Junsei

Description:

• Specializing in tofu dishes, Junsei opened in 1961, but the grounds and garden were originally part of a medical school established in the 1830s during the shogun era. Although tourist oriented and popular with tour groups, the food is good and an English-language menu makes ordering easy. There are several buildings spread throughout the grounds, and what you want determines where you go; as soon as you arrive, you'll be given a menu and asked what you'll be eating. I chose the house special -- a yudofu (tofu) set meal -- and was directed to an older building with a view of the garden and filled with antiques and tatami mats. My meal came with vegetable tempura and various tofu dishes, including fried tofu on a stick and yudofu (tofu boiled in a pot at my table). Other set meals include kaiseki (by reservation only), yuba, shabu-shabu, or sukiyaki.

  There's a branch, Kiyomizudera Junsei (tel. 075/541-7111), located just off Kiyomizu-zaka, the main slope leading to Kiyomizu Temple. Housed in a grand, 1914 former villa with high ceilings, wainscoting, and stained-glass windows, it offers just three set tofu meals priced ¥2,100 to ¥5,250 ($18-$44/£9-£22) and is open daily 10:30am to 5pm (last order).

• © Frommer's 2012

Awards:

Frommer's

•  Recommended 2010