Masanori Kamiguchi, head of the family run Kayotei, has many treasures on display in the inn's public spaces -- ornate chests, handpainted screens, antique sake cups, fine lacquerware and Canadian maple syrup in maple-leaf-shaped bottles.
The Kayotei's ties to Canada were forged several years ago when one of Kamiguchi's daughters and her husband, Jiro Takeuchi, moved to British Columbia.
Takeuchi worked for Vancouver's Sutton Place Hotel for a time and during family visits, Kamiguchi fell in love with Canada -- hence the maple syrup and the warm welcome given to our small group from Toronto and Montreal.
Maple syrup aside, Canadian connections are not the primary reason people visit The Kayotei. Visitors -- both local and foreign -- come to the inn for an authentic Japanese experience including onsen -- or hot spring baths.
When established in the mid-1970s, the 10-room inn -- or ryokan -- was quite a departure for the Kamiguchi family, which had previously owned a large hotel and restaurant business.
"They had a 200-room hotel but went against the trend (at the time) and opened a small ryokan that offered traditional, personal Japanese hospitality," says Takeuchi, now general manager of The Kayotei.
Kamiguchi had rightly predicted a change in travel habits and sensed that people were looking for more intimate experiences based on Japense culture, Takeuchi says.
More importantly, he wanted to make The Kayotei a bastion of minimalist calm in a busy world, a place where tabi socks and kimono-clad hostesses await visitors at the front door.
The suites -- some as big as apartments -- are outfitted with tatami mats and floor-hugging kotatsu tables. Translucent shoji screens open to forest views. At night, cushy futons are set up for sleeping.
Menus change with the season and are based on locally sourced ingredients. The cuisine is kaiseki style -- many small dishes such as sashimi, tempura, grilled fish, soup and rice -- all beautifully prepared and artistically presented on lovely dishes manufactured in the Ishikawa area.
In ancient times, a multi-course kaiseki meal was served before the traditional Japanese tea ceremony.
The Kamaguchi family is passionate about maintaining traditional ways but in a little nod to modernity, lounges and suites have Wi-Fi access and bathrooms are equipped with those wonderful hi-tech Japanese toilets that do everything except tuck you in at night.
There are separate baths for men and women plus a private bath on an outdoor patio, which overlooks the treetops along the Kakusen Gorge.
The gorge is famous for its links to celeberated haiku poet Matsuo Basho, who wrote about the scenic spot after stopping there for several days while trekking through the region in 1689.
"Here I have found the genuine joy of travelling," Basho wrote of the region.
Steps from the inn, there's a leafy 1.3-km walking trail, which passes a hut and a stone monument dedicated to Basho, before continuing along the gorge to the Ayatori Hashi Bridge. Also called the Cat's Cradle Bridge, the red metal structure carries walkers across the river. The intricate design was created by master flower arranger and filmmaker Hiroshi Teshigawa.
The trail ends at Yamanaka, once a separate town but now officially part of Kaga. The community of 9,000 is popular with Japanese tourists and has a small museum dedicated to Basho plus galleries, and shops selling ceramics, souvenirs and lacquerware.
The Chrysanthemum Public Baths have separate facilities for men and women, and there is also a footbath for those who may have lingered too long in the shops.
Lacquerware is a specialty of the area and Kayotei guests can tour the studio of Satake Yasuhiro, a local artisan with an international reputation.
Yasuhiro is passionate about his traditional craft and also has connections to Canada -- his younger son, Yasushi, spent two years studying wood-turning on Salt Spring Island.
Despite the artistry that goes into his work, Yasuhiro says each beautiful wooden bowl, cup, etc., he makes is meant to be used not put on a shelf.
* * *
Chef Shin-ichiro Takagi knows all about creating and using beautiful things.
At Zeniya, his restaurant in Kanazawa, it's hard to say what is more beautiful -- the eye- and-palate pleasing dishes Takagi painstakingly prepares or the vintage serving pieces on which he presents them. Both are intergral parts of the Zeniya dining experience.
Located on the Sea of Japan, Kanazawa is the capital of the Ishikawa prefecture, where the traditional cooking -- Kaga cuisine -- is based on seafood and hearty vegetables.
Takagi is a master of Kaga cuisine and at Zeniya he embraces what he calls a "kaiseki inspired" approach.
Zeniya is not a place for people looking for teriyaki chicken and North American-style sushi -- in fact there is no set menu at the restaurant. It is a place for foodies and others looking for an authentic Japanese fine dining experience.
"I like to make the best dishes everyday, and create the best menu, according to what kinds of ingredients are available," says Takagi, who shops daily at Omicho market in central Kanazawa.
Dishes can include hamo fish in a delicate broth, sea bream with salt and citrus, salmon roe with chrysanthemum, abalone seared on a hot stone and steamed rice with chestnut, ginko nut, chicken, potato and black sesame seeds.
Each course arrives piping hot in an eclectic array of dinnerware -- vintage Wajima lacquerware soup and rice bowls, 18th-century blue-and-white plates from China, mid-19th-century Japanese ceramics, Kutani pottery -- even a wooden bird cage.
"We don't use a dishwasher," Takagi says.
Takagi's talents were put to the test last year when he was asked to prepare a Kaga meal for the who's who of New York City's food scene. Held at the home of Japanese ambassador Motoatsu Sakurai, dinner guests included top chefs, Zagat co-founders Tim and Nina Zagat and food editors from The New York Times and Fortune Magazine.
Takagi packed up his tableware and flew to New York City, where he created a 10-course sake-pairing menu.
"We needed nine suitcases just for the dishes," Takagi remarks casually. "But if you don't care about the dishes, it's not Japanese kaiseki."
Anyone who watches TV food shows might expect Takagi's kitchen to be fraught with tension. But that's not the laidback chef's style.
"If you push staff too hard, it doesn't make them better. In the chef world, sometimes people get too emotional. Not in my restaurant."
Instead -- like The Kayotei -- Zeniya is a little pocket of calm, where traditional ways still exist and guests from Canada are always welcome.
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BOTTOMLINE
MORE INFORMATION
We flew to Tokyo with Japan Airlines and after a few days continued on by train to Kanazawa. Rail passes can be purchased through the Japan National Tourist Organization website, which also offers holiday packages, including some with Japan Airlines. For flights only, see jal.com/en. For train passes and other travel information, contact the Japan National Tourist Organization in Toronto at 416-366-7140 or visit jnto.go.jp/canada. For information on dining at Zeniya in Kanazawa, e-mail Chef Takagi at zeniya@yu.incl.ne.jp.
ACCOMMODATIONS
Rooms at the The Kayotei are about $115 but rates vary depending on the season. For more information, visit ryokancollection.com and follow the links to the Luxury Ryokan Collection, call 0761-78-1410 or e-mail kayotei@fork.ocn.ne.jp. In Kanazawa, the recently renovated and centrally located Hotel Nikko Kanazawa has rooms from about $225 per night. See hnkanazawa.co.jp.
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