A MUGWORT LOVER’S GUIDE TO KYOTO
I am so lucky to live in this incredibly historic and creative city. People often ask me for Kyoto travel advice, I can’t offer personalised recommendations but here are some of my favourites, please use this page as a starting point for your own adventures and research.
There are oodles of touristy places which by and large I avoid. I tend towards the herby, green, vegetable-loving spots and I’ll share those here. And if that’s your cup of tea, great. I’d ask that you go to these places only in small groups and don’t be surprised if they’ve changed or are extremely different from my descriptions, things change and there’s a lot of variety in how businesses work here. Here I write about specific places, but it might inspire you to find other places like them - for example there are many other independent mochi shops, incense shops, washoku cafes etc.
If you’re overwhelmed in crowds, remember, get out of the centre! - Kyoto’s small neighbourhoods have many treasures. Enjoy it here and remember to bow to say thank you.
KAMOGAWA - the river
If you come to Kyoto and you only do one thing, walk by the river, you’ll find so much of Kyoto culture present there.
The Kamogawa, Kyoto’s river, is a lovely place to cycle, walk, picnic, see cherry blossoms in spring, listen to cicadas in summer, pick a handful of mugwort at almost any time of year except Jan/Feb, meet people out walking their pet dogs, cats, rabbits, see large group dance practices, tai chi etc etc. Because many apartments are poorly sound-insulated, loads of musicians practice their instruments by the river, often taking shelter under the copious bridges - you might find people who have set up entire drum kits for a rehearsal by the river.
This river is a main artery in Kyoto city, it runs neatly from North to South with a fork in which sits the wonderful Shimogamo shrine - a forested shinto shrine which is a place to take a deep breath in the city, see fire flies in the summer, find occasional markets and incredible festivals such as Aoi Matsuri. You can follow it out of town, and if you follow the North Eastern fork it’ll take you up to the foot of Hieizan where a cable car can take you up the mountain.
MUMOKUTEKI - wholesome washoku cafe
This spacious veggie cafe is in Teramachi shopping street. It has a few shops in the same building - a vintage shop in the basement, a basket shop, a kind of linen/earthy clothes shop and then upstairs there’s this cafe. The washoku set meal is tasty and abundant with a lovely array of flavours, a few different options for the main feature - fried tofu dishes or this steamed veg platter. It’s bloody lovely.
There are lovely herbal teas including a mountain herb tea which contains red shiso for a magical tea infusion which starts purple and then turns yellowish. They also have chai latte and hojicha (roasted green tea) latte served with a golden spoon.
It’s a lovely light room with lots of tables and big windows so that the light pours onto the beautiful veggies as you eat. There are also some quirky bits and bobs around like a vintage English cabinet full of teddy bears. The staff are super friendly and it really feels like the food is made with love.
SANGA - incense shop
This exquisite incense shop make their products in the shop in a glazed workshop so you can sometimes see the process underway. They use many local ingredients to craft these beautiful scents. I found it hard to differentiate all the different smells inside the shop so they let me take their metal incense burner outside the shop to smell them in the open air. Then they were really distinct from one and other.
Their mugwort incense is a bit like moxa but softer and sweeter. The scent I really fell for is a YAKUSUGI which is the name of a Japanese Cedar tree from Yakushima island in the far South of Japan. Rather than using new wood to make this incense, they use saw dust and off-cuts from furniture making.
The culture of incense making in Japan is ancient and linked to the arrival of Buddhism in 6th century BCE. You can find many other incense shops in Kyoto, they’re often funeral shops or shops for pilgrims to buy incense to make offerings on their journeys around the temples.
HOBODO - cosy cafe
This tiny cafe serves the most delicious Yomogi Ohagi - this is a kind of dessert - the outside is sweet mugwort and bean paste, the inside is a chewy mix of brown and black rice. They are really onto something - what an incredible mouth experience. Mugwort brings a satisfyingly green taste to the table, it’s slightly spicey, earthy, fibrous, and blended with the beans it’s so smooth, you might even mistake it for a white chocolate kind of feeling. They have other Ohagi for sale too so you can get a few on one plate and compare them!
