Cost-Effective Kyoto: Top 10 Bib Gourmand Restaurants in Kyoto (2024)

With the release of the Michelin Guide Kyoto in April 2024, the Japanese gourmet world has been abuzz with the new induction of restaurants like Mashiro and Doppo, the ascension of Yugen from one to two Michelin stars, as well as the 15th consecutive year that Kikunoi Honten and Hyotei have been awarded three Michelin stars.

However, there’s a fair number of local gourmets who opt to skip through the first few sections of the guide, and flip immediately to the last quarter, where instead of the iconic Michelin star, a friendly, rotund face adorns the listed restaurants: the Michelin Bib Gourmand, an award in a class all its own. 

The Michelin Bib Gourmand is an accolade given to a restaurant that’s been recognized for high-quality ingredients and standards, yet still retains affordable prices. The Michelin Guide is typically associated with fine dining, and fine dining in turn usually goes hand-in-hand with prices that make a meal at one reserved only for a special occasion. 

For instance, depending on the time of year, the three-Michelin-starred restaurant Kyoto Kitcho Arashiyama has its most expensive chef’s omakase menu listed at ¥124,080 (US$784) at the time of writing, thanks to the autumn and winter lineup featuring seasonal ingredients like fugu pufferfish, red king crab, and the extraordinarily elusive matsutake mushroom.

The Bib Gourmand was created specifically to recognize restaurants that have the ideal cost-performance ratio: excellent food that falls below a certain budget, usually costing on average no more than ¥10,000 (US$63), often falling far below that.

Keen-eyed gourmets who keep up with Bib Gourmand releases every year will notice that the Japan Bib Gourmand awards list is heavily populated with ramen, udon and soba shops. But that doesn’t mean that the Bib Gourmand should go overlooked by those with less noodly preferences. 

From French to Italian to Southeast Asian, all manner of restaurants have been bestowed the Bib Gourmand as well — and byFood is here to give you an overview of what some of the standouts among this year’s Kyoto awardees are. 

The first of the new additions to the list of Bib Gourmand recipients in 2024, Noodle Shop Rennosuke is very much aesthetically out of place both in Kyoto, and as a ramen shop. 

Gone is the cramped, steam-filled wood interior of a typical ramen joint; Noodle Shop Rennosuke leans heavily into the minimalist, even brutalist aesthetic, with concrete furnishings and bare walls.

But the ramen holds its own against some of the best in the city. Served in elaborate Kiyomizu-yaki bowls, the clarity of the dashi stock belies its rich, deep umami. The locally raised pork is thin-sliced to absorb the broth, while the noodles (also made from local Kyoto wheat) are satisfyingly springy. 

Oddly for a ramen shop, the custard pudding is a popular option for a sweet ending. Noodle Shop Rennosuke may be difficult to find in Kyoto’s backstreets, but ramen enthusiasts swear that both the main course and the dessert are very much worth the trek.

Reserve your spot for Michelin Bib Gourmand ramen in Kyoto.

Joining the substantial list of Michelin Bib Gourmand soba restaurants in Kyoto is Sonoba. Much like Noodle Shop Rennosuke, the interior sports an industrial aesthetic, but feels more like a pottery studio than a soba shop, with dozens of small ceramic vessels — made in the actual pottery studio next door — perched atop the shelves that line the walls. 

The soba is unquestionable, though: the duo who run it serve the classics with aplomb, such as chilled soba with sudachi citrus, or steaming hot soba with slices of duck and leek. But there’s plenty of room for innovation as well; their menu also sees the likes of ingredients like cod milt and chrysanthemum blossoms, resulting in unorthodox flavor combinations to go with the noodles’ satisfyingly springy texture. 

Similarities to Noodle Shop Rennosuke continue with the fact that sonoba is similarly renowned for a not-soba dish: a Kyoto staple, the vinegared mackerel sushi — sabazushi — is not to be missed. You won’t have to walk too far from it either; just a few blocks east of Gojo Station on the Karasuma Line, it’s popping up on more and more locals’ radars. 

Reserve a seat for Michelin-worthy soba in Kyoto.

