We stayed there for only 1 night, as we wanted to try other inns. My wife and I went there for the food more than anything. Without a doubt, Kinmata had the best kaiseki meal of all the 'high end' places we tried. In fact, we went there first so it ended up being all downhill from there. Extremely welcoming master and his wife. The chef and his creations are rated as one of the best of the best in Kyoto by hardcore Japanese foodies so ignore that Michelin guide, go there and be blown away by his awesomeness. Most definitely will return 100% to Kyoto just to stay there. If you are not into kaiseki cuisine, not sure if this would be worth it though.

We stayed there for 3 nights. The location couldnt get any better. It's literally next to Nishiki market, walking distance to some big malls, and Gion.

The guy who manages the ryokan is very helpful and fast. Very nice guy. We asked him to recommend us couple restaurants, he searched, printed the complete address and map and got back to us really fast. We asked him for help to book ryokan in Hakone, he tried to make some phone calls and booked it for us. When he failed to do that (becoz it was all full), he took us to the travel agent next to his ryokan and helped us communicate what we need to the agent. He couldnt be more helpful. Oh, and he cooked excellent traditional Japanese food for dinner and breakfast!

The room that we stayed was big. It has the bedroom and the dining room. The mattress is also comfortable. The only thing that bothered me was the floor heater. It was behind my head and it made a little bit sound when it was on. By the 3 night, i moved my bed to the opposite site and it was much better.
We have to share bathroom there. No problem at all, we didnt feel like it was a shared bathroom. It was clean. It has a small toilet in our room. I didnt like that because it's too small, the heater wasnt working (or he forgot to turn it on maybe), and smelled a little bit. So we use a shared one and we like that one better. So no complain here.

The food is excellent. You definitely have to stay for dinner at least once when you stay there. But the dinner took about 1 1/2 - 2 hours long. But it s in your room. They ll come and serve he food one by one. During our trip to Japan, We stayed at 3 different ryokans, I think the best food was at Kinmata (and they all took about 1 1/2 - 2 hours).

I was early for check-in, but they let me drop my bags off. I headed to the Nishiki Market and wandered through the stalls, amazed and drooling over all the food and shopping opportunities. I found an open wireless network there and was able to hope on and check my email on my iphone. iphones had not come out in Japan yet, so there were some curious necks twisting upon seeing it. I returned to the hotel, and let them know when I would like dinner, and decided to take a bath. My room was very comfortable and furnished with beautiful lacquered furniture. I had a sweet little garden outside my windows. The building itself is beautiful, and the hallway winds around an open garden. I was a little unprepared for the shared baths, toilet in the hall, and changing shoes, and feeling like I was doing things wrong. But after I relaxed and welcomed the experience, and took my first cedar bath, followed by the most exquisite dinner in preparation and execution, I was very much at home. The kaiseki dinner was AMAZING! I love Japanese food, all fish, will eat anything, and some of these dishes were of the deliciously adventurous sort--I loved it. I felt badly for my neighbor who did eat or like fish or seafood. She had some miscommunication with her reservation, and the kitchen had to prepare a completely new meal on the fly. They seemed to misunderstand that she would eat meat, though, as the owner, who is also the incredible chef, said 'we had to cook entire meal out of vegetables' when he told me about it the next day. I stayed there three nights, and had the japanese breakfast everyday. I had dinner there twice. I ate everything on my plate. I still dream about my meals there. I cannot imagine not wanting to eat fish and seafood prepared so immaculately like that all of time. It has inspired me to cook with such preparation. The owner seemed reserved at first, but opened up and was very funny and helpful, and called to inquire about a geisha performance for me. I wish I could have stayed there longer. It was expensive, but worth every single dime, and I hope some day I can go back. Kyoto is a very special place, and Kinmata is a gem.

Kyoto itself is a place very dear to the Japanese. It has retained its magical past. Its mysteries are not accessible to everyone to experience but if you let yourself get swept away like I did at this "Inn" then perhaps you too will get as close as you possibly can, for this is not an "Inn", its a time door to somewhere else.

Come in after a days walking, slip into a hot cedar tub, sit for a kaiseki dinner, executed by one of the most talented individuals I have encountered, served by some of Kyoto's most beautiful people and retire to a sublime state only to awaken to the most pleasant of surprises...