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2024.7.18
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Miyagawa-cho Tensho Exterior

The secret story behind the opening of Miyagawa-cho Tensho: A gem of a kaiseki cuisine at a tempura kappo restaurant in Miyagawa-cho.

May 29, 2024 open

The stone pavement of Miyagawa-cho is filled with the atmosphere of a flower street in the ancient capital. Along the street is the tempura restaurant Miyagawa-cho Tensho (Higashiyama-ku, Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture).

Miyagawa-cho Tensho Interior view

Standing behind the clean and beautiful white-brown counter made of Yoshino cypress is the owner, Mr. Ryuji Hasegawa. Tempura is best when it is freshly fried. We want our customers to enjoy tempura at its best timing.

Tensho, Miyagawa-cho, owner

Mr. Hasegawa, with his simple smile, is from Hokkaido. He grew up on a farm in Betsukai, where there are more cows than people. After training in Sapporo and Osaka, he moved to Kyoto at the age of 22. [He worked in the kitchen of Tempura Yoshikawa Ryokan for 21 years, 18 of which he served as head chef, preserving the flavor of the food.
The course that Mr. Hasegawa prepares is a great way to enjoy authentic Japanese cuisine that makes the best use of his polished skills in dishes other than tempura.

Miyagawa-cho Tensho Tempura

All dishes are examples of the 24,200 yen Tempura Kaiseki. To avoid stomach upset even if you eat a lot, light and mild 100% soybean oil is used. Scallop caviar, which is fried just right and soft inside, is a standard ingredient, and the tempura is served with Setouchi Araishio or Sansho salt or tempura sauce.

There are a total of 10 tempura items in the course. Seasonal seafood and vegetables are carefully selected and purchased at the Kyoto Central Market in the morning or directly from the producing area. The tempura is handled with great care, with fine adjustments made to suit the ingredients, such as using a thicker batter for ingredients with a high water content.

Miyagawa-cho Tensho Cuisine

There is also an ingenious way to serve different kinds of tempura dishes so that you never get tired of them. Kamo eggplant and Guji tempura with crispy scales, ponzu sauce and condiments.

The trick is not to overmix the batter, as it can become sticky, but to let the batter breathe. I don't measure the temperature, but judge the best oil condition by sound and appearance. I try to make sure the surface is crispy and the inside is soft and fluffy.

Miyagawa-cho Tensho Tempura

Shrimp with an impressive appearance that has been prepped and straightened beautifully.

The tempura, filled with craftsmanship, will bring a smile to anyone's face when they take a bite. The time spent waiting and listening to the pleasant sound of the tempura being fried in front of your eyes is also blissful. Our tempura starts and ends with prawns. Shrimp is everyone's favorite ingredient.

Miyagawa-cho Tensho Donburi

Kakiage-don with sakura shrimps. The combination of crispy sakura shrimps and glossy rice cooked in a Shigaraki-ware earthenware pot made by Unoi Kiln is irresistible!

The careful preparation of the dishes, which locked in the charm of tempura right down to the last bowl of rice, and Hasegawa's personality filled my stomach as well as my heart with a sense of well being.

Tensho, Miyagawa-cho, owner

Ryuji Hasegawa, owner of the store. Born in Betsukai Town, Hokkaido. After graduating from high school, he gained experience as a chef in the world of Japanese cuisine, and worked as the head chef at Ryokan Tempura Yoshikawa for 18 years before setting up his own restaurant.

Miyagawa-cho Tensho

  • Miyagawa-cho, Tensho
  • May 29, 2024 open
  • 4-300-5 Miyagawa-suji, Higashiyama-ku, Kyoto-shi, Kyoto
  • 3 minutes walk from Exit 1 of "Gion-Shijo Station" of Keihan
  • Tel. 075-708-3356
  • 17:30-22:00 (Entry/19:00)
    By appointment only
  • Closed on Sundays and twice a month on Mondays
  • All seats non-smoking No private room No parking
  • https://www.instagram.com/tensyou.1093/
*Please note that the information contained herein is subject to change without notice.
*Since this site uses automatic translation, the translation may differ from the original Japanese content.

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