Booked a couple of nights stay at Sotetsu Fresa Inn Kyoto Shijo Karasuma and it was about 12 minutes walk to Nishiki Market.
Famished and was looking for a place to have late lunch. Walked around the area and stumbled upon a place that looked like a machiya and it sign says, "Spring Valley Brewery".
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| facade and entrance |
The place looked super duper cool, and after a quick browse of the menu, decided to lunch at SVB. The service staff was welcoming despite I was a solo diner.
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| weekend lunch set menu |
Was surprised by how reasonably priced its Weekend Lunch Set was. One could have a meal there for about ¥1500 to ¥1800 and it comes with a small glass of craft beer! Wow!
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| beer list |
Guess what I had chosen for lunch. It was the roast beef bowl!
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| interior |
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| looking out from the inside |
The place was pretty relaxed on a Sunday, but that's maybe because it was way past lunch hour when I was there. The other table had two young adults that probably had completed their meal and looked like they were learning about beer brewing from the staff at the bar.
The roast beef don was to be paired with "Afterdark" but they can change it to something else based on your preference. I was hot from all the walking and wanted something more refreshing. The staff was able to converse in English, so ordering was not an issue. Moreover, the menu had English text on it as well.
I went for "Copeland" beer and it tasted hoppy, mild sweetness and not too bitter. Cold beer on a hot day. So good.
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| Copeland 5.5% ABV |
Then, the salad was served. Ooh, this was a pleasant surprise as I thought there'd only be beef bowl and then the small glass of beer. Oh wow, the salad came loaded with flavours. Loved the mild dressing (tasted of olive oil and balsamic), the walnuts, croutons and cheese toppings. Enjoyed the salad and while I was halfway through, the roast beef bowl was served.
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| salad (part of the set) |
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| Roast Beef Bowl Set |
Such a pretty looking bowl with a wobbly yolk sitting ontop, just waiting for the moment to burst out of its membrane.
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| golden moments |
Beneath the slices of pink roast beef, was a mound of rice drizzled with shoyu and wasabi. Mix it well with the golden yolk for a glorious mouthfeel. Tasty too. Kudos to SVB for being so generous with its customers. There were enough slices of roast beef to cover the ratio of rice.
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| like a roast beef sushi |
After I was done with my meal, the staff came over and asked if I'd like coffee. I'd say yes to that!
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| after meal coffee |
For just ¥1500 (less than SGD20), there was the main dish of roast beef bowl, a side of salad, a small glass of beer and a coffee. Definitely value for money! Highly satisfied and would recommend for a visit when you're in the vicinity.
The Sotetsu-Fresa Inn Shijo Karasuma hotel had one of the nicest facade/walkway that I've ever come across in 3 to 3.5-star hotel thus far. Classy. Like any other Sotetsu-Fresa Inn hotel, the hotel lobby had other complimentary amenities such as ladies/gents pack that guests could help themselves to if required.
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| entrance to Sotetsu-Fresa Inn Shijo Karasuma |
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| nice walkway, like walking into an onsen or high class restaurant |
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| home sweet home |
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| hotel breakfast |
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| loved the eggs and the cold somen |
I tried the hotel breakfast and there weren't many varieties. However, they do serve some special item such as croquette and cold somen. The dashi for the noodles was quite good. I'm good as long as they have scrambled eggs or omelette.
Spring Valley Brewery Kyoto
Location: 587–2 Takamiyacho, Nakagyo Ward, Kyoto, 604-8056, JapanWebsite: https://www.springvalleybrewery.jp/pub/kyoto/
Contact: +81 75-231-4960
Business Hours:
Mon-Sat: 11am to 11pm
Sun: 11am to 10pm
Sotetsu-Fresa Inn Kyoto Shijo Karasuma
Location: 60番地 Dojishacho, Shimogyo Ward, Kyoto, 600-8421, JapanWebsite: https://fresa-inn.jp/en/karasuma/
Contact: +81 75-284-2031
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