Late Night Kim Chee Fried Rice
There’s nothing better than a hot meal after a full day of exploring in Kyoto.
Unfortunately, it’s late and everything is closed in this sleepy part of Kyoto, save for a small ramen shop on a dark side-street.
The ramen shop consists of a small counter facing the open kitchen and a few tables for small groups. The stools at the counter are normal height, but the tables are low the ground, so chairs are unnecessary.
One of the benefits of being hungry in a sleepy part of town is that the restaurant is practically empty. Aside from a lone Salaryman nursing a beer at the counter, we are the only ones here, so our food arrives without delay.
As is common practice, a bowl of miso soup precedes the actual meal. Though, I’m not sure if this is a bowl of miso soup with a dash of green onions, or if it’s the other way around…
Even though this is a ramen shop, there are a variety of dishes on the menu.
We share an order of Karaage Chicken, fried golden brown. A bowl of steaming white rice on the side helps to balance out the chicken’s salt-infused flavors.
We also get an order of kim chee fried rice. A typically-Korean side dish, kim chee isn’t that common in Japan’s ramen shops. It’s a favorite of ours in Hawaii though, so we’re curious to see how it stacks up.
They also bring a bit of kim chee on the side, just in case the kim chee mixed throughout the fried rice isn’t enough.
The karaage chicken is meaty and flavorful, while the kim chee fried rice has just the right amount of spiciness to kick things up to the next level.
We finish our meal and sit back with a cup of hot tea and reflect on the day’s adventures. Soon, it’s time for us to join the rest of this sleepy suburb and we head back to our room to hit the hay.
Good night, Kyoto.
Gear
- Camera: Panasonic GH3
- Lens: Panasonic 25mm f/1.4
Dreaming of Kyoto
- Kyoto-Bound
- A Look Down Kyoto’s Streets
- Exploring Nishiki Market
- Custom Kabocha Curry in Kyoto
- Down by the River
- This is Kyoto
- The Hidden Palace
- A Temple on Main Street
- At the Foot of the Mountain
- Late Night Kim Chee Fried Rice
- Falling Through Time in Gion
- Crunchy Katsu Curry in Kyoto