Ryuta Sakamoto

The Recognition The Michelin Guide awarded One Michelin Star for Sakamoto in Kyoto, Japan. Its specialty is authentic Kyoto cuisine, with dashi-forward seasonal Kyoto cooking. That recognition sits alongside another responsibility in Gion: the role of second-generation chef-owner at Kappo Sakamoto. There, the cooking is described as classical Japanese cuisine, carried through a kappo format. The work is framed by specific terms: dashi-forward seasonal Kyoto cuisine, seasonal ingredient-forward cooking, and the direct exchange of kappo counter service.

The Work

Behind It At the Kyoto restaurant, the style is dashi-forward seasonal Kyoto cuisine. The dishes are ingredient-forward and seasonal, with a register more relaxed than formal kaiseki while remaining rooted in Kyoto cuisine. At Kappo Sakamoto in Gion, Kyoto, Japan, customers order à la carte seasonal dishes, and the chef cooks from scratch in front of them behind the counter.

The Road Born on April 17, 1973, Ryuta Sakamoto joined Sakamoto in 2002. Today, his responsibilities are specific rather than broad. He is the English-speaking chef at Sakamoto in Kyoto, Japan, and he is also the second-generation chef-owner of Kappo Sakamoto in Gion, Kyoto, Japan. The two roles create a precise portrait: one chef working across authentic Kyoto cuisine and kappo service, with dashi, seasonality, à la carte cooking, and counter-side preparation as the defining terms of the craft.