Daiichi

After our visit to Soujiki Nakahigashi, Mr. Nakahigashi himself makes my dining companion a couple resevations at some of his favorite places in Kyoto, one of which is Daiichi, a suppon nabe (hot pot) restaurant that has been around since late-17th century.


Suppon is snapping or soft-shelled turtle, one of the delicacies in Chinese, French and Japanese cuisines. You can pretty much eat all parts of this animal besides its shell, nails, bladder, gallbladder and brain. Suppon meat has a light and proteinous flavor and - I know, but I can't help it - tastes like chicken. Compared to other meats such as beef, pork and lamb, it is low in protein and fat contents and high in vitamins B1 and B2. Because it has a distinctive odor, traditional Japanese cooking method involves ginger, scallions and a lot of sake. Not to mention that suppon dishes go very, sigh, very well with sake.


Daiichi only serves the suppon nabe tasting menu. So, really, you don't have to speak a word of any language and get served the same thing as the party in the next room. It starts with simmered suppon meat served cold, followed by the ever-so-famous suppon nabe. The nabe course is served in two parts, "so that you can enjoy it longer" as the kimono-clad servers will tell you. And this nabe, if you are game for interesting meaty flavors, is to die for. What I mean by "game for interesting meaty flavors" is that you are someone who, oh yes, will try that tripe at dim sum and, sure why not, have eaten a piece of sea urchin for the first time without hesitation. Really, though, if you go in there without thinking that it's a, um, turtle, it's good. (For those of you less adventurous eaters, like I said before, it tastes like chicken. )

All jokes aside, it's damn good.

Eat it slowly with sips of sake in between. Let the gelatenous skin melt all over your mouth and feel that goodness of the meat on the back sides of your tongue. There are no vegetables that go in the clay pot that have survived decades, centuries of heat. Literally, the hot pots are cooked in 2,000 degree celcius heat with coke (steam baked charcoal). One of the servers tells me that the pots are flavored with years of use, not unlike a well-trained wok or an iron cast skillet, I think.

When the liquid in the pot turns into good strong stock, rice, mochi and beaten eggs go in, making a flavorful carb-fest of a porridge. Of course, by this time my feet are not touching the ground from the sake that went so well with the previous courses. The porridge is a nice welcome to settle my stomach.

The pickles and fresh fruits that follow are an afterthought. You go home - or to your hotel - in a dream-like state of satisfaction. The next morning it is a bonus that you find your skin in a much better condition from all the collagen and rice you've taken in the night before.

(Note about the restaurant: It only has 8 private tatami rooms where you sit on the floor. You can make yourselves comfortable and strech your legs out since they are private rooms, but it may not be most comfortable if you have a bad back or bad knees. Also, the rooms - the shoji doors and the tatami mats - are a bit worn out; it's up to you take them as a part of the charm of the place or as a mess. Also, your severs may seem less refined than those at kaiseki places in Kyoto; just remember that they are very friendly and match their surroundings well.)




Daiichi
075-461-1775
Kyoto City, Kamigyo-ku, Chojamachi Dori Senbon Nishihairu 6-371
City Bus 6, 10, 46, 55, 201, 206; 3-minute walk from Senbon Demizu stop
Hours: Lunch 12 - 2 pm (Last Order at 1 pm), Dinner 5 - 9 pm (Last Order at 7 pm)
Closed Tuesdays
Reservations required
Budget: Lunch and Dinner 2,300+ yen