Today, I’d like to introduce my favorite pickle shop, Nishidaya.
Nishidaya is located in the Imakumano area, about a 15-minute walk from Sanjusangendo temple.
I learned of Nishidaya at the cooking class I always go to.
My cooking teacher held a lesson using pickles collaborating with Kaoru-san, the wife of Nishidaya’s owner.
That was my first time eating Nishidaya’s pickles and I really liked them.
The history of Nishidaya began in 1936.
The founder, Yasuemon Tsujimura, was born in 1911, and started to work as an apprentice at the Nishida vegetable shop in Imakumano when he was 9 years old, it was after his parents passed away.
Yasuemon was independent from the Nishida vegetable shop when he was 27 year old in 1936, with a promise "not to do the same business".
Nishidaya took its name from "Nishida" vegetable shop when he started his own pickle shop.
Yasuemon passionately studied pickles and created an original one called "Oragamurazuke" after repeating trial and error. Even now, this is Nishidaya’s top selling product.
Unlike traditional eggplant pickles with shiso leaves famously producing in the Oohara area, “Oragamurazuke” used cucumbers.
That was unique at that time and became very popular.
The name “Oragamurazuke” means “Pickles in my village”.
This is the son of Yasuemon, Mr.Yasutaro Tsujimura, the second generation of Nishidaya.
I had a chance to talk to him, and he introduced me to a very interesting story about Nishidaya.
When he was in high school, “Oragamurazuke” was so popular that there was always a long line in front of the shop.
One day, his teachers knew that Yasutaro was Nishidaya’s son, and many teachers asked him to bring pickles to the school because they didn’t want to wait in line. So he drove a car to the school and brought many pickles to the teachers’ room every day!
This is Nishidaya’s trademark.
Every time I see it, I think the design is retro and nice.
Yasutaro-san also told me how this trademark was created.
His father Yasuemon turned his rice bowl which he always used upside down and drew a circle with this picture inside. Since then, his drawing became a Nishdaya’s trademark.
He said Yasuemon had an artistic taste.
I really agree with that!
What is he holding?
It is an old style rice cooker called Hagama.
He often cooks rice with it and eats rice together with pickles. He says the rice cooked with hagama is the most delicious.
The annual consumption of rice per person has been declining after peaking at 118.3kg in 1962. It decreased to 70kg in 1990 and 53.5kg in 2018.
The consumption of pickles has been declining in proportion to the consumption of rice.
He says it is important to keep Japanese food culture, and eat more rice.
Therefore, he cherishes cooking delicious rice and eating it with pickles with his family and staff.
Now his son, Mr.Yasunori Tujimura, inherits Nishidaya as the third generation, and his wife, Kaoru-san, supports him.
I would like to introduce their new approach to Nishidaya next time, especially focusing on Kaoru-san’s pickle cooking class!
Nishidaya (ニシダや)
Address 〒605-0965
6 Ikeda-cho, Imakumano Higashiyama-ku Kyoto city, Kyoto
Tel 075-561-4740
Open 9:00～17:00（Closed 12/29~1/5）
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