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Usually served at traditional ryokan inns or specialised restaurants, kaiseki is Japan’s answer to haute cuisine. A kaiseki meal consists of a set menu of many little dishes served in a prescribed order, showing off many different cooking techniques, flavours and textures, each presented more beautifully than the last.
Tackling kaiseki can be daunting, but our handy Insider Guide will help you decipher any menu. Although the courses will vary according to seasonal and regional specialities, all kaiseki meals usually include the following:
Starters
Aperitif
A small glass of sweet wine or local alcohol.
Appetisers
Bite-sized appetisers on a rectangular plate.
Main courses
Soup
A light soup with vegetables, tofu or seafood.
Sashimi
Thinly sliced, raw fish with shredded radish. Soy sauce is provided for dipping.
Grilled dish
Grilled meat or fish. Often wagyu beef, river fish or seafood.
Deep-fried fish
Vegetable and seafood tempura, deep fried in a light flour batter. Served with a dipping sauce or salt seasoning.
Boiled dish
Vegetables, meat or seafood simmered in soy sauce, sweet cooking sake and sugar.
Steamed dish
A savoury egg custard with morsels of mushrooms, chicken, ginko nuts and seafood. It’s OK to eat this with a teaspoon!
Vinegared dish
Vegetables and seafood (often prawns or octopus) dressed in a vinegar-based sauce.
Rice courses
Miso soup
Miso soup with vegetables, tofu or seafood.
Pickles
A small assortment of pickled vegetables.
Rice
A bowl of rice comes towards the end of the meal.
This illustrated insider’s guide features in this edition of our free travel magazine, East. Subscribe to receive East in the post three times a year, for free!
Try kaiseki cuisine on our Gastronomic Adventure itinerary. From £2,670 for 13 nights (exc. intl. flights).
Thank you to Matt Lodge who shared a photo of his kaiseki feast with us. We are a little bit hungry now though…