Tonight's course was delicious again. The conger eel was great, the eel and shredded radish were also good, as well as the sea bream and sea urchin. I prefer abalone to be a bit softer in texture. Haha (I'll add a luxurious and cheeky comment too lol). The finish with Omi beef was also fantastic. It was a completely different experience from a certain hard-to-book restaurant. I truly felt that. Thank you, Mr. Maeda!

I made a reservation through a friend and visited this restaurant for the first time! I really enjoyed everything I ate. I can't share photos, so I'll list the menu items: fig sesame sauce, grilled ayu with salt, fried ginkgo nuts from Shiga Prefecture, hamo sashimi and matsutake mushrooms, boiled white miso soup, grilled eel, hairy crab from Aomori Prefecture, steamed sushi with conger eel from Hokkaido, seasonal pickles, water eggplant, peach and sherbet, mascarpone yogurt sauce, and water yokan. Thank you for the wonderful meal!

I had a fun time. There is always something that makes me feel new. And the head chef's bright atmosphere and smile are nice, right? There is only one apprentice, so I always feel that the apprentice must be working hard. This time I enjoyed the wine. Thank you for the meal. Unfortunately, interior photos are not allowed, so here is one outside. I wonder if this is okay...? The guests were also very pleased.

Maeda is a Japanese restaurant that has been awarded three Michelin stars. The course fee is 45,000 yen. Taking photos of the dishes is not allowed. Throughout the course, I felt that the dishes were light and did not put a heavy burden on the stomach. I will definitely visit again.

A three-star Michelin Japanese restaurant located on the south side of Gion-cho in Kyoto. This day was a feast to enjoy Tanba matsutake mushrooms to the fullest. The matsutake mushrooms harvested in the morning were prepared in various ways such as grilling, in a soup bowl, fried, and steamed with rice. I learned for the first time at this age that when something is so fresh, its aroma doesn't escape outside. When the matsutake mushrooms were placed in front of me, surprisingly, there was not much aroma, but as soon as I put them in my mouth, they emitted a powerful scent. The menu included Tanba chestnut, thinly sliced grilled matsutake, spring rolls with ayu fish roe, mackerel and condiments rolled in seaweed, matsutake and conger eel soup, sashimi of sea bream with roasted sake and shiitake mushroom soy sauce, bonito tataki with ponzu sauce, grilled matsutake (half-sliced and thinly sliced), dried kamasu fish with chrysanthemum leaf salad, deep-fried opened matsutake, turnip, gusu, mitsuba, and dried shiitake mushroom cooked together, matsutake rice steamed with salmon roe, served with kabosu sorbet and pear compote.

It's a Kyoto traditional Japanese restaurant with 3 stars that I've been looking forward to for a long time. No photos allowed. The dishes are certainly carefully prepared and delicious, but I didn't feel overwhelmingly impressed. The beauty of the colors in the dishes is truly wonderful. Once it reaches this level, I think it's a matter of personal preference. The menu includes: 1. Fig, shiitake mushroom, okra, and sesame dressing 2. Ayu fish with roe 3. Blue crab 4. White tilefish with broth 5. Ginkgo nut 6. Sea bream with sea urchin from Awaji, served raw. Braised rockfish. Sake. 7. Grilled eggplant with Tanaka chili peppers 8. Matsutake mushroom and softshell turtle 9. Grilled pike conger eel 10. Matsutake mushroom tempura 11. Aomori wild eel 12. Chrysanthemum greens and shimeji mushrooms in broth. Powdered dried sardines. 13. Turnip, mitsuba leaf, shiitake mushroom, and conger eel 14. Salmon roe with sticky rice. Pickles. 15. Kabosu citrus ice cream with pear compote 16. Warabi mochi

When it comes to Japanese cuisine, Kyoto is synonymous with Gion. Gion is a sophisticated district where history and big money are in play, frequented by numerous business and celebrity figures. Among the 6 Kyoto restaurants awarded three Michelin stars in 2023, 2 are located in Gion. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that these are among the top in Japan. Although photography is prohibited inside the restaurant, the entrance alone exudes a special aura. It's a different kind of atmosphere compared to Kikunoi and others. Upon entering, I expected a tense atmosphere with the head chef present, but it was actually a friendly and bright ambiance inside, which was nice. The simple yet flavorful dishes with rich dashi showcased an exceptional level of ingredients. I truly experienced authentic Japanese cuisine.

