Sowaka

For diners who have tried the hamo shabu, the meal’s lasting impression is often the whole experience, including the rice porridge made after the hot pot. Some have particularly enjoyed the closing rice dish cooked in the remaining broth. If you’re gathering around a pot of pike conger, it’s worth taking your time and saving room for the last mouthful. Sowaka offers both a small hamo shabu hot pot and a larger pot, which can be ordered from 2 portions. You can choose between making the hot pot the centrepiece of the meal or adding a small pot as one dish, depending on your party and appetite.

For more ways to enjoy pike conger, the menu also includes hamo otoshi, tempura and grilled hamo. One diner who shared a hamo shabu hot pot found it filling, with plenty of vegetables, and said there was barely room for the rice porridge at the end. On another occasion, diners enjoyed hamo otoshi and tempura alongside lean whale sashimi and skewered fried nama-fu, or wheat gluten. Hamo can take the lead, with other seafood and Kyoto ingredients alongside it to broaden the meal.

For a taste of Kyoto, look for grilled Kamo eggplant with miso, grilled Manganji peppers, and obanzai—small home-style dishes—made with Kujo spring onions and nama-fu. A diner who tried the Kamo eggplant liked that it came with two kinds of miso. To drink with the hamo and Kyoto-style dishes, there is a Kyoto local-sake tasting set, which lets you choose three labels. It’s an easy way to sample Kyoto sake one glass at a time alongside your meal.

Dinner reservations are available. If you’re hoping to order hamo shabu, contacting the restaurant in advance may help you plan your meal.