Kishin, Kyoto’s King of Breakfast

The simplest things are often the most difficult to master. In Japan, the art of breakfast is one of these, and there are few places which manage to get it right. At Kishin in Kyoto, one man has made it his mission to do just that. His name is Atsushi Nakahigashi, and he learnt the ropes in his father’s two-star restaurant, Sojiki Nakahigashi, situated close to Ginkaku-ji Temple. After six years working in a Buddhist restaurant in New York, he returned to Japan.

Here, breakfast starts with a serving of kumiage yuba, soy skin on shredded cabbage and topped with a dot of wasabi. Next come the soups (meat, fish or vegetable) and a small bowl of rice above the chimney which comes from Shiga prefecture. Every now and then, the chef opens the restaurant to other chefs, and gives them carte blanche to express themselves as they wish.