This was my first visit to this Michelin ★ 3-star restaurant. There are 10 seats at the counter, and reservations can be made from 2 months in advance. Photography is not allowed, so like everyone else, I only have a picture of the noren (curtain). The dishes I had were a variety of delicacies including live beer from Nara, demon bear from Miyagi, ink from Onoe in Hiroshima, moon after the rain from Fukushima, Hiroto River from Nara, young ayu fish with taro sprout and seaweed, freshwater crab with rapeseed blossoms, nanohana, baby firefly squid, urui, myoga, seaweed-wrapped sea bream roe, simmered small taro, octopus with celery, yuzu, yuzu peel, and salted kelp, steamed clam soup with Denjo anago eel, frosted with sansho pepper and wasabi, red clam from Oita, sesame-dressed hamaboufuu, bamboo shoot and tree bud dressed abalone steak with white asparagus, white amadai with spring onion and bamboo myoga, sea bream white roe with bamboo shoot, himekawa clam, tomato mebaru, and lotus root manju, Ansei kumquat, warabi mochi. The portions were small with several dishes served. You can enjoy the live feeling of Maeda-san's skilled work and the perfect coordination with the second chef from across the counter. While preserving tradition, I felt Maeda's unique touch in combining ingredients and presentation. The standout dish of the day was the clam and bamboo shoot soup. The bamboo shoot was delicious, but the star was the clam. The rich flavor of the clam in the broth was exquisite. The clam meat was large and tender. It was a dish where you could truly savor the deliciousness of the clam. After this, I fell at home and am currently hospitalized. I am posting this review from my hospital bed. Hospital food is quite tough. I want to be discharged soon!

Having a meal in Kyoto for the first time this year was a delightful and lively experience, allowing us to fully enjoy the New Year's atmosphere. Every dish was delicious, showcasing the unique combinations and arrangements that only the skilled chef could create. The perfect balance between tradition and modernity never fails to impress, keeping us entertained without getting bored. The chef's cheerful and bright demeanor, relaxing smiles and conversations, the precise movements of the apprentices, and the pleasant atmosphere that is both dignified and casual all contribute to a wonderful dining experience. Looking forward to the next visit already.

I visited the Michelin three-star restaurant "Maeda" in Kyoto. The restaurant has won the Bronze Award on Tabelog and was selected as one of the top 100 Japanese cuisine restaurants in the West in 2021. The restaurant offers a small-portion, multi-dish style of dining, similar to what a sushi restaurant offers. The quality of the ingredients used is exceptional, with the highest quality ingredients being chosen. The atmosphere is lively, with young staff members adjusting their cooking based on the head chef's feeling in real-time. The experience is intense and engaging, with a focus on the food rather than interactive communication with the chef. The menu is omakase style, with no specific brands mentioned for the drinks. The bill for the evening, including drinks, was in the 40,000 yen range. The dining experience is likened to attending a live performance where the focus is on receiving and enjoying the food rather than engaging in conversation with the chef.

