3 Must-Visit Cafes on Instagram offering Japanese & Western Sweets in Kyoto’s Popular Sightseeing Area

This time, we researched cafes that we can find in Kyoto’s popular tourist areas such as Gion and Shijo Kawara. From them, we focus on 2 ‘hot’ sweets and 1 ‘cold’ sweets which gather attention on Instagram. Why not stop by at these cafes in the middle of sightseeing to take a break?

All of these cafes are within 20 minutes’ walking or bus-ride distance from Hotel Gracery Kyoto Sanjo.

Sold out by 3:00PM! “Jouvencelle Gion Shop” where Matcha Fondue born from the fusion of Kyoto culture and Western confectionery is very popular

The name of “Jouvencelle Gion Shop (ジュヴァンセル 祇園店)” means ‘maiden’ in French. As it suggests, they create a great variety of sweets with a fusion of Kyoto’s culture and Western confectionery and make lots of women have butterflies in their stomachs. What you can’t miss here is ‘Gion Fondue (祇園フォンデュ)’! To our surprise, it’s sometimes sold out by 3:00 PM. In a white porcelain box with an elegant appearance, there are about 10 types of ingredients such as rice dumplings, warabi mochi, pound cake and seasonal fruits. Let’s dip them into slight hot Matcha chocolate sauce! The main feature of the sauce is Uji Matcha, which produces an elegant astringency and a rich sweetness. You can enjoy its flavors and textures that change depending on ingredients. Before you finish eating up, staff pours hot milk into the remaining sauce.

Opening Hours	10:00AM – 6:00PM　Irregular Holidays
Address	2F Kyoban Building, 482 Kiyoi-cho, Minamiiru, Toriimae, Yasaka, Higashiyama-ku, Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture
Access	Hotel Gracery Kyoto Sanjo: A 5-minute walk from Gion where it takes 5 minutes by bus from Shijokawaramachi, a 7-minute walk from the hotel Hotel Tavinos Kyoto: Get on a bus at Kawaramachi Gojo, get off at Higashiyama Yasui and walk for 4 minutes
URL	https://jouvencelle.jp/store/gion

So Melty that we can’t pick it up with chopsticks! “Gion Tokuya” allowing us to savor Warabi Mochi made with high-quality materials and shaved ice at once

Located on Hanamikoji Street with a quaint atmosphere, “Gion Tokuya (ぎおん 徳屋)” offers Japanese sweets including Oshiruko (sweetened strained red bean soup with mochi rice cake) and Zenzai (sweetened red bean soup with mochi rice cake) which are made from Japan’s famous sweet red bean produced at Tamba City in Hyogo prefecture. It’s also attractive that you can grill rice dumplings over their original small stove by yourself. Above all, ‘Tokuya no Hon Warabimochi (徳屋の本わらびもち)’ is our recommendation. Warabimochi, which is arranged around the shaved ice, is made by kneading high-quality domestically produced warabi powder and Wasanbon. Its texture is so melty that we can’t pick it up with chopsticks. Put brown sugar syrup and soybean flour as you like! Finally, if putting brown sugar syrup on the shaved ice, you can feel like you are eating shaved ice.

Opening Hours	12:00AM – 6:00PM
Address	570-127 Minamigawa, Gion-machi, Higashi-ku, Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture
Access	Hotel Gracery Kyoto Sanjo: A 18-minute walk from the hotel Hotel Tavinos Kyoto: Get on a bus at Kawaramachi Gojo, get off at Shijo Kawaramachi and walk for 9 minutes
URL	http://gion-tokuya.jp/

Compare 5 types of Kyoto-style petit rice dumplings! “JUMONDO” offering freshly roasted, chewy and soft ones

JUMONDO is just about a five-minute walk from Kiyomizu Temple. In a warm and cozy place, you can enjoy traditional sweets and some fusion sweets but many people visit for its specialty, Suzunari Dango, shaped 12mm in diameter and bamboo-skewered. Suzunari Dango is inspired by Kagura Suzu (bells which shrine maidens shake when making prayers). Suzunari dango are served with five traditional flavors; Kyoto Shiromiso (white miso), Mitarashi (soy sauce graze) with Kinako, black sesame soy sauce with traditional peppers, Isobeyaki (grilled with soy sauce) with roasted nori (seaweed)and Dainagon Azuki (sweetened red beans) grown
in Tanba. Our recommendation is Danraku package with which you can enjoy all of the five flavors. By enjoying the petit dangos, there might be good luck just like when a Miko (shrine maiden) shakes akagura Suzu over your head. You will never forget the texture of the freshly roasted dangos.

Opening Hours	11:00AM – 4:00PM　Closed on Wednesday and Thursday
Address	76 Tamamizu-cho, Higashiyama-ku, Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture
Access	Hotel Gracery Kyoto Sanjo: A 2-minute walk from Shimizumichi where it takes 9 minutes by bus from Shijokawaramachi, a 7-minute walk from the hotel Hotel Tavinos Kyoto: A 17-minute walk from the hotel
URL	http://jumondo.jp/index.html