6 | LUXlife Magazine Tofu Restaurant of the Year 2024 – Kyoto Based in Kyoto City, the Tousuiro Kyoto and Tousuiro Gion are traditional Japanese restaurants based in the Kyoto area, offering an extensive range of authentic dishes, catering predominantly for those with specific dietary requirements, such as the vegan and gluten-free communities. We profile the firm and its delicious offerings as it reigns supreme in the Global Vegan Awards 2024. Kyoto, officially Kyoto City, is the capital city of Kyoto Prefecture in the Kansai region of Japan's largest and most populous island of Honshu. As one of the oldest municipalities in Japan, Kyoto is home to around 1.5 million residents, and sees many hundreds of thousands of visitors each and every year, who hope to soak up the traditional culture of this fascinating country. There are two restaurants under the Tousuiro Kyoto brand, one is the Kiyamachi Restaurant, based in the Kiyamachi area at the heart of Kyoto city. The restaurant is a Kyoto’s preserved traditional house from the Taisho era, where guests can enjoy delicious tofu dishes on the waterfront of the Kamo River. During the summer months, diners can sit and relax on the “kawayuka” floor and feel the river breezes, in a truly traditional experience that is one of the finest in Kyoto. The second restaurant, Tousuiro Gion, is based in the Gion area and is situated in a preserved 130-year-old merchant house, located in the traditional region of Kyoto which is most famously known for its incredible sightseeing. Here, the team serve a Kaiseki menu mainly using tofu and seasonal ingredients. There is also a vegan Kaiseki course and glutenfree Kaiseki course as well, offering visitors something unique and delicious to heighten their experience of the city and all it has to offer. Respect for the Japanese traditions and culture is of the upmost importance to Tousuiro, and the restaurants strive to provide customers with as authentic an experience as possible. “Time has been moving rapidly in Japan,” explains a spokesperson for the brand, talking about the booming tourist industry in the area. “Compared to previous years, many customers have come to Japan and Kyoto from other prefectures or overseas.” The spokesperson continues to tell us that, up until about 10 years ago, there was hardly any vegetarian or vegan interest in Japan. It was only through providing tofu dishes and plant-based options on its menu that Tousuiro realised there was, in fact, a huge appetite (excuse the pun!) for this kind of cuisine. “Many customers had told us to make a vegetarian and vegan menu but to be honest we did not know anything about that culture,” the spokesperson adds. “And then, we have tested many times to make a vegetarian and vegan course - now this course is the one of the most popular courses in Tousuiro!” The dedicated team of staff at both restaurant sites strive on a daily basis to provide a full experience to customers, both through their delicious food and also through their motivation and eagerness to see visitors enjoying themselves. There are, of course, challenges to operating a successful chain of restaurants in a bustling tourist region, one of which is communication as, more often than not, customers and staff members alike struggle to understand each other. Tousuiro has combatted these obstacles with its existing customer base by making contact through email, and regularly despatches communications to restaurant goers in this way, telling them about exciting new dishes on the menu and offers that can be found at the restaurants. For example, the new Yubanabe meal experience, which consists of having ‘yuba’ (tofu skin) mixed with soy milk and dashi in a ‘nabe’ (Japanese pot) and cooked in front of guests - this is fast-becoming one of the restaurant’s hero dishes. “The taste and visual of yuba will change due to the timing of pulling up the yuba from the nabe,” the spokesperson elaborates. “The experience of making yuba will be a precious time for visitors and we can promise that it will be a big memory of your trip.” In recognition of its commitment to offering authentic food in a traditional setting, Tousuiro recently celebrated success in the Global Vegan Awards 2024, attaining the title of Tofu Restaurant of the Year 2024 – Kyoto for its impressive efforts. Now, Tousuiro is keen to continue to offer exciting and delicious new dishes to suit all dietary requirements in the Kyoto region. With gluten-free being a priority, the restaurants recently began creating a Kaiseki set, which is already going down very well with customers both old and new. Contact: Tousuiro Gion Company: Tousuiro Kyoto Web Address: tousuiro.com/en-home Dec24062
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