A contemporary izakaya with a red light. Japanese bar food at its best.
A red light at Aketotemoro.
A red light means “stop” in Japan like the rest of the world. So when I found a red light on a sidewalk, I had to stop for a moment and observed carefully, and then, came to the conclusion: WTH.
I needed to walk in, I couldn’t resist, because something was pandering to my base instincts. A red light on a Japanese street for Japanese pedestrians? People having fun beyond the red light? Let me handle some J-walking.
“WTH, an art gallery?” That’s what I thought.
Metallic, industrial doors and kitchen equipment turned to look futuristic decors as my observation intensified. Something sexy was going on in this space.
I felt the magic. That’s when my dining companion (she/her) went bananas. “Banana!” She literally shouted. “Don’t go monkey, honey, please. There’s no bananas. This is a bar.” I gently replied.
It took a glass of red wine (500 yen / $3.80) to figure out that she meant “a picture on a wall looks like the Italian artist Maurizio Cattelan’s artwork “Comedian” which is a duct-taped banana on a wall.”
Now we’re talking (she has a master’s degree in painting).
Besides her and the banana, I went crazy over 2 things. A: They had a food menu. B: The food menu looked amazing.
A food menu, left, a drink menu, right.
The food menu was an ultimate curation of the modern Japanese izakaya repertoire. In other words, chef-driven Japanese bar foods with the spirit of fusion. The menu’s well-edited languages were telling that they love food. I loved it. Why not go bananas?
“Immoral” potato salad, the menu puts it (it also said “tons of butter”). 500 yen / $3.80.
“Immoral/背徳の” is a compliment when it comes to food in Japan. It means as follows: “You’re not supposed to mix these things. But you do. Ah ok. You add that much? You’re bad. God, it tastes good.” That’s what the “immoral” tries to convey.
Yes, my immoral potato salad tasted as bad as it was supposed to be. Japanese potato salad should be potatoes with mayonnaise unlike Geman potato salad. But this Japanese savvy eatery killed it with butter and Japanese tsukemono pickles on top. Bad move!
I ate it. I was merely at the receiving end. Couldn’t help it. And I wanted more.
Koji raisin butter with sweet potato and honey.
Koji is a Japanese fermented food product that is like an umami-saturated porridge with a sake aroma. The Koji raisin butter, which is Aketotemoro’s concoction, had a complexity of the bittersweet flavors of sake. I appreciated the creative engineering in this.
Chilled tomato tosazuke.
Chilled tomatoes are classic appetizers at izakayas in Japan. Tosazuke is any food that’s pickled in a bonito-flavored soy sauce. The chilled tomato tosazuke was pleasantly sweet, salty, and sour, and everything that’s good enough to challenge proud trattorias and red sauce joints in the world.
Karaage is Japanese fried chicken, the king of izakaya dishes. It was flawless.
Until I actually ate here at Aketotemoro, I didn’t believe it was an eatery. But the quality of their food proved it. They were phenomenal. How can I not say “I went bananas.”
This place might play as a cool bar for others. But I would love to keep coming back “to eat.” Their red light won’t stop me from that.
Aketotemoro | 405 Nanbacho, Shimogyo Ward, Kyoto, 〒600-8027, Japan
Immoral potato salad: ¥500 / $3.80 / £3.10 / €3.60
Koji raisin butter: ¥500 / $3.80 / £3.10 / €3.60
Chilled tomato tosazuke: ¥500 / $3.80 / £3.10 / €3.60
Karaage: ¥550 / $4.20 / £3.40 / €3.90
A glass of red wine: ¥500 / $3.80 / £3.10 / €3.60
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Aketotemoro | 405 Nanbacho, Shimogyo Ward, Kyoto, 〒600-8027, Japan
