FAUCHON L'Hotel Kyoto opens bookings for its 2027 Galette des Rois, with a white-bean Japan flavour

FAUCHON L'Hotel Kyoto has opened reservations, running November 1 to January 28, for its 2027 Galette des Rois — the French Epiphany pastry — offering two flavours: a classic almond-cream "Original" at ¥4,200 and a Japan-only "White Bean & Strawberry" version, made with white bean paste from the Kyoto confectioner Nakamura Seian, founded in 1904, priced at ¥4,800, both tax included. Each flavour is limited to around 100 units.

Each roughly 15cm galette comes with a handcrafted ceramic figurine made by local Kyoto ceramicists — the fève tucked inside the pastry in the French tradition — this year's design pairing the zodiac goat with a macaron motif. Orders are made-to-order and must be paid in advance, with pickup or delivery running January 4 to 31, by phone or through the hotel's own online shop.

A Galette des Rois programme is a small, recurring line item next to a Kyoto luxury hotel's headline restaurants, but it does the same job the depachika's seasonal confectionery does for a department store: a dated, limited-run product that gives both domestic regulars and visiting guests a reason to order ahead, pair it with a local producer's name, and treat it as a gift. Capping each flavour at around 100 units keeps it a boutique item rather than a volume one — exclusivity is the point as much as the pastry.