awamochi (900 yen) looked just like its name suggests. The subtle flavor of the foam and the creamy matcha sauce complemented each other well. While the taste was predictable, the portion size was quite generous and satisfying. One of the charms of this place is that it is less crowded than the area around the Byodoin Temple on the other side of the river, making it a nice spot to relax and enjoy some sweets while taking in the gentle flow of the river. During peak tourist seasons, however, it can get quite busy.

Located along the Uji River, on the opposite bank of the Uji River from the Byodo-in Temple, this restaurant offers a unique dining experience. We made a reservation to enjoy a lunch of tea soba noodles with friends while taking in the autumn leaves. The prices were a bit high due to being a tourist spot, which local residents and regulars may find a bit frustrating, but as a tourist, I was somewhat okay with it. We all ordered the tea soba set meal, which included tea soba noodles, tempura, three side dishes, and had a nice presentation. The food was delicious and satisfying.

I used it when I was walking along the banks of the Uji River. I didn't do any research beforehand, I just happened to be walking around that area at lunchtime so I used it. There were sweets available too, but I didn't try them. I ordered the set of cold tea soba and tempura. It cost 1650 yen, which seems like a tourist price (>_<). There were two shrimp in the tempura, and they were cooked all the way through (*´▽｀*), which is always a must-check for me. The tea soba was delicious (≧∇≦). Since I was in Uji, I had to have tea, right? Naturally, the tea in the soba added a refreshing yet flavorful taste that I really enjoyed. It was a bit expensive, but it was worth it! How about enjoying some soba while looking out at the Uji River?

Exploring the neighborhood. Today, it's just me and my daughter. This is our second time here. At first, I hesitated to enter because I wasn't sure if it was a shop or a house. But there were menus and signs outside, so it's all good. The big tree outside is a good landmark. It's not too crowded on a weekday afternoon. Last time I came alone and sat upstairs, but today we're in the tatami room downstairs. It's still too early for cherry blossoms, and the view isn't great with the construction on the island tower... Oh well, can't be helped. It's a tough time for tourists. Anyway, it's snack time, so we're going for something sweet! It's really cold, so we're skipping the parfaits. This is my second time here, but I'm ordering the fondue this time, with roasted green tea flavor. My daughter chose matcha. It's more generous than it looks in the pictures on the wall. There's plenty of mochi balls and some red bean paste, though I wish there was a bit more of it. The roasted green tea flavor has a nice tea taste. We might get tired of the mochi balls, so half the amount would be nice. The monaka is great though. Well, it's a bit pricey due to being a tourist spot.

During the consecutive holidays, when I visited near Ujigami Shrine, it was just about lunchtime so I decided to check out this place. The famous soba restaurant near Keihan Uji Station had a long line, so I walked a bit and ended up at "Kunugi". It's a relatively normal dining place in a tourist area. It's located along the Uji River, so the view is nice and calming. There seemed to be a second floor, but the staff kindly guided us to a tatami room on the right side of the first floor. The room had a traditional Japanese atmosphere, which was nice. There were about 6 tables set up in the tatami room on the first floor, and although we were not by the window but more towards the back, we could still see the river from a distance. The restaurant seemed to be fully occupied with customers coming and going. We were hungry, so we decided to go for the signature menu, the Matcha Soba Set for 1650 yen. After a 15-minute wait, our order arrived. I ordered the cold soba, so it was served as zaru soba. The soba had a nice aroma of matcha and was delicious. It could have been a bit firmer though. The tempura included shrimp, eggplant, and green pepper, and they were freshly fried and tasty. The batter was light and just right. It also came with pickled vegetables, lotus root kinpira, sesame tofu, and a dessert of a small matcha chocolate treat. The first-floor seats had closed windows, so you could see the river through the glass, but the view might be a bit obscured. However, it was a bright and calm atmosphere as it was sunny that day. The experience might vary depending on where you sit. There were also reserved seats available, and I saw a solo female traveler who seemed to have made a reservation. The cafe section had various matcha items typical of Kyoto, but they might be a bit pricey due to the tourist location. They offered parfaits, cakes, and even matcha fondue. Most people were having the matcha soba during lunchtime. I don't usually come to this area, but there aren't many places like this in Osaka, so it was nice to sit in a tatami room and have a meal, feeling like a tourist in Kyoto.

When you come to Uji, you must try matcha sweets! This shop, a little away from the center, is recommended as the famous Nakamura Tokichi Honten always has a 90-minute wait. It has a quiet environment with a great view of the Uji River, and the seating in the tatami room adds a nice touch. You can also have a meal, but the dessert menu is extensive with matcha-based sweets such as parfaits, anmitsu, and zenzai. I ordered the Uji Kinsho shaved ice, and the fresh bitterness of matcha paired perfectly with the sweet Kinsho anko. It goes without saying, but this was by far the best Uji Kinsho shaved ice I've ever had.

My family told me about this shop that was featured on TV because they know I love matcha. The menu item that was featured was "Matcha Fondue." When I saw the photo of the menu item in front of the shop, I thought it was a bit expensive at ¥900, so I decided to order the Matcha Parfait for ¥850 instead. The parfait looked like any other typical parfait. The mochi balls were chewy and delicious, but the main part of the parfait, the matcha ice cream, was not as tasty as I had hoped. The matcha sauce was also a bit too sweet and lacked the unique bitterness of matcha. However, the view from the shop was nice.