Rounding out the list of new additions to the Michelin Bib Gourmand awardees in 2024 are the izakaya Muromachi Kaji and Sake to Sakana DNA. Both are situated between Gojo and Shijo Stations on the Karasuma Line, so they’re a cinch to get to, which partially explains their immense popularity.

Interestingly, despite their Michelin Guide categorization, both are much more akin to a traditional kappo restaurant than they are izakaya. Head chef Kaji Takashi’s background in Michelin-starred Kyoto-style kaiseki restaurants — including Gion Nishikawa — elevates Muromachi Kaji’s menu offerings far above what might be found in a typical izakaya, with kaiseki staples like rice cooked in a donabe earthenware pot, or a second-course hassun platter of local delicacies.

Reserve a table at Muromachi Kaji.

On the other hand, the family-run Sake to Sakana DNA has its origins in Obama, Fukui Prefecture, where it also sources most of its produce and other ingredients. Every meal starts with a bowl of soup to “soothe the stomach” after a long day’s work, adding some kaiseki-like structure to an izakaya meal. 

Sake to Sakana DNA appeals to diners who want to eat a wide variety of things, from kushiage skewers to tamagoyaki rolled omelet to grilled horse mackerel. 

Reserve a table at Sake to Sakana DNA.

Shojin ryori, or traditional Japanese Buddhist cuisine, is a vegetarian style of cuisine that uses no animal products, and even goes as far as to eschew pungent flavors like garlic and onion. 

With menu offerings primarily based around soybeans, shojin ryori is especially particular about balancing the five flavors: sweet, salty, bitter, sour and umami. Similarly, every meal must also contain five different colors for balance in both flavor and aesthetics. 

As Japan’s center of culture, it only makes sense to try this historic style of cuisine in Kyoto. One of the city’s most popular shojin ryori restaurants — Shigetsu — is located inside Tenryu-ji Temple, which is in turn one of the most-visited temples in the Arashiyama area. 

There, diners can take their pick from three different course menus at three different price points. Regardless of which menu you choose, they all offer a vast array of different dishes, incorporating seasonal ingredients grown and harvested from the Kyoto area — each one benefiting from the region’s famously pure water. 

Reserve your seat for Kyoto temple dining at Shigetsu.

The distinctive gold-lettered label of The Hunter Spice might be a familiar sight to supermarket-goers and outdoors enthusiasts across the Kansai region, where it enjoys great popularity for its fragrance, rich umami flavor and sharp bite.

However, what many might not be aware of is that this iconic line of spice is the brainchild of chef Imai Ryota, three-time recipient of the Michelin Bib Gourmand since 2021. 

One of Kyoto’s many French Bib Gourmand restaurants, Hunter sets itself apart with Chef Imai’s unique fixation on grilling. Using an abundance of hunted game, visitors can also enjoy boar and deer, aside from the usual offerings of duck, pork and beef. 

Every meat lover owes it to themself to visit Hunter, just a block southeast of the central Marutamachi Station: portions are generous, and Chef Imai knows exactly what he’s doing behind the grill, with every piece cooked to perfection. 

Reserve for Michelin Bib Gourmand French cuisine in Kyoto.

Interestingly, Bocca del Vino might be most popular among Kyoto locals at breakfast. Long before the restaurant opens, the breakfast queue (only served from Friday to Sunday) can be seen after about two blocks’ walk from the nearby Gion-Shijo or Kyoto-Kawaramachi Stations. Diners wait for hours sometimes for a taste of the restaurant’s maritozzo donuts and traditional Italian coffee.

That doesn’t mean that its menus later in the day should be overlooked, however. Lunch and dinner menus feature Italian classics like rump of veal and pasta al tonno, with gelato and tiramisu sure to sate those with a sweet tooth. 

There is no a la carte menu; guests are limited to a course menu, but who better to trust to plan your meal than the head chef himself? 

The only catch about trying to find a spot at Bocca del Vino is that in true Italian fashion, the hours are somewhat inconsistent. While the restaurant usually takes Wednesdays off, the owner opens and closes his restaurant on a whim, so eager diners have to be sure to check the calendar regularly. 

Reserve a seat for Michelin-recognized Italian food in Kyoto.

