¥5,000 Beef Skewers: Is Nishiki Market a Ripoff? A Kyoto Local Goes Back
牛串5000円…錦市場はぼったくり？京都の地元民が5年ぶりに検証
A Kyoto-local YouTuber went back to Nishiki Market after five years to test its "ripoff" reputation — and the 280-plus comments underneath are almost entirely locals confirming it. The top comment (161 likes) is blunt: thanks to inbound tourism, Nishiki and nearby Kuromon have "become vulgar markets with no atmosphere left." A Kyotoite adds that it's so packed they won't even cut through it anymore — "that's not Kyoto to us" (150 likes). Locals name the problem precisely: ¥5,000–6,000 wagyu skewers, and egg topped with uni and caviar, while the old long-standing shops get pushed out and replaced (91 likes). It isn't blanket hate — one of the most-liked voices (153) asks you to seek out and support the stubborn old-guard stalls still doing it right. And when locals say where they actually shop instead, two names keep coming up. Here's the honest local verdict on Nishiki's prices — and where Kyotoites go now.
“I'll just come out and say it: thanks to the inbound tourists, both Kuromon and Nishiki have turned, all at once, into vulgar markets with no atmosphere left. The days when I used to go to the old Fumiya were better.”
敢えて言いますけど、インバウンドさんのお陰で 黒門も錦もいっぺんに風情の無い 下品な市場になってしまいました。 昔の冨美家さん行ってた頃が良かったですなあ
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What locals said (excerpted from 281)
- @ryoko9564👍 150
It's so packed you can't walk — I hate even cutting through it now. "That's not Kyoto anymore," is how a lot of us Kyotoites feel.
もう横切るのすらも嫌なくらい人多すぎて歩けませんよね。。あれはもう京都ちゃいます～と思ってる京都人
- @meecomeeco9634👍 91
Ten years ago there wasn't a single shop aimed at inbound tourists. Now the old established stores are being pushed out and closing, and year by year the market gets taken over by that kind of shop. It's heartbreaking. 😭
10年前は､インバウンドに向けてるお店なんて無かったのに､老舗が追いやられるように閉業して､年々そう言うお店に占拠される錦市場､悲しいです😭
- @freaks25111👍 31
A wagyu skewer for ¥5,000 or ¥6,000 is out of its mind, and it has no class. The host mentioned "that egg with uni and caviar on it" — I really wish the local shops would get creative within the bounds of common sense and good taste.
和牛串が5000円、6000円は正気の沙汰やないし、品がないです。「あの玉子にウニとかキャビアが...」とコタツはんも言うてはりましたが、地元のお店には常識・良識の範囲で工夫していただきたいと思います。👍
- @nyankichi1504👍 38
Those beef-skewer stalls — are they a chain, or run by the same backer…? Honestly, watching the place get invaded by that stuff is just sad.
牛串の店は系列なのか胴元が同じなのか、、、 正直言ってああいうのに侵食されてるのは寂しいなぁ
- @palpapa0807👍 139
It's just not the old Nishiki Market anymore. As a local, it's a shame — a real shame. 😞
もう昔の錦市場では無いですね 地元の者としては残念です残念😞
- @犬種ぱぐ👍 74
I used to drop by Nishiki all the time. These past few years I've stopped going entirely. 😢 It's sad.
ちょくちょく行ってた錦市場 ここ数年は全く行かなくなりました😢悲しいです
- @nao5055👍 153
Nishiki is changing, but there are still plenty of shops stubbornly refusing to change the way they do things. I want those shops to hang in there — I want to support them!
変わりつつある錦市場ですが中には頑なにやり方を変えず頑張っておられるお店たくさんあります。そういうお店には頑張って欲しいし応援したい！
Where locals go instead
- @珈琲豆-s4s👍 81
Sanjo-kai or Shinkyogoku are still the better bet, honestly. 💦 "Kyoto's Kitchen" has turned into a kitchen for foreigners.
まだ三条会とか新京極の方が良いかな💦 京の台所が外国人への台所に変化
Places named in this article
- Sanjo-kai Shopping Street三条会商店街Sanjo, west of downtown Kyoto
Named by a local as the better bet over Nishiki (81 likes) — a covered arcade where the everyday shopping still happens.
- Shinkyogoku Shopping Street新京極商店街Downtown Kyoto, parallel to Teramachi
The other arcade the same local names instead of Nishiki (81 likes).
Named in the source comments — hours, prices, and openings change, so check each map listing before you go.
FAQ
- Is Nishiki Market expensive?
- Locals in these comments call the prices out directly: wagyu skewers at ¥5,000–6,000 are “out of their mind,” and eggs topped with uni and caviar get named as the symbol of tourist pricing. Those are comment-time examples — check current menus — but the local verdict on the trend is unanimous.
- Where do Kyoto locals shop instead of Nishiki Market?
- The instead named in this thread: the Sanjo-kai and Shinkyogoku shopping arcades — “still the better bet, honestly” (81 likes). Both are covered shopping streets where everyday Kyoto still outnumbers the tour groups.
- Should I skip Nishiki Market entirely?
- Not necessarily. One of the most-liked comments (153 likes) points out that plenty of old-guard stalls stubbornly refuse to change how they work, and asks people to seek those out and support them — the locals' problem is with the ¥5,000-skewer newcomers, not the market itself.
“Nishiki Market Has Become a Place for Foreigners”: What Kyoto Locals Really Say
“Speaking as a local, Nishiki Market has degenerated into shops aimed at foreigners, and it's so overcrowded that I honestly can't recommend it.”
Read this roundupThis is one of 9 local roundups for Kyoto. See them all →
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