Kyoto is rich with small eateries and tiny bars. Some of them are hidden away, perhaps even intimidating to enter. But if they are advertising sake in some way, they can be hard to resist.
Sometimes, we’re as interested in seeing what kind of food is being served as we are in the sake itself. These two establishments in Kyoto both served intriguing dishes.
At “sot-l’y-laisse”, known more for its chû-hai (shôchû highball) with fruit in it, there were several decent selections of sake on the menu. Our local friend recommended the sliced avocado with dried konbu and sesame seeds sprinkled on top. It was served in a dish with vegetable oil.
Sake Cafe Hanna on a tiny backstreet didn’t escape our notice because of the sugidama hanging outside. On a wall near the entrance was an intriguing ‘mosaic’ of sake bottle caps. This ultra-casual, cozy (cramped?), and charmingly cluttered bar run by a lone proprietress (“Hanna”) had a great selection of chilled and room-temperature sake for decent prices.
The dish we got was red konyaku from her native Shiga prefecture with strips of dried seaweed on top, and a slice of salami with garnished cream cheese.