Meaning “departure” in Indonesian, Berangkat does precisely that: departing from typical izakaya fare to offer a menu that is distinctly influenced by the owner’s travels all around the world — in particular Okinawa and Southeast Asia. 

You’ll find lots of produce from the former in Chef Yoshioka Tetsuo’s dishes, like bitter gourd and lotus root, as well as ingredients that he has picked up from culinary inspirations.

Other interesting dishes include the shira-ae, a traditional Japanese mashed tofu salad, which incorporates an unorthodox mix of chili oil, coriander, century egg and pepper for especially deep flavor. For drinks, the caipirinha cocktails are popular choices.

Just a block south of Shiyakusho-mae Station, Berangkat has been notoriously difficult to reserve for a long time, even before it received its Michelin Bib Gourmand: there’s only one table, and the counter seats seven. Nonetheless, there’s a good reason as to why the seats are packed every night.

Reserve your table for fusion cuisine in Kyoto.

When most think of sushi, the first thing that comes to mind is the iconic nigiri: a slice of fish atop a nugget of shaped rice. But this is a distinctly Tokyo style of sushi. 

In the days before mechanical refrigeration, seafood would not survive the journey from the nearby ports of Kobe and Osaka to the landlocked Kyoto, resulting in an evolution of sushi that looked very different from the Edomae type that would gain popularity in Tokyo — and later across the entire nation. 

By contrast, Kashiwai specializes in a type of sushi that is very uniquely Kyoto, and almost unrecognizable as sushi to the uninitiated. Called temari-sushi (or temari-zushi) after the traditional ball of the same name, the mother-daughter duo who run Kashiwai call them tsumami-sushi instead, meaning “snack sushi.”

These sushi are actually more akin to onigiri: small bite-sized rice balls with ingredients at their center, like simmered lotus root or yuba tofu skin.The lack of mechanical refrigeration wasn’t the only factor in their eventual shape: Temari-sushi were designed to be bite-sized, so geisha and maiko in full makeup wouldn’t smudge their lipstick. 

On pleasant spring days or before the autumn chill sets in, it’s very common to pop by Kashiwai and get a takeout box of sushi — the 15-piece set is especially popular — and bring it down to the banks of the nearby Kamo River, where you’ll find dozens of like-minded diners spreading out picnic mats. 

Reserve a table for Michelin-worthy sushi in Kyoto.

Another common feature on lists of Bib Gourmand awardees is tonkatsu. Thick slabs of pork are coated in breadcrumbs and deep-fried till golden brown, then served up with a mountain of shredded cabbage and an addictively sweet, Worcestershire-like sauce. 

Jukuseibuta Kawamura is one of the best tonkatsu restaurants in the whole of Kyoto, and surprisingly, the only one to hold a Bib Gourmand (Tokyo, meanwhile, has 14 tonkatsu restaurants with this distinction).

The secret is in the name. Jukusei buta means “aged pork,” and it’s this aging process that gives the Sangenton pork at this restaurant its characteristic flavor. The meat is carefully selected from farms in Kagoshima Prefecture — a region famous for pork production in Japan — and then aged in Kyoto for anywhere between three to five weeks. This gives it a mellower, deeper flavor.

It is then eaten with the condiment of your choice: popular options include Worcestershire sauce from local sauce maker Ojika, soy sauce from Yakushima Island, and even rock salt from the Andes. The chef encourages experimentation to find your preference, so get cracking.

Taste Michelin-recognized tonkatsu at Jukuseibuta Kawamura.

Got an appetite for Kyoto cuisine? Explore the 2024’s Michelin Guide restaurants in Kyoto, discover plant-based perfection in the city’s best vegan restaurants and take a day trip over to Nara’s 2024 Michelin restaurants.

Of the 440 Kyoto and Osaka-based restaurants that were recommended in 2024, 138 were selected, 90 of which were new. Within this selection, 117 were awarded Bib Gourmand status.

Every year, Michelin-worthy restaurants are recommended and are considered within the Michelin Guide’s key categories. For a Bib Gourmand title, a restaurant must be outstanding within its field while still having an accessible price tag.