Imobo Hiranoya Honke
Gion, Kyoto
- Daily
- 11:00 to 14:30, 17:00 to 21:00
Last entry 14:00 at lunch and 19:30 at dinner. Irregular closing days.
Source: imobou.com, checked 11 Oct 2026.
Hiranoya Honke, inside Maruyama Park, has made imobo for about 300 years. It's ebi-imo, a taro shaped like a prawn, simmered for a full day and night with dried cod that's soaked for over a week, so the cod's gelatin holds the taro together while the taro softens the fish.
Insider tip
Set meals with imobo start at ¥3,300. Lunch is 11:00 to 14:30 and dinner 17:00 to 21:00, with irregular closing days. Another shop with a similar name is close by, and Hiranoya Honke is the one on the north side of Yasaka Shrine.
What the guides say about Imobo Hiranoya Honke
A few old restaurants are built round a single dish. Kaneyo has grilled eel on Rokkaku-dori since 1912, and you order the kinshi-don, eel on rice under a Kyoto-style rolled omelette (¥3,000 for a small one). Mishima-tei has served sukiyaki at Teramachi and Sanjo since 1873, and the main store sells menchi-katsu and bento to take away. Inside Maruyama Park, Imobo Hiranoya Honke has made imobo for about 300 years, prawn-shaped taro simmered for a day and a night with dried cod. Sets start at ¥3,300.
What's on near Imobo Hiranoya Honke
Upcoming events within a ten-minute walk of Imobo Hiranoya Honke, from the weekly Kyoto events calendar.
Okera Mairi at Yasaka Shrine
をけら詣り
Time Purification rite 15:00, New Year's Eve rite 19:00, the fire burns through the night Station Gion bus stop (City Bus 206), 1 min walk
After the New Year's Eve rite, the sacred okera fire burns in lanterns all night, and you light a rope from it and swing it in circles all the way home so it stays lit. People use the flame for the household altar lamp and to cook New Year zoni soup, and the burnt rope is kept in the kitchen as a charm against fire.
underutilized, CC BY-SA 2.0 Karuta Hajime at Yasaka Shrine
かるた始め式
Station Gion bus stop (City Bus 206), 1 min walk
The first karuta card game of the year is played as an offering on the Noh stage at Yasaka Shrine, followed by a show of Heian court costume.
underutilized, CC BY-SA 2.0 Gion Matsuri
祇園祭
Station Gion-Shijo (Keihan)
Yasaka Shrine's festival takes over Kyoto for the whole of July, from the opening rites on the 1st to the purification at Eki Shrine on the 31st. The days you'll want to plan round are the float processions on 17 and 24 July and the three yoiyama evenings before each, and there are paid seats on Oike-dori for both processions.
underutilized, CC BY-SA 2.0 Gion-sha Kangetsu-sai at Yasaka Shrine
祇園社観月祭（八坂神社）
Time From 19:00 Station Gion-Shijo (Keihan)
On the harvest moon night the dance stage of Yasaka Shrine hosts court dance, gagaku, koto and taiko by lantern light, and waka poems are read aloud.
underutilized, CC BY-SA 2.0 Gion Odori
第67回 祇園をどり
Time 13:30 and 16:00, about 1 hour Station Gion-Shijo (Keihan), exit 7, 5 min walk
Gion Higashi's is the only one of the geisha districts' odori dance shows held in autumn, a medley of nagauta and kiyomoto pieces that ends with the whole district on stage for Gion Higashi Kouta. Tickets are ¥6,000, or ¥7,000 with a tea ceremony seat, and children under 3 aren't admitted.
Nearby
Around Gion
The teahouse streets below Yasaka Shrine, best early or at dusk
Gion grew up as the town at the gate of Yasaka Shrine, and it's still where Kyoto's geiko and maiko live and work. Gion Kobu, the largest of the city's five geiko districts, keeps its teahouses along Hanamikoji-dori, and the Shirakawa canal runs through Gion Shinbashi to the north. Go early for the shrine and the temples behind it. Come back at dusk for the streets.
Gion has 25 places on the Roam Kyoto map: 6 shrines and temples, 4 shops, 4 neighbourhoods, 3 cafes, 2 landmarks, 2 restaurants, 1 bar, 1 museum, 1 park or garden and 1 bathhouse. Read the Gion guide.
Good to know
- What is the address of Imobo Hiranoya Honke?
- Maruyama Park, north side of Yasaka Shrine, Higashiyama-ku, Kyoto (in Japanese: 京・東山祇園円山公園内（八坂神社北側）).
- What are the opening hours of Imobo Hiranoya Honke?
- Daily 11:00 to 14:30, 17:00 to 21:00. Last entry 14:00 at lunch and 19:30 at dinner. Irregular closing days.
- How do I get to Imobo Hiranoya Honke?
- The nearest station is Gion bus stop (City Bus 206). Imobo Hiranoya Honke is in Gion, Kyoto.
- How much does Imobo Hiranoya Honke cost?
- Imobo Hiranoya Honke is mid-range, marked ¥¥ on the site's price scale.
- How long do you need at Imobo Hiranoya Honke?
- Plan for 1 hour.
- When is the best time to visit Imobo Hiranoya Honke?
- Lunch.
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