Koke

Ido means well. At KOKE, a narrow passage off Muromachi-dōri leads to the one that gave the building its name. It stands in a courtyard of white sand and moss, in full view of the dining room. Muromachi was once a street of textile wholesalers. Around the corner on Nijō, merchants dealt in medicinal roots and powders. The business of this particular address began with a hole in the ground.

The people behind IDO Kyoto dug the well to supply the kitchens. Yusaku Nakamura, who wanted to cook somewhere with good water, chose to open his restaurant here. The kitchen has used water from the well for consommé. For the name, Nakamura packed Kyoto, Okinawa, Kobe and España into four letters. Koke also means moss, which the garden illustrates without further effort.

Nakamura grew up in Okinawa. His Ryukyubon takes its cue from the cooking of the Ryukyu royal court and comes on Okinawan yachimun pottery set on a Ryukyu lacquer tray. The word tapa does rather a lot of work for something that arrives with its own lacquerware.

There’s a cheekier meeting of Spain and Okinawa in an anchovy-and-caramel sandwich Nakamura has served. The anchovy brings the salt, the caramel brings the sweetness, and a crisp kombu sablé holds the whole thing together. It’s the sort of bite that sounds like a dare until you remember how good salt is with caramel.

KOKE serves a tasting menu. When you book, ask for a seat with a view of the courtyard. There aren’t many dining rooms where you can see where the kitchen gets its water.