The cafe sells a few organic veggies and has a cosy hippy vibe. The main meals are delicious with good pickles, a healthy spread of tastes. They serve such a fine hot ginger milk (soy milk) that it warms you up so deeply on a day when the snow is blowing down the road that you can manage to cycle home without getting cold.
They were playing American folk music when I was in - Joni Mitchell, Bob Dylan etc. Such friendly staff and good vibes. This cafe is only open Fri/Sat/Sun.
OGAWA Japanese herb cafe
Drawing inspiration from Japan’s many herbal dishes, this cafe serves lunch in a fine-dining atmosphere upstairs from the herb shop. The staff are attentive, and pay such attention to explaining the paired teas and the herb salts etc which come with every dish. The main dish was a nabe hot pot which I cooked slowly, adding the ingredients provided. There were many other dishes too, all presented so beautifully.
They had an interesting little mugwort salt which added a slightly spicey kick to tofu and meat. I really enjoyed the use of herbs from main features to side-kicks.
It’s best to book in for lunch here although I walked in and was lucky to find a space. Their set lunch is served at a slow pace so take your time and savour the small and tasty delights.
UZUMASA YOMOGI MUSHIYA- mugwort steaming salon
This is mostly a Korean practice but it’s increasingly popular in Japan and around the world. You wear a tent-like robe and sit over a pot of steaming herbs for 45 minutes or so. The robe creates a kind of steam room with your own personalised herb mix, or a seasonal herb mix depending on the practitioner. I have found it helpful for clearing sinus issues, constipation, low back pain and period pain. This yomogimushi salon is very homely and the cats wander in and out. Madoka San, the practitioner, worked in a Korean yomogi mushi salon for over a decade before opening one of her own. She has a keen passion for herbs and steaming. This practice has been inaccurately named ‘vaginal steaming’ which really is at odds with how holistic this experience is. The steam rises up into your pelvic area, and your body absorbs a lot of wonderful warmth and herby goodness. All sexes of people can do yomogi mushi - adaptations can be made to the seating posture so that the testicles don’t get too hot!
YAKUSO-JINSHI-HIPPOCATIC SHRINE -a medicinal shrine
You’d be forgiven for wandering past this shrine without noticing. Although it has it’s own torii gate to mark it, it’s tucked in so discretely that you could walk by several times before pausing to look in. Unusually, it’s glazed so you cannot enter, but what’s worth noting is that inside this little shrine are the statues of the founders or figureheads of Chinese, Japanese, and European medicine systems. Shen Nong (Chinese god of medicine and agriculture), Sukunahikona (Japanese god of acupuncture and herbs), Onamuchi no Mikoto (Japanese medicine founder) and Hippocrates (founder of European medicine). This shrine from 1858, or 1901 in it’s current location, is dedicated to the prosperity of medical and pharmaceutical businesses. This area is an old medicine district and you can still find herbal medicine shops within a few blocks.
KYOTO BOTANICAL GARDENS
You’ll find the botanical gardens just east of the lovely Kamogawa river, I love it there in all seasons. I often go with friends to wander around and sup tea under the trees. The low key cafe/visitor centre sells delicious peach ice cream which is not to be underrated on a hot day. Some of their ancient trees are enormous and the branches spread unbelievably far. The variety of magnolia trees is incredible and makes you feel like you’re seeing some living natural history. It has formal areas and more wild areas, there are lots of weeds in the woodland areas near the spring. If you happen to take a friend who grew up in the 1940’s in Japan they might show you how to turn fat dandelion stems into trumpets so you can sit in the shade and giggle playing. IF you find the spring, have a listen to it - another musical part of this lovely garden. Lately the botanics are under various threats from developers so I believe that it needs visitors more than ever to demonstrate it’s importance.