PRIVATE京都市場見学＆安芸の美しいおうちで料理教室

This was our favorite activity on our entire trip to Japan and the best cooking class we've ever experienced (and we've tried a lot around the world)! My parents, husband and I had the best time with Aki and learned a lot--she was so kind, smart, fun, and knowledgable. She put so much effort into preparing a great and customized experience for us based on different dishes we were interested in. She also managed to engage four people with varying levels of cooking skill and interest. Getting to go to the market to fun to learn more about local Japanese life and her house is SO cute. The dishes we made were delicious and she did just the right amount of prep work. Thank you so much, Aki!

Take this tour. Aki is a magnificent host. Learned about living in Kyoto, the market and Japanese cuisine. Considering our travels all over the world over the world, this experience was among the very best.

Aki was a remarkable tour guide and chef. She spoke wonderful english, introduced us to her friends and new foods at the market, selected recipes my entire family enjoyed, and was a delight to get to know. We cooked and then ate one of the tastiest meals we had in Japan, and can't wait to make them again back home. A true highlight of our trip!

This wound up being one of the most memorable activities of our trip. Aki was a fantastic host, cook, and guide. She took us through the local market, explaining all of the produce and products, and buying items we were curious about to include in the meal. She then led us through cooking the dishes in her home, explaining the process throughout. The food was delicious and we can't wait to make the recipes again when we get home. Even our teenagers had an unabashedly good time. Most of all, Aki was kind and delightful, and we all just really enjoyed her company. If we're fortunate enough to be in Kyoto again we'll definitely book another class with her.

Aki’s home cooking class was a fantastic experience, probably the best one we had in all of our Japan trip. We got to learn more about Japanese culture and food than reading/ watching anything else. I also loved that she picked dishes that were not too complicated so we can go back home and actually make them. My whole family including my 11 year old could be thoroughly participate and enjoy!! A must try for all of you visiting Kyoto.

We are a family of 4 including 2 teenagers and were lucky enough to spend 2.5 weeks in Japan at the beginning of April 2025. We chose this experience as we all love food, are very interested in Japanese food and wanted something different from the Sushi or bento lessons offered elsewhere. We met Aki at the Kyoto market and immediately felt very relaxed with her, our Japanese is limited to greetings and simple phrases but this wasn't a problem as Aki's English is excellent. We loved seeing some of the more traditional food preparations at the market - especially the gentleman producing the Bonito flakes that we later used in the meal. It was also nice venturing away from the Family Mart style convenience stores and street food with a knowledgable guide. Once all the ingredients had been purchased we made our way to Aki's home, a beautiful, light-filled family home. The cooking was really interesting and fun, we picked up all kinds of cooking tips. I was really pleased to see how to make dashi from scratch and tips on perfecting Japanese rice. We all helped to cook 4 dishes with rice and miso soup - with some of the more mundane prep done for us to allow the dishes to be made in time. The food was absolutely delicious and exciting, we have since cooked some of the dishes at home although getting beef of that quality is not going to be easy :) It was a really special treat being able to spend time with Aki in her lovely home. It was something we will never forget and a fantastic thing to do for our daughter's 17th birthday. Thanks so much Aki. If it is possible to get any more of your recipe sheets - we would love to try more of your food. Lucy, Corin, Mia and Tess

This experience was a highlight of o our trip it was such a personal experience with these two lovely women. Shopping and being introduced to local foods in a local market. Cooking in a home and being taught about new ingredients and techniques was an amazing experience. This is a once in a lifetime experience. This is a must when visiting Kyoto and Japan. Thank you for the amazing experience. John, Erick, and Shawn

We had the pleasure of meeting Aki today and participating in her cooking class with a small group of four. Aki lives in a neighborhood outside Kyoto’s city center, far from the usual tourist spots. First, she took us through a shopping center with many small local stores. This is where the Japanese housewife does her shopping, and it was fascinating to experience the real Japan and have many unfamiliar products explained to us firsthand. Aki took a lot of time answering our questions and is clearly well-connected with the local vendors. We had casual chats with the fishmonger or the old lady selling tofu, something usually impossible for tourists, due to the language barrier. Afterward, we went to Aki’s home. It’s truly special to get this close to the otherwise somewhat reserved Japanese people. We had the privilege of experiencing a real household, not a show kitchen from an event organizer, but a place where people actually live. That was incredible! Together, we cooked four amazing dishes – simple, traditional home-cooking that we’ll definitely make again at home. Aki is very warm and welcoming, and it was a huge privilege to spend the day with her. Without a doubt, a highlight of our nearly four-week vacation! Thank you, Aki.

We have been on many experiences/tours and this was the best we have ever experienced. Aki was so easy to be around, was informative and well prepared. The cooking was fun, extremely well organized and was our best meal in Japan by a mile. If you can book this experience, do it.

My husband and I had an incredible experience with Aki. Her instructions were clear and we met her right where she suggested. We started our tour at a local covered market street mall. She introduced us to many merchants, who greeted us with a smile. One man, who cured and sold dried bonita, was in a third generation family business of over 70 years. As we perused a contemporary market, Aki explained different pickles, fish, noodles, vegetables, sauces and so much more that are used in daily Japanese cooking. We then took a bus to Aki’s lovely home in a quiet neighborhood. We instantly felt welcomed. The table was set, sauces and stock were marinating and recipes were available to us to begin making the dishes. Aki emailed us our meal preferenes so we had an idea of what we were making. We chopped garlic, ginger, carrots, mushrooms and various Japanese root vegetables, made miso soup, fish broth, Waygu beef, vegetable salad, mainated chicken wings, eggplant and more. Aki’s English was very good, we had excellent communication. By the end of the meal we were full, happy and grateful for this incredible opportunity. We highly recommend Aki for a wonderful Japanese dining expereince.