Comments on: Tentative short-term notice Kyoto meetup

Tentative short-term notice Kyoto meetup

Going To Maine — Sun, 10 Mar 2019 21:24:06 -0800

I'm going to be in Kyoto from some time on March 12 through some time on March 15. Would anyone be around and interested in grabbing a food some time on March 13 or March 14?

By: DoctorFedora

DoctorFedora — Mon, 11 Mar 2019 01:02:16 -0800

Depending on the part of the city, I might be able to make dinner on Thursday, the 14th!

By: DoctorFedora

DoctorFedora — Mon, 11 Mar 2019 01:23:59 -0800

(I'm in the northeast corner of the city and work until 6:00 p.m., but depending on what you might want to get for dinner, Mrs. Fedora and I could probably meet you somewhere! If you have any thoughts or ideas or requests, let me know and we'll probably be able to offer a suggestion or two.)

By: Going To Maine

Going To Maine — Mon, 11 Mar 2019 17:13:40 -0800

Hey! I (+1) will be staying in Kyoto downtown near the river but obviously hotel location is not a specific constraint. Once we have a sense of that I can provide better info!

By: Hactar

Hactar — Mon, 11 Mar 2019 18:29:15 -0800

I'm living here and completely missed the previous meetup, but I am interested. I'm basically free whenever. I'm up near DoctorFedora, but traveling is no problem.

By: DoctorFedora

DoctorFedora — Mon, 11 Mar 2019 23:09:58 -0800

OK, so I assume that by "downtown near the river" you probably mean, like, along the Kamo river, between Sanjo and Shijo, near all the shopping and stuff? If you have a broad category of food you might want, or even just a budget suggestion, or a part of town you'd want to have dinner in (if you plan to be traveling around town during the day), I suspect that my very knowledgeable wife will have a great suggestion, or maybe I might even be able to offer something of reasonable value. ; ) Overall, if possible, I'd generally recommend sort of avoiding the really crowded shopping area that is (likely) near your hotel, but there are plenty of other options around, and even there, you can get some good food if you're willing to either spend some cash or just put up with crowds. ALSO if there are any dietary restrictions, it is SUPER VALUABLE to know them! Japan generally has difficulty accommodating vegetarians, much less, well, anything else, so if there's anything you can't/won't eat, that will prove EXTREMELY HELPFUL to know ahead of time!

By: Going To Maine

Going To Maine — Tue, 12 Mar 2019 00:26:44 -0800

Hey! We will probably try to do northeast side things on Thursday (e.g. Ginkaku-ji). All food is good food, but one of us is meh on fish. We are both interested in good tofu and yuba if you have cool ideas in that regard, but vegetarian stuff is not a strict requirement.

By: DoctorFedora

DoctorFedora — Tue, 12 Mar 2019 03:07:22 -0800

I'll ask Mrs. Fedora about good tofu and yuba! Both of these are absolutely findable in Kyoto.

By: DoctorFedora

DoctorFedora — Tue, 12 Mar 2019 03:14:10 -0800

One potential yuba option is a place up nearish us called Yubasen, by Kokusaikaikan subway station or Iwakura train station, that does fancy meals like this with a focus on yuba. The example meal pictured is ¥2,400 and includes yuba soup; seasonal appetizer; warm kumiage yuba (basically just fresh yuba in a pile with soy milk?); your choice of fish, meat, yuba, or tempura main dish; yuba rice or rice with chirimen sansho (whitebait fish seasoned with sansho pepper); Kyoto-style pickled vegetables; white miso soup; seasonal dessert; and an after-meal drink of coffee, black tea, or soy milk. They also offer even more lavish multi-course meals, too, if you're feeling extra fancy.

By: DoctorFedora

DoctorFedora — Tue, 12 Mar 2019 04:53:42 -0800

Honestly we've lived near Yubasen for years now and I would love to use this as an excuse to finally check it out, so if you're cool with it, I can make a reservation?

By: Going To Maine

Going To Maine — Tue, 12 Mar 2019 05:19:06 -0800

Yes! This sounds great. Maybe we should do it at 7:00?

By: emmling

emmling — Tue, 12 Mar 2019 05:39:37 -0800

Aww, if this were on a weekend I'd be able to make it, but there's no way I'm gonna be able to get from Sakai up to Kyoto (and then back to Osaka) on a work night. I hope everyone has fun!

By: DoctorFedora

DoctorFedora — Tue, 12 Mar 2019 05:58:37 -0800

Can I do a 7:30 reservation instead, just in case one or both of us needs to work as much overtime as we did yesterday and today?

By: Going To Maine

Going To Maine — Tue, 12 Mar 2019 06:01:21 -0800

Sure, absolutely!

By: DoctorFedora

DoctorFedora — Tue, 12 Mar 2019 15:16:18 -0800

Okay, cool! I'll make a 7:30 reservation for tomorrow at some point today!

By: DoctorFedora

DoctorFedora — Tue, 12 Mar 2019 22:11:42 -0800

Reservation secured! Once you're up in that area, Yubasen is next to McDonald's (I don't think it has a non-Japanese sign, if memory serves), so worst-case scenario, you can just look for McDonald's and then go to the little place next to it (the one that doesn't look like a Chili's/Applebee's sort of place — the other side of McDonald's).

By: DoctorFedora

DoctorFedora — Thu, 14 Mar 2019 00:09:13 -0800

To confirm: five-person 7:30 p.m. reservation made for Going To Maine +1, me +1, and Hactar

By: DoctorFedora

DoctorFedora — Thu, 14 Mar 2019 17:37:16 -0800

Well hey, dinner was pretty good! Thanks again to everyone for dropping by and providing us with an excuse to finally check out Yubasen after five years. Have a lovely time in Nara and Osaka!

By: Going To Maine

Going To Maine — Thu, 14 Mar 2019 18:53:44 -0800

Dinner was great! Thanks for finding such a good restaurant, making the reservations, and doing all the hard work. It was great to talk and eat together, and I hope y'all continue to have a good time in Kyoto.