Mewby’s birthday was a couple of weeks back and to celebrate I took her to Trattoria 道月 by the Ocean. Though the name is a bit unwieldy, the restaurant itself is very welcoming and friendly, and the food was superb.
This is the outside of the building which as you can see is a lovely old (but fully renovated!) machiya townhouse. You can’t beat a bit of machiya dining when in Kyoto. This restaurant specializes in fresh seafood served with Italian pasta, which you can eat at the counter whilst watching the cook at work, or separately at your own table. We had a little room to ourselves and here are the dishes we ordered:
Broiled buri (yellowtail) with mizuna leaves, Asian pear, and fresh tomatoes marinated in a balsamic sauce. I was intrigued by the addition of pears to this salad – and delighted by it once I’d tried it as their sweetness provided a nice counter to the savory fish. A fresh and crunchy start to whet our appetites for the meal!
Another original dish here: tagliatelle served in a sauce of puréed murasaki imo (purple sweet potatoes), with shrimp, cabbage, avocado and sliced almonds. Murasaki imo is rather sweet, so this was an unusual pasta dish for me. I liked it but I did rather feel like I was already eating dessert.
This is a serving of the same dish above so that you can see the tagliatelle.
The main course: oven-baked kawahagi (filefish) with porcini mushrooms. I really enjoyed this.
And of course a special dessert selection for Mewby’s birthday! Many thanks to the owner and staff of Dougetsu by the Ocean for a wonderful meal!
Trattoria 道月 by the Ocean is on the north-west corner of Gokomachi and Takatsuji, so not too far from the city center. Here is a map.
There is a gallery of interior images on the homepage of their website: http://www.dougetsu-ocean.com/
Reservations can be made by telephone or online here: http://www.dougetsu-ocean.com/reservation/
Tel: 075-361-2882
Opening hours: 11:30～15:00 (Last orders: 14:00)
18:00～23:00 (Last orders: 22:00)
Closed on Tuesdays.