Yamaguchi

You won't find anything better in Kyoto or Osaka. By far the finest Italian restaurant in the area. Surely this very intimate and cozy specialty restaurant is just waiting for Michelin to notice. Every mouthful is alive with finely blended flavors. Wine selection is also fantastic. Bring the credit card and a memory for one of the best you've ever sampled.

I love this.

Japanese-Italian collaboration in Gion ☆ Enjoy Japanese-Italian food

I visited for the first time after being invited to a private party by a regular customer who is close friends with Chef Yamaguchi (^^)♪

As I was walking near the store before time, I met the store manager, and when I arrived in front of the store, it was a little before time, but the noren curtains were hanging, so I went inside the store as if I had been invited by the store manager. ♪

The store is located on the quaint Hanamikoji street in Gion-cho, Kyoto, and the space, which is a renovated Kyoto townhouse, has an atmosphere that gives you a sense of tradition and nostalgia.When you take off your shoes at the entrance and go inside, you will find counter 6 with a Japanese atmosphere. A space where you can enjoy live cooking from your seat ☆

As soon as I sat down at the counter, the manager asked me, ``I'm already drinking, but what do you think?'', so I had no reason to say no, so we paired it with sparkling white wine and chatted while waiting for a while until everyone else was there. Masu(´∀｀)♪

The time has come and the members of the private party have gathered, so let's start the toast♪

◯Omakase course
☆Pairing

☆Ca'del Bosco
●Lily root dumplings White miso flavored foie gras paste and lily root paste
☆Gunma Mizubasho Junmai Ginjo directly drawn raw unprocessed sake
●Dried scallop jelly and Hokkaido horse dung sea urchin, red madonna and Ohara yellow carrot puree
☆STORRLEIN KRENIG 2020
●Kue Nagasaki 13kg Turnip sauce topped with plenty of caviar
☆QUINTA DE COUSELO ROSAL 2015
●Cappellini with pine needle crab and tomato extract soup topped with micro baby leaves
☆MOUNT EDWARD PINOT NOIR 2019
●Ezo abalone and Aomori komitsu (apple) risotto topped with black truffle slices
☆CERRO BASALTO 2014 CUARTEL G2
●Charcoal-grilled beef fillet with salted seaweed and wasabi
☆PICARDO Chardonad 2021
●Fugu milt and squirrel fin linguine with shaved yellow yuzu
☆Ippodo Kyo Senbancha
●Caramel panna cotta with black bean sauce and amaou
☆Iced coffee and tea sweets

Accounting ¥46,100

Chef Yamaguchi is from Gifu Prefecture☆
He started his career in cooking at the age of 18, and after training at the soba restaurant ``Kichiboshi'' in Tokyo, he became an Italian chef.
He studied at the popular restaurant "Cano Biano" in Daikanyama and was a founding member of "Cano Biano Kyoto".
He further honed his skills at ``Ristorante t.v.b'' in Gion, Kyoto, and opened ``Yamaguchi'' as owner-chef in 2011.

Nowadays, he is active as one of Kyoto's leading Italian chefs, but when he first opened, it seems that opening an Italian restaurant in the town of Gion was quite a hurdle, and there may have been pressure from those around him. However, now it seems to have blended into the town of Gion ☆

The food is inspired by Gion and Maiko and doesn't use garlic, cheese, butter, or fresh cream, and even though the amount of olive oil is sparing, it's wonderful that it's Italian-style.

While cooking the course meal by myself, I was able to enjoy the banquet filled with laughter as I interacted with the organizer like a manzai skit (´∀｀)♪

The sommelier and the dessert staff did their jobs perfectly, and the customer service was perfect (^^)♪

I had heard rumors that high-quality ingredients such as sea urchin, abalone, truffles, and caviar were used generously, but when I saw the dish that was served in front of me, I expected it to be more plentiful than I had imagined. The value has blown out (lol)

The Ezo abalone, which will be the main course of the day, is wonderful on its own with plenty of black truffles, but the risotto that goes with it is an innovative garnish that uses Aomori apples and komitsu. Best match❗️

I failed to take a photo of Chef Yamaguchi going around holding up a box of trash like a round girl (lol)
The recipe is on Cookpad, she playfully commented.
In fact, all of the recipes are designed by Chef Yamaguchi.

Pairing with a sommelier to match the dish will make the dish even more delicious♪

The main course, the charcoal-grilled beef fillet, had been carefully cooked over charcoal from the moment I entered the restaurant, and due to the perfect degree of cooking, the aroma on the surface and the flavor of the beef fillet, which had little marbling, were wonderful.

Once you've finished eating, you'll start with the appetizer, then cappellini with pine needle crab and tomato extract soup to refresh your mouth before enjoying the main dish.

The finishing dish is linguine made with plenty of fugu milt and shark fin, and the sourness of the yuzu blends perfectly with the umami, making it a delicious and complete meal.

True to its reputation, the course meals and pairings are made with generous use of high-quality ingredients and are ingeniously designed, with the humorous skits by the manager and Chef Yamaguchi adding the perfect spice (´∀｀)♪

I would like to thank the organizer for inviting me, and being able to share delicious food at Yamaguchi with everyone who joined me was a blessing in disguise (´∀｀)♪

Thank you for the meal m(__)m