I first came across Le temps du goût, a small French patisserie café in Kyoto, in the pages of a Japanese lifestyle magazine. I was only half-reading, absentmindedly flipping through the pages, when the French name Le temps du goût (“the time of taste”) suddenly caught my eye. I checked the address and realized it wasn’t too far from home, so I immediately pinned it on Google Maps and added it to my personal list of must-visit cafés in Kyoto. Then life got busy, and the pin simply sank to the bottom of the map.
Months later, on an early autumn morning, we had some errands near the Philosopher’s Path and decided to grab lunch around Shirakawa-dori and Kitaoji-dori. After eating, the weather was so beautiful it felt almost a crime to go straight home. Autumn in Kyoto always has that effect on you — once you step outside, you just don’t feel like heading back too soon. It would be a shame to waste such a peak foliage day.
So we decided to make a small detour and check out a new café.
That’s when I suddenly remembered Le temps du goût, the little dessert shop I’d tucked away on my map, which happened to be just a short ride away.
We followed Kitaoji-dori toward the Takano area, then turned into a side street just before reaching the Shirakawa Canal. There, hidden along a quiet residential lane in the Ichijoji neighborhood of Kyoto, near the intersection of Kitaoji-dori and the Shirakawa Canal, we found Le temps du goût. This part of town sees few tourists and feels very much like a quiet, lived-in residential neighborhood.
The exterior is all about understatement: exposed concrete walls paired with a row of glass blocks. The entrance is compact, marked only by a small bronze nameplate and a single light above the door. It blends so seamlessly into the street that you could easily walk right past it. There are no curated “photo spots” and none of the typical patisserie cuteness. At first glance, it looks more like a design studio or a small architecture office than a dessert shop.
Interior design & pastry display: understated, warm French flair
We parked our bikes and paused for a moment in front of the entrance. It was almost peacefully quiet — just the occasional car in the distance and the faint murmur of water from the canal. Early autumn sunlight poured over the trees along the Shirakawa Canal, their leaves slowly deepening into shades of red and gold. For a second, it felt like opening the door might disturb something delicate.
Inside, the entire right-hand side forms a long, continuous stretch of work counter and pastry display. Near the entrance you’ll find the checkout and pour-over coffee station; further in are the pastry displays and the open kitchen, subtly differentiated by varying tones of wood. The kitchen counter glows with a honey-like warmth that softens the cool gray-blue of the concrete walls, giving the whole space a gentle, understated warmth.
One detail that stands out: the interior design wasn’t handed off to a commercial firm. Instead, the owners worked closely with an architect friend, sketching plans by hand and refining them together. The exterior’s combination of exposed concrete and glass blocks keeps the aesthetic clean and minimal while allowing generous natural light to pour in. By day, the café feels bright and comfortable; in winter it’s filled with sunlight, and in summer it manages to stay airy rather than stuffy — much like the French pastries on display: simple at first glance, but full of thoughtful detail.
There’s no defined line between the work counter and the display; visually, they flow seamlessly into one another. On the display, neat rows of plates and glass domes showcase an array of baked goods. Under the domes, financiers, madeleines, pound cakes, and canelés rest on dark wooden boards. The warm wood grain, paired with soft lighting, makes each pastry look especially inviting. In front of every item, there’s a black handwritten label in white ink — a clean, modest script that quietly underlines the café’s handmade, small-batch feel.
At the very back of the room sits a small bar counter. The long slab of solid wood used for the bar and work area originally came from a relative’s home, where it had been sitting unused for years. After sanding and oiling, it was given new life as one of the warmest focal points in the café. On top of the counter are glass jars and wicker baskets: jars filled with cookies, dried fruit, and sugar cubes; baskets holding house-made jams and fruit liqueurs. According to the owners, many of these glass jars and woven baskets were once part of their elders’ everyday kitchenware. Reusing them to hold ingredients and pastries naturally carries a quiet “taste of home” into the space.
The interior has no partitions or closed-off rooms; your line of sight runs straight to the back of the kitchen. It’s open, but never cold — airy without feeling exposed.
