Menu & Greetings献立・ご挨拶

爽やかな新緑の頃を過ぎて日差しは日増しに明るく感じられるようになりました。庭の楓の葉がさやさやと揺れて青苔に落ちる木洩れ陽が飛び散る光の玉のようにゆらゆらと揺れています。それはまるで寄せては返す波打ち際の泡粒のように見え、眩しくキラキラとして緑陰の美しさを引き立てています。
光の強さが明るさだけでなく肌に暑さを感じられることに、ハッとさせられます。また一歩、季節が進んでいる。鬱陶しい梅雨もそこまで近づいてきています。

青梅雨　あおつゆ

この言葉は、梅雨に濡れた景色の中、木々のみどりが一層深く鮮やかに見える。そういう姿から生まれたのだろうけど、「青」と付くとまだ梅雨の始まりのころを思い浮かべます。
次に来る真夏の厳しさに比べれば、ひとときの儚い時間です。梅雨が終わればいよいよ夏の盛りへと向かいます。古の人は氷室の氷を食べて、無事に厳しい夏を越えることができるように願ったと言います。
当時の人々の生活は、穏やかな季節を享受し、厳しい季節には翻弄されたのでしょう。私たちの季節との距離は、古の人より遠くにあるように思います。

柏屋のお料理もこれから迎える厳暑に備えて、氷を召し上がっていただきます。お料理は氷に見立てた先付から始まります。鮎や鱧、夏の野菜は暑さも増し美味しくなってまいりました。柏屋の見立てをお楽しみください。

霖雨のころ、不順な天候が続きます。
材料の入荷の具合で内容が変更する場合もございます。
どうぞご容赦ください。

The season of fresh verdure has passed, and the sunlight grows brighter and more vivid with each new day.   In our garden, maple leaves are waving in a wind.  The sunlight filtering through the trees is dancing on green moss.  It looks like a frothy wave on the shore and brings out the beautiful tree’s shade.
I’m struck by how the strength of the sunlight no longer brings just brightness, but warmth that lingers on the skin.  The season is moving forward, step by step.  The rainy season is just around the corner, bringing a touch of melancholy.

Ao-tsuyu

On rainy days, the trees appear even more vivid, their greens deepened by the moisture.
The word ao-tsuyu may have been born from such a scene—lush greenery glistening in the rain.
And yet, because of the word ao (blue/green), I can’t help but picture the very beginning of the rainy season, when everything still feels fresh and new.

Compared to the intense summer just around the corner, ao-tsuyu is a fleeting, gentle moment in time.  The quiet rains will pass, and the full heat of summer will settle in.  It is said that in ancient times, people ate ice stored in ice houses to pray for safe passage through the harsh summer heat.

People in those days likely cherished the gentle seasons and struggled through the harsh ones.  Perhaps we, in the modern world, live at a greater distance from the rhythms of the seasons than they once did.

At Kashiwaya, we offer “ice” as a way to prepare the body and spirit for the coming summer heat.
The meal begins with sakizuke—an appetizer designed to evoke the image of ice.  Ayu (sweetfish), hamo (pike conger), and summer vegetables are now at their most flavorful as the days grow hotter.
We invite you to enjoy Kashiwaya’s seasonal expression through each dish.

During this season of continuous rain, the weather can be quite unpredictable.
Please understand that the menu may change depending on the availability of ingredients.

*Grain Full/ Grain in Ear: The traditional East Asian calendars divide a year into 24 solar terms. “Grain Full” is the 8th solar term and starts from 5/21. “Grain in Ear” is the 9th solar term and starts from 6/5.