Kushizukushi

Batter adjusted at the counter

A skewer goes into oil only after its coating has been judged for that ingredient. At Kushizukushi in Yanagimachi, Nara, kushiage depends on that discipline of repetition, where heat, timing and the small correction come before the food reaches the guest. The craft is led at the counter by an owner-chef with 30 years on the tools, preparing the course in front of a small room and explaining each piece as it moves from bench to oil to plate.

The lineage published here is practical rather than genealogical. Kushizukushi has been described as long established, with more than 20 years of operation, and its method has settled around seasonal Nara ingredients, light batter and a set progression rather than a broad à la carte spread. The batter is adapted to each item for lightness and digestibility, which is why the course can suit guests who are otherwise wary of fried food, and older guests as readily as younger ones. That restraint is the whole register: one skewer, one ingredient, one adjustment, repeated until the sequence closes.

Seasonal skewers, rice from the family

The program is course-only, with sets built around 11 skewers or 16 items, followed by a finish such as nyumen or dashi chazuke. Michelin notes spring Japanese glass shrimp, autumn ayu with roe and winter oysters among the seasonal pieces, each handled for texture and flavour rather than treated as a fixed formula. The batter changes with the ingredient. That is the method’s quiet centre.

Local sourcing is not left as a broad claim. Nara vegetables appear in preparations such as sake lees pickles, and goma-dofu sits within the same regional register. The rice for the closing dashi chazuke comes from the owner-chef’s brother, a family detail that gives the last bowl its own line of provenance. Sake leads the beverage side, with Nara sake named as the natural companion to the skewers; shochu and wine sit alongside it, but the house’s emphasis remains with the food’s locality and the pace of the course.

Fifteen seats around the work

The room is intimate, with counter seating that keeps the pass in view and tables close enough for the progression to feel shared without becoming formal. The counter holds about 15 to 20 seats, and the shape of the place matters: the guest watches the chef prepare, fry and send each skewer while the course gathers rhythm. It is lively rather than hushed, conversational rather than ceremonial.

Kushizukushi sits on the first floor of Wada Building in Yanagimachi, away from the heavier temple-route traffic but still within Nara-shi’s daily movement. The counter gives the meal its measure. Oil, batter, salt, sauce, rice; the sequence stays visible, and the room takes its energy from the hands working in front of it.

A Bib Gourmand held by the skewers

Kushizukushi holds Michelin Bib Gourmand recognition for 2024 and 2025, with inspectors pointing to creative skewers and the seasonal use of Nara ingredients. Awards do not change the gesture at the bench. The useful close is the same one the course gives: Japanese glass shrimp in spring, ayu with roe in autumn, oysters in winter, and dashi chazuke on rice grown by the owner-chef’s brother.