Monk, Serving Wood Fired Pizza Made from Local Ingredients

Chef Yoshihiro Imai, born in Ibaraki prefecture, north of Tokyo, in 1982, opened his first restaurant, Monk, in 2015. Located in Kyoto, along the Philosopher’s Path and close to the Silver Pavilion, the restaurant offers cuisine made using fresh local products. ‘Every morning, I visit farms farms tucked in the mountains of Ohara and markets around Kyoto to collect and gather fresh ingredients’, the chef explains on his website.

Yoshihiro Imai has made wood fired pizza the emblematic dish at his restaurant. To make the pizzas, the chef uses the best organic flour in the country, and offers various toppings, all inspired by the surrounding nature: spring onion (kujo negi leek), flowers (chrysanthemum), shiitake mushroom, rocket, mackerel or the classic margherita.

The chef has also written a recipe book, Circle, entirely dedicated to pizza.