The Nijo district occupies the north-west quadrant of central Kyoto and takes its name from Nijo Castle, the Tokugawa shogun's Kyoto residence -- a sprawling palace complex whose outer walls and moat still define the neighbourhood's eastern edge. The streets around the castle have a quieter character than the tourist corridors further east, with a concentration of traditional craft workshops, lacquerware dealers, and the Nishiki wholesale food district where restaurant suppliers have operated since the Edo period.
The area is also Kyoto's principal address for kaiseki -- the multi-course formal cuisine that grew up in the temple kitchens and tea ceremony tradition of this part of the city. Several of Japan's most respected kaiseki restaurants occupy converted machiya townhouses within a short walk of the castle. Nijo-jo-mae Station on the Tozai subway line puts the whole district within easy reach of central Kyoto.