Trip to Kyoto: Vegan sushi, 'Fu', and Silk 'sanada-himo' braid

"I'm glad I don't live in Kyoto—if I did, I'd go bankrupt just from food expenses!"

That's how insanely good the food is there!

For someone like me who loves tofu, yuba (tofu skin), fu (wheat gluten), and tea, it's pure paradise.

⚫︎Day1：AWOMB（Vegan 'Teori-sushi'）https://awomb.com

・Beautiful presentation

・The fun of making your own hand-rolled sushi

・And it's vegan!

I visited AWOMB, which is a unique, modern, yet not touristy vegan restaurant located on a quiet little allery tucked behid Takase River.

The 'nori' seaweed is high-quality and flavorful, and each and every dish is thoughtfully prepared—visually stunning, with creative combinations of Japanese and Western ingredients.

But best of all, it's just so fun to choose what to combine and roll together yourself!

It's reservation-only, and there are no loud groups—just a peaceful, serene atmosphere, which I really appreciated.

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⚫︎Day2：Hanbey ('fu' and tofu course lunch) https://www.hanbey.co.jp 

I was completely knocked out—in the best possible way—by this lunch course that I had at the restaurant called Hanbey that was founded in 1689. It brought together all my favorite things: fu (wheat gluten), yuba (tofu skin), and tofu.

It featured generous servings of chewy, springy nama-fu (which I absolutely adore), plus some new discoveries like aged-fu (deep-fried fu), and melt-in-your-mouth kumi-age yuba that was literally the best one of my life!

The food was absolutely authentic, however strangely enough, part of the first floor and the second-floor dining area where I ate were decorated in a Chinese style. I asked a store staff why it's decorated in Chinese style but she didn't know..., but she kindly invited me to check out the renovated old machiya townhouse space at the back of the restaurant, where they have a Bento Box Museum.

And wow—what a hidden gem.

Apparently, many of the bento boxes on display were once used by noble families during the Edo period (17th centry - late 19th century). There were luxurious lacquered boxes made for cherry blossom viewing, delicate summer versions woven from fine bamboo, ones complete with sake flasks, and intricately designed multi-tiered boxes with tiny compartments. Alongside these masterpieces were gorgeous byōbu folding screens illustrating the aristocrats’ joyful picnics.

While the plastic bento boxes we use today are practical and affordable, they will never carry the enduring value or beauty of those Edo-period creations—crafted with such artistry that they transcend utility and live on as cultural treasures centuries later.

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⚫︎Ito Braid Works（hand woven kumi-himo and sanada-himo） https://itokumihimoten.com 

Seeing the Sanada-himo ('himo' means cord in Japanese) wrapped around the lacquered bento boxes at the Bento Box Museum reminded me of the time, a few years ago, when I produced a Kamakura-bori cutlery set and used Sanada-himo from Ito Kumihimo-ten (Ito Braid Works), a long-established cord shop in Kyoto, for the carrying bag. So, I decided to drop by.

The shop is located in Tera-machi district, which is now covered by a shopping arcade. From the window, you can see the reflection of the Burger King logo—but despite the modern setting, the quiet dignity of this long-standing shop remains untouched.

At this family owned store, they have been creating Sanada-himo and kumi-himo since Edo period.

Kumi-himo is a type of braided cord made with a diagonal weave, giving it elasticity. In contrast, Sanada-himo is a flat, tightly woven cord with a vertical and horizontal weave, making it strong and non-stretchy.

Those were once used on samurai helmets and sword scabbards. Even today, those are used in various ways including tying traditional tea boxes often follow family-specific patterns—like, “This design belongs to the ○○ family.” It's amazing how even a single cord carries such deep history and drama, woven into its fibers.

The cords they showed me in the shop—both kumi-himo and sanada-himo—were truly beautiful, in both color and texture, and besides the traditional items used for things like tea utensils and kimono, they sell items that can be used casually in everyday life such as cell phone straps, eye glasses string holders etc.

That said, when visually similar nylon cords are sold at 100-yen shops, and you're told, “This one is handmade with silk by a multi-generational artisan,” but the price is in the thousands of yen… naturally, the number of people who actually use them is limited. And so, these traditional crafts slowly vanish from Japan... 😢

As I left the arcade street lined with flashy signs of chain stores, I found myself thinking once again:

"When buying souvenirs, even small ones, I want to choose things from shops like this—not mass-produced junk of unknown origin."

(I purchased an eye glasses string holder as a keepsake from my trip to Kyoto. )

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Please check the details of 'Kamakura-bori Cutlery Set': https://www.the-blue.info/kamakurabori-cutleryset-japanese