Chef Makoto Fujiwara has long turned heads with his seamless fusion of Japanese with French techniques and produce and tradition with modern elements. This did not change with the opening of Ryō-shō in 2022, where Fujiwara does not let himself be restrained by classic Japanese cuisine, focusing on creating dishes using the best ingredients of any kind and origin in each season. He trusts his instincts when it comes to delicious ingredients and the perfect methods to accentuate their innate qualities. With half the guests hailing from overseas, Fujiwara always serves meat dishes and offers exquisite wine-pairing courses. The collection of champagne and wine can compete with the best French restaurants and confirms Ryō-shō’s status as a luxury dining destination. You will want to indulge in a pairing course in the capable hands of sommelier Hiroyuki Jinguji, who has been working with Chef Fujiwara for many years.

Ryō-shō’s cuisine is a monthly changing omakase course structured according to the traditions of chakaiseki tea ceremony cuisine. A spring menu will feature premium spring ingredients like white-fleshed fish, white asparagus, and sansho flowers, whereas renkon lotus root and hamo daggertooth pike conger will most certainly appear in summer. The menu always includes a meat dish, be it charcoal-grilled beef or sukiyaki, or game meats like deer and wild boar in winter.

It begins with sakizuke, akin to an amuse bouche. Tea ceremony cuisine always begins with a small serving of rice to warm guests’ bellies and prepare them for the meal. This tradition comes from the notion that drinking a cup of rich green tea would be too stimulating for an empty stomach. At Ryō-shō, this may be a morsel of rice topped with small fried fish and a fava bean and sprinkled with bottarga. Dishes to follow may include the pureed soup of a unique variety of garden peas grown in the Kansai region called usui-mame, topped with boiled white asparagus, oil-poached Ise-ebi lobster, and caviar. It is a visually stunning contrast of green and pink served in a decorative vintage bowl from St. Louis, which has been making crystal creations since 1586. For the owan lidded bowl dish, perfectly clear primary dashi extracted from Rishiri kombu and tuna flakes wafts wonderful aromas the instant you remove the lid to find a velvety shinjo dumpling of crabmeat and pike conger flesh, topped with baby greens.

Sashimi of Akashi sea bream accompanied by green onion sprouts and wasabi is served on a gorgeous antique blue and white porcelain dish. A warming dish of braised daikon radish topped with a glistening piece of teriyaki monkfish liver follows, with a swirl of daikon braising juices, thinly shredded pieces of the white part of naganegi long Japanese green onions, and dots of zesty yuzu. Himegyu beef from Kyoto’s mountainous Ayabe region is served sukiyaki style with a silky poached egg and black truffles. The umami, aroma and textures are heavenly. Other courses include a warming dish called atsumono, a delicacy offered by the chef to keep the sake flowing called shiizakana, and a small bowl of broth called kozuimono that serves as a palate cleanser. Finally comes the rice dish and a refreshing dish of seasonal fruit.

INGREDIENTS
The sumptuous seafood is sourced from Nishiki Market fishmonger Maruyata, and vegetables are supplied by wholesalers at the Central Markets in Osaka and Kyoto. From early spring, bamboo shoots that have just popped through the earth are delivered directly from farmers in Nara’s Kashihara district. One thing is certain: every ingredient used in the Ryō-shō kitchen comes from trusted producers and suppliers known to Fujiwara since his training days, who select and deliver the very best at each moment of every season.