Among the many wonderful Japanese restaurants in Japan, why is this restaurant awarded three Michelin stars? Anyone can say "delicious" or "tasty," but when it comes to accurate comparisons, it is probably difficult for ordinary food writers or self-proclaimed gourmets to evaluate this restaurant. This is because without consciously tasting and experiencing various Japanese cuisine restaurants, it is very difficult to notice and compare the differences at this level. Just like how understanding the essence of cutting-edge modern/innovative fusion cuisine is difficult without having consciously eaten classic French or classic Italian cuisine in Europe or Japan. Otherwise, in Kyoto where there are many up-and-coming young restaurants alongside established ones like "Kikunoi," "Wakuden," "Hyotei," "Sasuki," "Ogata," "Kicho," "Mizai," "Maruyama," "Hamasaku," and "Nakahigashi," it would be challenging to express in one's own words why "Maeda" has three stars. This is why there are unusually few reviews on this restaurant's Tabelog page. I believe the uniqueness of Kyoto's "Maeda" is consolidated on the single board of the counter inside the restaurant. The cherry wood, which is close to white wood, darkens in color over time, making it a high-quality wood. When you enter the concrete building's noren, you are greeted by a lithograph of Hiroshi Senju's waterfall, and the interior is luxuriously decorated with straight-grained wood typical of a first-class establishment. The interior has only 8-10 counter seats with no private rooms. The first thing that catches your eye upon entering is likely the single board of the counter. When I first saw this counter, I often thought it was the same high-grade walnut as the one at the Park Hyatt Kyoto's Bar "Kohaku" where I usually stay and watch the sunset until dinner time, but it turned out to be black cherry. Why is it not a white wood counter like other restaurants, such as hinoki, icho, or sen? The details are not certain. Perhaps due to the recent extraordinary price increases in white wood, or is it a deliberate choice? Either way, as a result, this wood serves as an exquisite "deviation" in terms of fashion, enhanced by the lighting, giving the interior a slightly modern impression and increasing the compatibility with the traditional and sometimes modern dishes served by the owner. The meal starts with a blue underglaze pottery dish with only the dishes prepared by Mr. Maeda and his knife inside the counter. Is it intentional to use only this blue underglaze pottery? If so, that strategy is extremely effective. Because the limited color scheme gradually becomes vibrant and colorful with the dishes and beautiful tableware in the space. The style is to thoroughly enjoy the finest seasonal ingredients from all over Japan at that time, such as red snapper, soft-shelled turtle, mackerel, abalone, sea urchin, ayu with roe, crab, wild matsutake mushrooms from Tohoku, wild conger eel, wild eel, wild matsutake mushrooms, etc., in appropriate cooking and portions. This approach of not having a menu like "this dish is the same as that famous restaurant" or "that dish is the same as that" can be seen as originality. And not only the taste but also the quantity and balance of sashimi, grilled dishes, fried dishes, steamed dishes, etc., are beautiful. Since the owner himself seems to be disheartened by the fact that many people judge dishes based on their ears (such as the origin and training place) rather than their own taste buds and eyes, he provides dishes without being overly concerned about whether they are from Kyoto, allowing modern Japanese chefs living in the present era to serve dishes that they genuinely consider delicious if they were to eat these ingredients themselves, without being pretentious or arrogant, in a natural manner. By doing so, these dishes have successfully evolved into a fusion of modern and classic Japanese cuisine. It is said to be from the famous restaurant "Sakuragawa," but even for something as simple as slicing conger eel, it is not just about�

I always enjoy it as usual. I like the balance between classic and lightness. I can't take photos of the dishes, so here is a photo of the curtain instead. The head chef's friendly personality and sophisticated kaiseki cuisine made for a wonderful evening once again. Thank you as always.

I went to a Michelin 3-star restaurant in Kyoto for a friend's birthday celebration. No photography allowed. The course consisted of a total of 12 dishes, including the signature grilled rice ball at the end. Every dish was so delicious and memorable that I was truly moved beyond words! You won't find the typical dishes served at other Japanese restaurants here. The chef's incredible skills in combining ingredients led to a continuous stream of amazing flavors. Honestly, I felt a similar level of genius in the chef as in Chef Kamoshi Yakusmoto. Maeda is probably the third person in my short life that I've thought of in that way, haha. Some of the dishes we enjoyed were mugwort tofu with red sea urchin from Obama, Dutch-style cooked Kamo eggplant with white asparagus and almonds, firefly squid sushi roll, hairy crab with pounded okra and hamabo-fu, Maizuru scallop with Abashiri asparagus and boiled rock mushrooms, abalone and sea cucumber in a bowl, sweetfish, bigfin reef squid sashimi with red sea urchin from Obama, soba with seaweed from Shimanto and cherry shrimp, lotus root mochi with silk pods, taro, and octopus, eel with chili pepper, pureed green soybeans, tomato and jun-sai, grilled rice ball, Hyuganatsu sherbet with mango, and warabi mochi.

