Smart Coffee
Kawaramachi, Kyoto
- Daily
- 8:00 to 19:00
The upstairs lunch room serves 11:00 to 14:30 (last order) and is closed on Tuesdays.
Source: smartcoffee.jp, checked 11 Oct 2026.
Smart Coffee, on Teramachi just north of Sanjo, opened in 1932 as Smart Lunch, and it still roasts its own beans the way it did then. Downstairs is the coffee shop, with hotcakes, French toast and egg sandwiches at ¥800 to ¥850, and upstairs is a lunch room serving Western-style plates.
Insider tip
A hotcake or French toast set with coffee is ¥1,400. The upstairs Smart Lunch is ¥1,500 for two mains, and you can book it by phone on weekdays only. No smoking anywhere since April 2020.
What the guides say about Smart Coffee
20. Breakfast in an old coffee house. Inoda Coffee opens at 7:00 and serves its Kyoto Breakfast until 11:00 (¥1,890), with the coffee's milk and sugar already in. Smart Coffee on Teramachi opened in 1932 and does hotcakes from 8:00. The where to eat guide covers lunch and dinner.
What's on near Smart Coffee
Upcoming events within a ten-minute walk of Smart Coffee, from the weekly Kyoto events calendar.
Pontocho Suimeikai Dance Recital
第111回 水明会
Time 15:30 (doors 15:00) Station Sanjo (Keihan), 5 min walk
Pontocho's geiko have staged this dance recital since 1930, named after the clear water of the Kamo River, with tokiwazu, kiyomoto and nagauta pieces. Reserved seats are ¥10,000 or ¥8,000 and unreserved ones ¥5,000.
Mariemon, CC BY-SA 3.0 Kamogawa Odori
鴨川をどり
Time 12:30, 14:20 and 16:10 Station Sanjo (Keihan Line), 5 min walk from exit 6
Pontocho's geiko and maiko in a dance drama and then a set of pure dance, in the 1927 Pontocho Kaburenjo by the river. First staged in 1872, it's been performed more times than any other Kyoto geisha show.
Mariemon, CC BY-SA 3.0 Suimei-kai Recital of Pontocho
水明会（先斗町）
Time 15:30 (doors 15:00) Station Sanjo (Keihan), 5 min walk
Pontocho's geiko recital, held since 1930 and named after the clear water of the Kamo River. Reserved seats were ¥10,000 and ¥8,000 and unreserved ones ¥5,000 in 2026.
Mariemon, CC BY-SA 3.0 Kan'ei: Beauty Nurtured by Peace
特別展「寛永 太平がはぐくむ美」
Time 10:00 to 18:00, Fridays to 19:30 (last entry 30 minutes before) Station Karasuma Oike (Karasuma Line, Tozai Line), 3 min walk
Marking 400 years since Emperor Go-Mizunoo's visit to Nijo Castle, the museum shows the Kan'ei culture of Hon'ami Koetsu, Tawaraya Sotatsu and Nonomura Ninsei, with scrolls and screens of the imperial procession and a Kano Sanraku hawk painting from Nijo Castle. It's closed on Mondays (open 12 Oct) and 13 Oct, and the ticket covers the permanent galleries too.
Photograph by Mike Peel www.mikepeel.net., CC BY-SA 4.0 The Indomitable Power of Go Nagai
令和6年能登半島地震復興祈念 不滅の力 永井豪 -永井豪記念館リバイバル-
Time 10:00 to 18:00, Fridays to 19:30 (last entry 30 minutes before) Station Karasuma Oike (Karasuma Line, Tozai Line), 3 min walk
When the 2024 Noto earthquake burned the Go Nagai Memorial Museum in Wajima, 108 original drawings and figures by the creator of Mazinger Z, Devilman and Cutie Honey were found intact inside. They're shown here with original manuscripts and a new manga he drew for the show, and the museum is closed on Mondays (open 11 Jan) and from 28 Dec to 4 Jan.
Photograph by Mike Peel www.mikepeel.net., CC BY-SA 4.0 Nearby
Around Kawaramachi
Downtown Kyoto, between Nishiki Market and the Kamo River
Kawaramachi is downtown Kyoto, the shopping streets round the Shijo-Kawaramachi crossing. The Teramachi and Shinkyogoku Arcades run north from Shijo-dori, Nishiki Market runs west from them, and east of Kawaramachi-dori the Takase canal and Pontocho squeeze in before the Kamo River. You'll come here to eat, mostly. Some of the tea, incense and paper shops date from the Edo period.
Kawaramachi has 26 places on the Roam Kyoto map: 5 shops, 4 cafes, 4 restaurants, 3 shrines and temples, 3 landmarks, 2 bars, 2 neighbourhoods, 1 park or garden, 1 market and 1 bathhouse. Read the Kawaramachi guide.
Good to know
- What is the address of Smart Coffee?
- 537 Tenshojimae-cho, Nakagyo-ku, Kyoto (in Japanese: 京都市中京区寺町通三条上る天性寺前町537).
- What are the opening hours of Smart Coffee?
- Daily 8:00 to 19:00. The upstairs lunch room serves 11:00 to 14:30 (last order) and is closed on Tuesdays.
- How do I get to Smart Coffee?
- The nearest station is Kyoto Shiyakusho-mae (Tozai Line). Smart Coffee is in Kawaramachi, Kyoto.
- How much does Smart Coffee cost?
- Smart Coffee is cheap, marked ¥ on the site's price scale.
- How long do you need at Smart Coffee?
- Plan for 45 min.
- When is the best time to visit Smart Coffee?
- Breakfast, from 8am.
Stay near Smart Coffee
Browse live availability and compare prices around Kawaramachi.
See hotels near Smart Coffee on Booking.comPrices are for the night of Saturday 17 October. You can change the dates on Booking.com. If you book, Roam Kyoto earns a small commission from Stay22 at no extra cost to you.