Simple Comme Bonjour

Chef-owner Kawaguchi Kotaru is no stranger to the kitchen and Galllic techniques. With a father who cooked on a cruise ship and a training at the revered Pierre Gagnaire in Paris among some of France’s most lauded chefs, Kawaguchi’s Simple Comme Bonjour, a miniature French dining precinct in Nara, is not only expected, but highly anticipated.

His modern, dynamic take on French haute cuisine changes frequently, so returning diners rarely eat the same dish twice. He’s backing that claim with multiple-course set menus driven by seasonality. One time, the four-course menu featured an amuse-bouche of barracuda, foie gras, fried cod milt and angel shrimp. Mains are typically fish- or meat-centric dishes, landing in true avant-garde fashion: domestic beef sirloin with oysters, scallops and white fish plated with citrus bigarade, cauliflower, spinach and cheese sauce. True to French cooking, sauces are a perpetual presence.