Travelled a long way today to Arashiyama, took almost 2hrs! This area is definitely a tourist spot, I’ve never seen Kyoto this crowded! One of the most nature-beautiful %Arabica stores has got to be this! It’s next to the amazing Katsura River and you get to enjoy the entire splendid view of the river from the barista’s point of view, really beautiful! The entire store was fully packed with people and the baristas have got endless and endless amount of orders. Finally got my coffee after a good 25mins! Went to Lawson to get some snacks as I was already starving by now, should had got something this morning first before I head to Kyoto. Got some yakitoris and a pizza steamed bun, they were amazing! Lawson’s yakitori stick is a must try, please put this down! The pizza bun was filled with tomato-herb sauce with a stretchy cheese center, amazing!
Following after, to Tenryuji Temple and Arashiyama Bamboo Grove, they are quite close to each other. The bamboo grove was really beautiful, but you certainly need some photography skills to capture its aesthetic. Struggled for a while before I finally managed to figure out the correct angles. The Tenryuji Temple is listed as an UNESCO heritage site. It is ranked first amongst the city’s 5 great zen temples. I only paid to enter the garden, which was in its original form since 1339. Most of the buildings had been rebuilt after damages caused by fires and wars over the centuries.
Next, I head over to a popular donut place called Koe Donuts. The donuts here were different from yesterday’s, they had a moist and dense texture, almost like a cake. There were plenty of flavours to choose from, so many varieties! There were powder dusted ones - sugar, cinnamon, matcha, kinako, etc; sugar glazed ones, chocolate glazed ones, with fillings, with toppings, and many more. I got the pistachio donut - rarely you see donut in this flavour - and a cinnamon sugar donut.
Then to Cafe Bibliotic Hello, wanted to try their croissant but I guess I arrived a little too late, no more pastries left. Got their melon tart, which consists of a cheese tart topped with some melon slices. Japan fruits are always so sweet and juicy! Such a simple dessert but taste so good! It was quite expensive though, considering the size of it, it was so tiny! And with the same price, you can get a nice bowl of ramen with lots of ingredients.
Went over to Kichi Kichi Omurice next to try if I will be able to queue for a seat. Tried booking online but it was already fully booked till the next month. The only chance in getting a seat is if someone did not turned up for their reservation or they finished their meal quick enough such that there is enough time left for you to dine before the next reservation arrives. Do you remember that video that went viral many years back, of a Japanese chef cooking up fried rice with a fluffy omelette on it? He then slices the egg, revealing a semi-cook omelette and pour some brown sauce over? This is the place! There was already about 6-7 people in front of me at the waiting line when I arrived - note this is the waiting line not reservation line. After waiting for about 30mins, the staff came to check the number of pax dining and advised that we can continue to wait for a seat, but it is not guaranteed that we get to dine tonight.
LUCKILY, there was a 1pax availability at 6:30pm! About 1.5hrs more to go, but I was definitely okay to wait! So glad that I got to witness this viral omurice cooking “performance” in person! It was definitely really entertaining and Chef Yukimura Motokichi was so funny! The rice was not cheap though... The rice was cooked with onions, chicken, mushroom, edamame, butter and demi-glace sauce, but the highlight of the dish is definitely the omelette! I went with the half portion since there is the option as I want to try a ramen place next, and it cost ¥1450! The full portion cost ¥2700, $34 for a plate of fried rice? If it’s not for the special performance, I would say it’s actually not worth paying for it. Not saying that the rice was not good, it was fantastic, but for the standard of it without the performance, I will probably pay max ¥1200 for it, given that you can already get a good bowl of ramen with lots of ingredients with just ¥1000.
Lastly before I head back to Osaka was to try the special black ramen from Gogyo Ramen that I saw on Instagram. Sounds cool right? BUT, unfortunately and very disappointed, the ramen was one of the worst I’ve ever had. It just looked special because the broth was black - it’s a burnt shoyu ramen - but the broth was not as flavourful as others, the noodles was bad, the chasiu was tough and chewy! Unlike other ramen places, this place is more like a proper restaurant, and they charged really high service charge! DAMN
Exchange Rate = SG$1 : ¥79.30
Day 7 Expenses
%Arabica: Latte ¥550
Lawson:
- Shio Yakitori ¥130
- Chicken Skin Yakitori ¥130
- Pizza and Cheese Steamed Bun ¥130
Tenryuji Temple: ¥500 (only garden)
Koe Donuts:
- Cinnamon Sugar ¥230
- Pistachio ¥280
Cafe Bibliotic Hello:
- Latte ¥550 (after tax ¥605)
- Melon Tart ¥700 (after tax ¥770)
Kichi Kichi Omurice: Fluffy Open Omelette over Fried Rice half size ¥1,450
Gogyo Ramen: Burnt Shoyu Ramen ¥1,309 (after tax ¥1,749)
Vending Machine, Hot Coffee: ¥140
TOTAL: ¥6,664 = SG$84.05
Previous Expenses: SG$2,300.55
Current Total Expenses: SG$2,384.60