Gihan Gyoza

People in Kyoto are quite particular about gyoza, and in fact, Kyoto City consistently ranks among the top cities in annual gyoza consumption surveys. It’s a highly competitive gyoza scene with several restaurants in the city selected for Tabelog’s “Top 100 Gyoza Restaurants,” but right in the middle of it all, there’s a place where you can enjoy gyoza made by a chef who holds China’s highest culinary certification. Just hearing about a top-tier chef from China—the home of gyoza—is incredibly appealing, isn’t it? If you’re like me, you’re probably getting really excited, wondering just how delicious these gyoza are going to be…

As you’d expect from a celebrity-owned restaurant, it seems reservations are recommended even for lunch… Gaihan Gyoza is a place like this…

The restaurant in question is Gihan Gyoza, which opened in Karasuma Oike in July 2022. It’s owned by Mr. Gi Yoshiyuki, the man behind several popular Chinese restaurants, including Creative Chinese Cuisine Ichinofunairi, Gihan Ebisu do in the Sanjo-kai Shopping District, and Gihan Hajime do inside Kyoto Tower Sand. One day when I visited just before opening time, there wasn’t a line, but I’d say there were nearly 20 customers waiting around the restaurant for it to open… You could really tell how popular it was.

Roughly speaking, the restaurant has the feel of a neat and tidy Chinese restaurant, with a slightly exotic atmosphere. It’s casual enough to visit casually, but it has a different charm from the typical Japanese neighborhood Chinese spots. What surprised me, though, was that everyone there—except for me—seemed to have made a reservation in advance. I couldn’t believe it—a place that actually recommends reservations even at lunchtime… That’s why there wasn’t a line. Does that mean I was just lucky to get in so easily? It really is a celebrity-owned restaurant, isn’t it…

This style is rare in Kyoto… How was the gyoza lunch I had at Gihan Gyoza?

So, let me tell you about the gyoza lunch I ordered at Gihan Gyoza that day. For the gyoza, you can choose between garlic gyoza and ginger gyoza, and this time I went with the garlic gyoza…

About 10 minutes after ordering, the gyoza lunch was brought to my table. It included six gyoza, rice, Chinese soup, spring rolls, pickled mustard greens, salad, and almond tofu—all for 1,300 yen (tax included). For that price, it’s quite a generous portion, don’t you think? The gyoza, in particular, are extra-large—rivaling those at Gyoza no Ohsho. Many gyoza specialty shops in Kyoto serve small gyoza, which was actually starting to get a bit frustrating.

When I broke open the gyoza wrapper to look inside, I found it packed with pork like this. I think there’s actually more pork than vegetables in here…

So, time to dig in… As expected, the rich umami flavor of the meat bursts out the moment the thin skin breaks. Herbs like garlic and chives are definitely there, but it feels like over 70% of the filling is meat. I can’t recall ever having gyoza that made the meat stand out this much. The shape is completely different, but the texture of the filling reminds me a bit of shumai.

The dumplings are large, and packed with pork… For meat lovers, these are a dream come true. Personally, though, I found myself thinking, “I wish there were a little more vegetables…” Either way, getting six of these dumplings with all the sides for 1,300 yen (tax included) feels like a great deal. I can totally see why customers are flocking here, even making reservations for lunch.

In fact, there are a total of seven types of gyoza… Access to Gihan Gyoza is a 6-minute walk from the nearest station, Karasuma-Oike Station on the Kyoto Municipal Subway.

At Gihan Gyoza, you can enjoy a total of seven types of gyoza, including garlic and ginger varieties.

• Large Box Small Plum Gyoza: 6 pieces for 680 yen
• Shrimp and Green Onion Gyoza: 6 pieces for 850 yen
• Cilantro Gyoza: 4 pieces for 650 yen, 6 pieces for 900 yen
• Boiled Gyoza: 4 pieces for 800 yen
• Fried Gyoza: 4 pieces for 700 yen

These gyoza can be ordered à la carte. It seems that during lunchtime, you can order individual items as add-ons, except for the boiled gyoza. Since lunchtime allows you to order in sets of 4 at a reasonable price, visiting during the day is recommended if you want to try a variety of flavors.

Now, here are the restaurant details…