Honke Tan-Kuma Honten, a high-end Kyoto ryotei restaurant that is Halal-friendly

Aimed at wealthy customers who want to taste top-level Japanese cuisine, several ryotei restaurants offer halal and vegan menus in Kyoto, which is home to a number of long-established Japanese restaurants. Honke Tankuma Honten, which has a shop along Kamo River in Shijo, Kyoto, was founded in 1923 and has been listed in the Michelin Guide Kyoto and Osaka since 2009.

The restaurant offers its Kyoto-style kaiseki cuisine, which prioritize on bringing out the best of the ingredients.

We want to offer authentic Kyoto cuisine to our overseas guests, some of whom cannot eat it due to religious beliefs.

Junichi Kurisu, great-grandson of the founder, joined the shop in 2009 after training at a restaurant. He says he has endeavored to incorporate new challenges while preserving the traditions and concepts established by his predecessors. The Halal kaiseki, launched in 2014, is a manifestation of it.

At the time, following the Action Program for the Realization of a Tourism Nation (2013), the number of foreign visitors to Japan was on the rise and many foreigners were visiting Kyoto.

Junichi said ‘One day I read an article in a newspaper that Muslims visiting Kyoto were having trouble finding food. They had come all this way to enjoy Japanese food, but they couldn’t find anything to eat. So, I thought thaatI had to do it myself.’

He also said that during his student days, he backpacked through more than 70 countries and had the opportunity to experience the customs of food abstinence according to religion and principle. The many kindnesses he received from Muslim people during his travels also left a strong impression on him, and he felt a strong desire to give back to them.

The day after the idea came to him, he immediately started to try Halal kaiseki. He said ‘Originally, Japanese food is mainly fish and vegetables, so I think the bar for Halal compliance is low. In our efforts, we decided to completely eliminate pork-derived products and use all ingredients, seasonings and utensils exclusively Halal.’

During the same year, the restaurant received Halal certification from the Kyoto Halal Council and he has been accredited as a Halal cook from the Japan Halal Association.

Honke Tankuma