Breakfast at Kyoto Train Station (京都駅)

19th July 2010. Written by Xin Li.

Kyoto Train Station, a gigantic, contemporary piece of structure that is “outstanding”. It is like an enormous spaceship has descended upon the ancient capital of Kyoto.

If there is one thing I like about architecture is that it has somewhat make me more aware of structures and buildings. So looking back at my Kyoto trip, I grew to appreciate this piece of architecture by Hiroshi Hara more. The architect was also the mastermind behind the iconic Umeda Sky Building located in Osaka.

The architect, instead of blending into the traditional architecture in Kyoto decides to create a contemporary structure in the ancient capital becoming what would be the second largest train station in Japan after Nagoya train station.

The structure made use of steel and glass for its roof consisting made up of a regular framework of trusses. Ironically, the overall shape resembles a traditional Japanese roof.

One of the highlights of Kyoto Train Station (besides its numerous shopping malls and a luxurious hotel Kyoto Granvia) is its stairway to the sky garden and their sky bridge which allows you to see Kyoto’s skyline without paying a fee. The view is simply stunning during sunset, pity the glass barriers are quite dirty.

You will be spoilt for choice when it comes to last minute food or shopping at Kyoto Train Station, the basement there is a multistory Isetan and the likes connected by an underground walkway that ends conveniently at the entrance of Higashii Honggan-ji.

One thing I adore this train station is the huge open public space that is the atrium of the Train Station. However flow-wise, it might get a little confusing if you were to navigate around Kyoto Station.

On my second last day in Kyoto, I my first encounter with the Japanese breakfast: a combination of grilled salmon, pickled vegetables, rice, miso soup with perhaps a side dish, and a pungent mixture of miso paste with rice/beans. It was a heavy breakfast in short for people like us who are used to a bowl of bean curd, egg and sausage or just bread with Nutella.

I had my breakfast at this restaurant called 旬彩和食 たちばな serving Kyo-ryori, because I am attracted by the 500 Yen Breakfast Set which came with a cup of tea, a bowl of rice, miso soup, pickled vegetables, salad, grilled salmon and tamago and a bowl of cooked vegetables.

Tastewise, I enjoyed how everything tasted clean and simple though but they are not spectacular. The seemed to love their salmon being grilled to a rather firm stage which is not my cup of tea, all in all it was an average but filling breakfast.

店名
たちばな

Tel
075-371-4202

京都府
下京区烏丸通塩小路下ル東塩小路町
Jr京都駅橋上南北自由通