Gion Maruyama

Maruyama is probably the Kaiseki restaurant in Kyoto that I have visited the most times. I ate it three times in the autumn of 2016 alone. But it seems that no food review has been written about Maruyama. Maybe it’s because it’s too familiar, or maybe it’s because Maruyama really changed later on. I hate it as much as I love it. This is probably such an emotion. The founder of Maruyama, Kao Maruyama, is an extraordinary warrior who was trained by Murata Yoshihiro under the tutelage of "Kikunoi" (meter 3). He serves as the head chef at "Kikunoi Roan" (meter 2) , and later served as the chef at "Kodaiji Wajiden" (meter 2), with 12 years of practical experience. In 1988, he opened his own store "Gion Maruyama". Ten years later, he opened another branch "Kenninji Gion Maruyama". Both restaurants received two Michelin stars in 2009, so Chef Jiaying is a culinary expert with four stars. Maruyama's dishes are like carefully crafted works of art. The beauty is deeply rooted in people's hearts and is unforgettable. In addition, the strong sense of season is displayed, and you will have a dreamlike illusion, as if you are enjoying the autumn of Kyoto through this food show. In terms of ingredients, Chef Jiaying is not stingy either. Sea urchin, matsuba crab, and matsutake mushrooms are all available. It seems that he wants to present all the good seasonal ingredients in autumn to diners. Classic cooking methods and stable techniques allow Maruyama's dishes to achieve high scores in every dish. This is also the most important reason why I like Maruyama. As for why I hate it, maybe it's because the business method of "Xueyoudenshi" makes me feel that it deviates from the original insistence of the craftsman. If only life could only be like the first time we met.

The environment is not very big, very simple. We were arranged to a small room on the right side of the entrance. There was a long table with only six seats. A chef behind the long table prepared delicious food for us on the spot. What impressed me most was that he used a delicate, original dark green bamboo tube to serve each guest a small glass of sake. At that time, I thought, bamboo can be seen everywhere in China, but why can't we use it and transform it into such a unique wine container? The Japanese ability to make good use of natural resources and enhance beautification is really worth learning from. Well, when it comes to food, in fact, his dishes are all relatively common ingredients. There is no particularly amazing dish, but the production is more exquisite. In this meal, I was most impressed by the rice, except for the bamboo wine tube. The rice was cooked by hand in a small pot, not the electric rice cooker that Chinese people love. He specially showed us his rice cooker before serving us the rice. The taste was really first-class and very delicious. When eating in Japan, usually all dishes are put away after they are served one by one, and the last dish is a portion of pickles with rice. I ordered the matcha set meal, which is 150 yuan more than the classic set meal, because it is said that matcha desserts are more famous in Kyoto, but the taste is really very ordinary. A small cup of green matcha and a small cake cost only 150 yuan, which is really not worth it. It is recommended not to order the matcha set meal.

Gion Maruyama, Kyoto. Michelin two-star restaurant with an incomprehensible menu. For people who don’t like fish, it cannot be described as delicious. It can only be described as a strange and slightly amazing taste bud experience. The appearance and taste of the salad are good. The carp soup is more suitable to my taste if it is not fried. The sashimi is delicious, the grilled mackerel teriyaki sauce is rich in flavor, the udon noodles are radish soup flavor, the boiled vegetables are fish soup base (fresh), and rice Rice miso soup with pickles, mango smoothie with fruit and jelly

The two-Michelin-star Kaiseki restaurant is hidden in the mountains and can only be found with the guidance of an acquaintance. The kneeling service is truly amazing. The menu is customized and the ingredients are very commendable. The whole dining process feels like an enjoyment.

Gion Maruyama may be one of the most expensive Japanese restaurants in Kyoto. The food is really good and exquisite, just like a work of art. The dining environment is also great, with pavilions, towers, bridges and flowing water. But the price is really too expensive. After gritting our teeth, the two of us spent more than 3,000 yuan. It's really expensive.