Today, for dinner in Kyoto, I visited Maeda-san's renowned Michelin ★★★ Kyoto cuisine restaurant located on the south side of Hanamikoji Street, looking forward to enjoying the finest ingredients and dishes. Seated at the spacious counter made of cherry blossom wood, Maestro Chef Maeda's meticulously selected Kyoto cuisine, with its vibrant colors, perfect flavors, and expertly cooked textures, showcases his culinary genius. The dishes I enjoyed at Maeda-san today in May included unforgettable flavors such as rich-tasting Yuba Surinagashi, charcoal-grilled sweetfish to savor bitterness, Sakura shrimp fritters wrapped in exquisite vegetables and sauce, and a delightful Kasujiru with silky tofu melting sweetness and umami. The dishes were abundant, including succulent grilled turban shell, savory seared torigai shellfish, and tangy katsuo tataki with spicy mustard. Although the prices are not cheap, just like the renowned Suzue-san, Maeda-san offers a memorable dining experience with exceptional ingredients. Highly recommended. Unfortunately, I cannot share photos due to the restaurant's policy. The menu for today was priced at 98,000 yen for two people.

I love the delicate and thoughtful course with a well-balanced menu. It's kaiseki, but it doesn't get boring - light yet delicious. The tableware and glass tea sets are also lovely. I always admire how they manage to serve this course for two people.

A restaurant that has been awarded three Michelin stars in the 2022 Kyoto Michelin Guide. Located in Gion, Kyoto, this Japanese restaurant stands out among many others with its delicate presentation and high-level ambiance. The taste makes you want to visit again and again. I would love to revisit someday.

Maeda-san's dishes might have been the most delicious Japanese cuisine I've ever had. Each dish made me genuinely impressed. Despite the surprising number of dishes, I was supposed to be full, but they were so delicious, so delicious that I was moved until the end. I realized how happy it is to feel this delicious. The chef said, "We don't have main dishes." It's so profound that there are no main dishes. That's why every dish is outstanding. I feel like I'm in a highly praised restaurant, having been lucky enough to visit three times. As an Instagram girl, I'd be happy if I could take even a few photos, but the dishes are lovely to feel in your heart. I definitely want to come back on a special day.

Revisited. Quietly standing on the outskirts of Hanamikoji. They are extremely particular about everything. On this day, it was a Matsutake mushroom feast harvested in the morning. The Matsutake from Tango is a branded Matsutake, specifically from the Kyoto North region. While taking photos is prohibited at this restaurant, they said it was okay to take a photo of the Matsutake, I don't understand the criteria, haha. The head chef is young, friendly, and it was a fun time.

Fig, okra, eggplant with sesame sauce, mackerel sushi with chestnut, steamed shirako, udon with natural sea eel, lotus root and cucumber, ayu spring rolls, ginkgo nuts, Aomori turnip, soft-shelled turtle soup with matsutake mushrooms, sea bream with kelp, moist sake and seaweed, sea urchin with matsutake mushrooms, keihokucho 1 kilogram for 250,000 yen, freshly harvested soba from Higashikagura-cho, Hokkaido, dried bonito flakes, shredded matsutake mushrooms, raw shrimp, shiitake mushrooms grown in sandy soil, small taro, yuba, conger eel and lotus root, Manchurian matsutake mushrooms, ikura rice, osinko, chestnut ice cream.

On the evening of September 2020, I went to the Michelin three-star restaurant "Maeda" for dinner. Photography, including food and drinks, was not allowed inside the restaurant. Here is a list of what I ate: fig, eggplant, okra, tofu with white sesame, spring roll with baby ayu, ginkgo nut, cooked Nara demon bear mackerel with tade vinegar and yuzu, seaweed roll with myoga and Hayama pepper, udon with matsutake mushroom, daikon, and soft-shelled turtle broth, kelp-marinated sea bream, Awaji sea urchin, grilled iwatake seaweed with frost guji, snow crab and winter melon with ponzu jelly, small taro and duck simmered dish, bamboo shoot and karasumi, sticky rice with matsutake and iwatake pepper, sticky rice with Western pear and Shine Muscat grape, fig sherbet, kudzu yaki with sweet red bean paste. Being a Michelin three-star restaurant, the dishes were luxurious, such as matsutake mushroom soup with soft-shelled turtle broth, and rice with mukago and karasumi. However, despite the delicate flavors, a large amount of citrus fruits like kabosu were used, making it seem like the citrus fruits were the main focus. It's puzzling why so much citrus was necessary.