There aren’t many seats — just three spots at the bar, one deep walnut round table for four, and two small two-top tables. Each chair is different in shape and style, as if collected from different chapters of everyday life. The walls are simply decorated with a few bunches of dried flowers and a single potted plant. It’s minimal, but never bare — perfectly in tune with the café’s overall character: quietly minimal, gentle, and calm, yet full of quiet presence.
Le temps du goût is run by a husband-and-wife team. The owner, Mr. Yamashita, trained for years at several French patisseries in Kyoto. He personally oversees everything from recipe development and ingredient selection to baking and plating. He’s especially particular about pairing French cultured butter with seasonal Japanese fruit, frequently adjusting the flavors of his financiers, pound cakes, and canelés to match the time of year. The rich aroma of browned butter and the delicately moist crumb feel like the embodiment of his vision of an “ideal everyday dessert”.
His wife, who runs the hand-brewed coffee side of the café, is the other half of its soul. She sources beans in collaboration with Kyoto roasters WEEKENDERS COFFEE and Kurasu, and is meticulous about roast level and extraction. When you walk in, you’ll often see her quietly focused at the pour-over station, her movements smooth and rhythmic. Every now and then, she looks up to chat with regulars, sharing notes about bean origins or the flavor profile of the latest seasonal beans.
On the café’s Instagram Stories, they sometimes share snippets of their after-hours experiments — the two of them testing new recipes together, from discussing ingredients to tasting and adjusting. Creations like their caramelized apple canelé or liqueur-soaked cherry pound cake are the result of these late-night sessions. This blend of professional craft and everyday routine may be what makes the place so compelling: it’s not just about the aroma of pastries and coffee, but about a pair of dedicated craftspeople quietly weaving their own version of French-inspired Kyoto café life.
The Story Behind “Le temps du goût”: A Quiet Philosophy of Taste and Craft
The name Le temps du goût translates literally to “the time of taste” — a phrase that also evokes the idea of savoring the moment, of slipping into a quiet, beautiful pause. The owners built the café around a simple wish: that anyone who visits can enjoy a small pocket of time devoted entirely to flavor — a cup of coffee, a piece of pastry — even in the middle of a busy day. Those four French words capture the delicate bond between time and the senses, a connection that feels both poetic and quietly grounding.
Le temps du goût opened in June 2023. Everything — from the location and interior design to the menu layout — was created by the couple themselves, entirely by hand. The deliberately open layout of the kitchen lets guests watch the pastry-making process, while the aroma of freshly baked pastries and hand-brewed coffee naturally fills the room.
That day, we ordered two cups of pour-over coffee, a pistachio financier, and a langue de chat (a thin French butter cookie). The financier carried a deep, fragrant browned-butter aroma and an exceptionally fine, buttery crumb — a small detail that immediately reveals the owner’s confidence and craftsmanship. It has since become one of our favorite French-style cafés in Kyoto’s Sakyo Ward.
The Menu at Le temps du goût
The menu at Le temps du goût is just a single page — simple at first glance, yet surprisingly meticulous. Drinks focus on pour-over coffee, black tea, and herbal tea. Beyond the core pastries, the café also offers daily handmade desserts announced with small handwritten notes. These items change with the seasons and the bakers’ inspiration, adding a little blind-box anticipation to each visit.
In addition to the menu items, the pastry display case features a rotating selection of freshly baked treats such as madeleines, financiers, mini tarts, and cookies.
