An Insider’s Guide to Authentic Kyoto for Foodies

I have never been to Kyoto, and I was curious as to what this guide would be like. It was such an interesting take on places to visit and what to eat, I love that the author included google maps links to these restaurants and the price range of the foods.
It was rather interesting that the pictures of the dishes were not included and I feel that's the charm of this guide, for anyone who is a genuine foodie-what matters is how to access the restaurants and the dishes they specialize in.
Thanks Netgalley for the eARC.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher, and to Chikashi Miyamoto for this copy of An Insider's Guide to Authentic Kyoto for Foodies in exchange for an honest review! I'm very impressed with how well done this guide is. If you're a foodie who is going to Kyoto, this guide is a must buy! It is not a general guide trying to appeal to everyone, but instead one catering to people who truly love and appreciate food. Every restaurant included comes highly recommended from the author's own experiences or from someone the author trusts. And so I definitely trust this guide!

This guide does a good job of introducing readers to how wonderful a city Kyoto is and offers important-to-remember tips. There are also many useful external links. I've never had a guide that included links like this and I'm incredibly impressed. There is a link for tips on table manners, there are links for the google maps locations of restaurants, there are links to social media of restaurants, and plenty more! I love that Chikashi Miyamoto decided to include these links. It is so beneficial! It makes his guide so much more thorough because it includes access to information that other guides might have left out or summed up instead of providing in full. And because many of the links are for websites in Japanese, I might never have found them on my own if I'd been searching in English. So I am very appreciative of this inclusion! There are some pictures in this guide, but more can be found through these links. Everything is very straightforward and conveniently accessed through your reading device (like your smart phone or something similar). You can have the full experience of this guide with you at all times!

I love how thorough Chikashi Miyamoto was when discussing different restaurants. He includes hours and days they're open. He includes if you need a reservation and how to get it if you do. He includes how much you can expect to spend. He includes if credit cards are accepted. His guide has to be one of the most thorough and well-researched that I've ever seen. There are also other facts I think it's so neat to know about different places he recommends. One of the restaurants mentioned was founded in AD 1000 and is run by a direct descendant in the 24th generation. I was completely in awe reading that. Your appreciation for the food you'll try in Kyoto will soar as you learn things like that through this guide. There is, I'd say, no better guide to food in Kyoto out there, especially not in English. So I wholeheartedly recommend An Insider's Guide to Authentic Kyoto for Foodies!

This book is essentially a targeted guide focusing on food and food-related products in Kyoto. It’s designed more as an electronic book because there are definitely links to maps and other sources throughout. The coverage is extensive and thorough without being excessive. It’s extremely informative.

What I liked: The author presents when establishments started throughout and you can see that many historical places are included. I also liked the information about Japanese food sprinkled throughout. It was not too much.

What I didn’t like: The author created this for his friends and is generously sharing with the general public; however, this is repeated several times. If there were other food-related museums, this might have been a nice addition.

Takeaway: This book is worth reading for people visiting Kyoto. The information is presented in an organized and interesting way.

An Insider’s Guide to Authentic Kyoto for Foodies is a well curated guide with lots of background, culture, and info about authentic and notable restaurants in Kyoto written by Chikashi Miyamoto. Released 12th Dec 2023, it's 104 pages and is available in electronic format. It's worth noting that the ebook format has a handy interactive table of contents as well as interactive links and references throughout. For Kindle Unlimited subscribers, this book is currently included in the KU subscription library to borrow and read for free.

This is precisely as described. A very well curated list of restaurants, across a range of prices, with an emphasis on Kyoto specialties and cuisine. They span a range from street food markets to 3 star Michelin establishments. (The author has made a conscious decision not to include external ratings (like Michelin stars) because it wasn't a factor in inclusion in the guide).

His explanations and background, and his own experiences provide a panoramic view over the choices available. Each entry includes useful info such as price range, set menus (if available), booking difficulty, special dishes, and other info generally not available in English. Particularly useful and salient points such as apps for translation and map/direction apps will come in handy for travelers who are not fluent in Japanese.

There are hyperlinks scattered throughout the book for restaurants and attractions which have an online presence.

Five stars. A useful, concise, well written and accessible guide to gastronomic Kyoto, aimed at travelers, but likely as interesting and useful for locals.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.

I did enjoy a lot this guide, I wish I could go to Kyoto, japan and travel through this places and try the food, its a nice and short guide, remind me of the manga and drama series “Kodoku No Gurume”, the solitary gourmet, in reality what the book is lacking in photos of the actual places, it delivers in hyperlinks to Instagram or other webpages for us to know better the places.

Its short, but I think for someone thinking about travelling to japan in business or even to have fun they will probably make a good use of this guide if food for them is more than only fuel to keep going, I mean, I am Portuguese, for us food is something that connect us to others, so we can appreciate other countries food because that help us to better connect with their culture.

Thank you Netgalley and BooksGoSocial for the free ARC and this is my honest opinion.

Those who are intending to visit Kyoto, those with wanderlust, and those who are foodies will all delight in this fantastic little guide. What started out as a thoughtful and well-researched manual for foodie friends, now published it can be useful not only for restaurant recommendations, but insightful words of advice to those traveling to the cultural capital of Japan. The inclusion of websites and social medial contact information was very helpful and it was really an added bonus to be able to see the wonderful places about which Chikashi Miyamoto writes.