At Demachiyanagi Station (出町柳駅), one of the Kyoto-est stations, it’s a signboard of Falafel Garden that first welcomes locals and tourists. Being a landmark only second to a UNESCO World Heritage Site “Shimogamo Shrine (下鴨神社)” in the same neighborhood, Falafel Garden is one of the most famous Israeli restaurants in the Kinki region.
A signboard of Falafel Garden at Demachiyanagi Station.
Falafel Garden.
A hamsa and a mezuzah at the entrance of Falafel Garden.
Inside Falafel Garden is a laid-back Kyoto cafe with a farmers’ market vibe. The grocery section at Falafel Garden showcases a well-curated variety of Israeli products ranging from homemade sweets to imported Israeli foods.
Free tastings of Israel’s nationally famous snack “Bissli (ביסלי)” and Israeli-style halva at the grocery section.
Falafel Garden’s menu explaining the importance of wine business in the Promised Land.
A “Pita sand (ピタサンド)” page and a Side menu (サイドメニュー) page of the menu. Israel’s famous Maccabee beers are also available.
Falafel Garden’s menu covers a classic repertoire of Israeli comfort food such as hummus, falafel, and kebab. The menu can’t be any better to look relatable to Japanese eyes while emitting a Levant vibe. It looks like an exotic, Italian-ish Japanese “foreign food (海外料理)” bible.
Falafel.
Israeli-sized / bite-sized, ball-shaped falafels came with a tahini sauce and a spicy tomato sauce. It was kind of like Italian. The cumin and coriander flavors of the falafels weren’t like gangsters back home or at Middle Eastern chains in the US. Falafel Garden’s falafels were subtle and Kyoto-optimized.
Hummus.
Falafel Garden’s hummus was not as creamy as the ones at cool restaurants in Israel. The hummus was more like mashed plain chickpea, which my organs appreciated against my honest appetite. It reminded me of Kyoto’s okara (おから) soy-pulp dishes. The healthiest hummus it was.
Kebab sandwich.
Their kebab sandwich was far from soulless, Japanese-Turkish-ish ketchup-mayo-cumin-dominated kebab sandwiches hustling in the Japanese touristy street. The kebab sandwich was a good enough introduction to a new orthodox against the Japanese-Turkish-ish kebab world.
Food at Falafel Garden might not stand out from the crowd in cutting-edge Israeli eats nowadays. But they don’t need to because they are the only Israeli Kyoto cuisine in Japan. They found the garden of themselves.
At the checkout awaits a Japanese “food models (食品サンプル)” of falafel sandwiches.
Falafel Garden (ファラフェルガーデン) | 15-2 Tanaka Kamiyanagicho, Sakyo Ward, Kyoto, 〒606-8205, Japan
Falafel: ¥420 / $3.20 / £2.60 / €2.80
Hummus: ¥506 / $3.90 / £3.20 / €3.40
Chicken kebab sandwich: ¥820 / $6.30 / £5.10 / €5.40
Website
Falafel Garden (ファラフェルガーデン) | 15-2 Tanaka Kamiyanagicho, Sakyo Ward, Kyoto, 〒606-8205, Japan
