THE SPICE is a curry restaurant located right in the heart of Kyotango’s Kumihama-cho inside a 3-storey Japanese style wooden building built over 100 years ago in the Taisho Period (1912-1926 CE). Once a traditional inn and restaurant, the building has a kitchen and entranceway on the first floor with a seating area on the second floor consisting of 4 low tables to seat four and 4 counter seats. The aroma of various spices and condiments scent the air in this restaurant where the ambiance of the Taisho Period meets present day aesthetics.

May 2025 marks THE SPICE’s 4 year anniversary. The owner of the establishment, Mr. Takuma Shibata (37), grew up in the Kumihama area. After graduating from Kumihama High School, he originally worked at a clothing company in Osaka City, but when the coronavirus pandemic hit in 2020, he headed back to his hometown for a fresh start.

“I wanted to do something with my grandparent’s old inn”

With the former inn’s large kitchen area in mind, Shibata came up with the idea of starting a restaurant and set his sights on offering his favorite dish, Spice Curry (a Japanese curry made with spices instead of roux). Since Shibata’s previous experience working in a restaurant was only on a part time basis, he called on his old classmate, Masato Okuda (37), who had experience working full time at an Italian restaurant, for help.

Shibata’s wife, Ms. Yoshikazu (37) joined the team to help develop the curry, and together they spent about a year trialing and sampling various recipes before uncovering the restaurant’s unique flavors.

The recommended dish is “THE SPICE Special” (1,820 yen), an ever popular curry dish consisting of their classic Chicken Curry served with the 3 curries of the month and topped with Gai Yang Thai grilled chicken, garlic shrimp and more.

The curries of the month for April 2025 are Pork Keema, Squid and Broccolini Masala, and Offal Masala. The Special for April was an explosion of flavors with sweet, medium-spicy, hot and meatless curries surrounding the turmeric rice in the center.

From last year, THE SPICE started running a food truck, and they have plans to sell their curry roux online and develop additional merchandise for sale.

Shibata states that “Curry is just like fashion. There is fun to be had with unconventional pairings. The building, the flavors, our service and the shop’s interior are all a sort of ‘Spice’ and I want our customers to experience it all”.

Copyright © The Kyoto Shimbun

Translated by Kyotango City Tourism Association