| Item | Original | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Coffee | ||
| House Blend | ブレンド | Hot ¥500 Iced ¥550 |
| Single-Origin Coffee | シングル（例：ルワンダ／ペルー／ケニア 等） | Hot ¥600 Iced ¥600 |
| Café au Lait | カフェオレ | Hot ¥600 Iced ¥650 |
| Tea | ||
| Black Tea | 紅茶 | Hot ¥600 Iced ¥600 |
| Earl Grey | アールグレイ | Hot ¥700 Iced ¥700 |
| Royal Milk Tea | ロイヤルミルクティー | Hot ¥700 Iced ¥700 |
| Chai | チャイ | Hot ¥700 Iced ¥700 |
| Rum Chai | ラムチャイ | Hot ¥800 |
| Herbal Blend Tea | ブレンドハーブティー | Hot ¥700 Iced ¥700 |
| Chamomile Tea | カモミールティー | Hot ¥700 Iced ¥700 |
| Alcohol | ||
| Heartland Beer (Small Bottle) | ビール（ハートランド小瓶） | ¥600 |
| Glass of Wine | グラスワイン | ¥1,100〜 |
| Champagne | シャンパーニュ | ¥1,700〜 |
| Dessert Wine and More | デザートワインなど | See in-store |
| Others | ||
| Grape Juice | ぶどうジュース | ¥700 |
| House-Made Ginger Ale | 自家製ジンジャーエール | ¥700 |
| Hot Ginger Tea | ホットジンジャー | ¥600 |
| Tonic Water | トニックウォーター | ¥500 |
| Passion Fruit Soda (Seasonal) | パッションフルーツソーダ（季節限定） | ¥700 |
| Pastry | ||
| Assorted Baked Goods (madeleines, financiers, etc.) | 焼き菓子各種（例：マドレーヌ、フィナンシェ、ダックワーズ、小タルト、クッキー 等） | ¥250〜 |
| Eat-in Only Desserts | ||
| Choux Cream Puff | シュー・ア・ラ・クレーム | ¥450 |
| Caramel Chantilly Cream Puff | シャンティ・キャラメル | ¥450 |
| Today’s Cake / Pound Cake | 本日のケーキ／パウンド | ¥350 |
| Two-Cake Dessert Plate | 2種ケーキプレート | ¥700 |
| Seasonal Fruit Vacherin | 季節のフルーツのヴァシュラン | ¥1,200〜¥1,500 |
| Eat-in Mess (Amanatsu × Passion Fruit) | イートインメス | See in-store |
| Daily & Seasonal Specials (Availability varies; not available every day) | ||
| Fig Feuilleté | Feuilleté aux figues | ¥1,500 |
| Hazelnut Tart | Tarte Noisette | ¥700 |
| Lime Tart | Tarte au Citron Vert | ¥700 |
| Mille-Feuille | Mille-feuille | ¥700〜¥900 |
| Mont Blanc | Mont Blanc | ¥1,000 |
| Lemon Soda | レモンスカッシュ | ¥700 |
| Chocolate Cream | クリームショコラ | ¥700 |
| Eton Mess × Champagne Set | Eton Mess + Champagne | ¥2,500 |
Shop Information
| Shop Name | Le temps du goût（ル タン ドゥ グー） |
|---|---|
| Address |
Jizoboncho 30-3, Ichijoji, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto Takashima Building, 1st Floor |
| Phone | Not publicly listed (please contact via Instagram DM) |
| Business Hours | 10:00–17:00 |
| Closed | Closed on Thursdays; additional closures are announced on Instagram |
| Access |
Approximately a 6-minute walk from Chayama / Kyoto University of the Arts Station (Eizan Main Line), and also within walking distance of Ichijoji Station. |
| @temps_gout_kyoto | |
| Notes | Seasonal pastries sell out quickly — arriving early is recommended. Minimum order for dine-in is one drink. |
Final Thoughts
This is the kind of café you naturally want to return to. There’s no heavy promotion, yet sincerity and good taste come through in every detail. From the aroma of the pastries and the warmth of the coffee to the quiet focus of the owners as they work, Le temps du goût truly feels like a place where “quality time” exists in its purest form.
On social media, the hashtag #ルタンドゥグー often appears alongside descriptions like “a hidden gem in Kyoto.” Some dessert bloggers even say it feels “less like a pastry shop and more like the owners’ own private space” — warm, personal, and quietly intimate. With wooden furniture, woven baskets, and vintage tableware thoughtfully placed throughout the room, the atmosphere is gentle and calming, as if you’ve stepped into someone’s lived-in corner of everyday life.
Regulars praise the café’s canelés and financiers, calling them among the best in Northeast Kyoto. The coffee beans come from the beloved Kyoto roasters WEEKENDERS COFFEE and Kurasu, and the seasonal dessert lineup changes frequently — you’ll almost always find something new.
If you’re exploring Ichijoji or Takano in Sakyo Ward, set aside a little time to stop by this café. It’s the perfect place to enjoy a quiet, gentle moment of French-inspired sweets in Kyoto.