Kaiseki

Kaiseki (懐石) was a light meal served at a Japanese tea ceremony but is now also used for a style of light meal, a tasting menu, served in a Japanese restaurant. Kaiseki is popularly served in a ryotei (料亭) and a kappou (割烹) restaurant.

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Kaiseki (懐石) originally meant Onjaku, a rock or a konnyaku heated by an open fire that was wrapped by clothes to warm oneself. Two theory exist as to how kaiseki became associated with food. One theory claims that a poor Zen Buddhist monk who had nothing edible to offer to a guest offered his onjaku to the guest to at least give him warmth. Another theory claims that it is taken from a teaching of 被褐懐玉 in Tao Te Ching by Lao Zi and substituted 玉 with 石.

Japanese tea ceremony: The Japanese tea ceremony (cha-no-yu, chadō, or sadō) is a traditional ritual influenced by Zen Buddhism in which powdered green tea, or matcha (抹茶), is ceremonially prepared by a skilled practitioner and served to a small group of guests in a tranquil setting....

Tasting menu: Usually found in restaurants, a tasting menu offers small portions of several dishes as a single meal. Some restaurants and chefs specialize in tasting menus, while in other cases, it is a special or a menu option. Tasting menus may be offered to provide a sample of a type of cuisine, or house speci...

Ryotei: REDIRECT Ry?tei...