枯山水茶寮

Kyoto · Higashiyama · since the second year of Meiji

枯山水— a quiet room for tea, behind a wall of moss, since 1872 —

One hundred and fifty-four years of the same kettle. The same eight tatami. The same patience.

— Master Yasuhiko Mori, eighth generation

侘寂一期一会

Wabi is the bowl
that does not
match itself.— and the room that admits it.

Karesansui is a small atelier on the back lane behind the Yasaka shrine. We have served tea here every afternoon since the autumn of 1872, missing only the fortnight in 1923 when the kettle went away to be re-cast.

Our practice is not a performance. It is a way of paying attention. The student who arrives in a hurry leaves more slowly. The student who arrives empty leaves with the same emptiness, only quieter.

We accept ten guests a week, by introduction or by patient enquiry. There is no menu. There is only the tea, the water, the season, and what happens in the room between them.

LineageMori family
Eighth generation
Urasenke school Garden0.4 hectare
Designed 1879
Maintained by hand TeaSingle-origin matcha
From Wazuka village
Stone-milled daily

— The four principles of the room —

和敬清寂Harmony · Respect · Purity · Tranquility

— 01 —

和

Harmony

Between guest and host, between season and bowl, between what is said and what is left unsaid.

— 02 —

敬

Respect

For the tools that have served before us, for the hands that grew the leaf, for the patience of the room.

— 03 —

清

Purity

Of the water from the spring at Otowa-no-taki. Of the bowl, washed twice. Of the mind, eventually.

— 04 —

寂

Tranquility

The kind that arrives only when the other three have done their work, and the kettle has begun to sing.

— Gatherings · Spring 2026 —

一期一会One time. One meeting.

Four small gatherings, by candle and morning light, between the cherry blossom and the early plum rains. Reservation by introduction.

三月

The Last Snow Tea

A morning gathering on the last day of February. Six guests, charcoal fire, thin tea (usucha) and a single sweet of red bean.

22 Feb09:00 — 11:00
¥18,000

四月

Hanami in the Inner Garden

Once a year. The wild cherry by the south wall comes into bloom. Six guests, evening light, thick tea (koicha), wagashi from Toraya.

04 Apr17:00 — 20:00
¥38,000

五月

The Opening of the Sunken Hearth

The moment the season turns from the brazier to the open hearth. A traditional shōfū gathering. Eight guests, full kaiseki, both teas.

14 May11:00 — 15:30
¥58,000

六月

Plum-Rain Quiet

The garden is at its most green. The room smells of wet stone. Six guests, by candle, a single tea, very little speaking.

27 Jun19:00 — 21:00
¥22,000

— Visit the atelier —

To find us, walk past
where you think we are.— Master Mori, on directions

AddressHigashiyama-ku, Gion-machi 274-3
Kyōto-shi 605-0073, Japan

HoursTue — Sat · 14:00 — 19:00
Closed Sundays, Mondays, and the second week of August

ReservationsBy letter or telephone, three weeks in advance.
+81 (0)75 000 0000 · gozen@karesansui.kyoto

DressComfortable, modest, easy to sit in. Socks (white or natural).

枯山水

N · 50 m