Asakusa Imahan: Sukiyaki Made with Japan’s Finest Beef

Asakusa Imahan is famous for its sukiyaki, or thinly sliced beef cooked in a pot. When the restaurant opened, back in 1895, it was still unusual in Japan to eat beef. Since sukiyaki was such a rare treat at the time, the restaurant’s popularity grew quickly.

Over its 100-plus years in business, the restaurant has continued to insist on using the finest ingredients, starting with the wagyū beef. Asakusa Imahan only uses the beef of “Japanese Black” cows from Kobe, carefully selecting each shipment.

Sukiyaki involves slowly simmering the beef inside a pot filled with bubbling soup. The beef is served raw at the table, and then freshly cooked in the broth with vegetables and other ingredients. As soon as the beef and vegetables are cooked through, customers can serve themselves with their chopsticks.

The pots used to cook sukiyaki at Asakusa Imahan are made by craftsmen in a style called nanbu tekki, a traditional kind of ironware from Iwate prefecture. As the beef begins to cook in the broth, a wonderful aroma fills the room. A waitress can prepare the sukiyaki for you, judging the perfect amount of time to cook the beef. The fifth-generation owner of the restaurant, Takaoka Shūichi, tells us more:

“I think Asakusa is the area of Tokyo where you can most feel the spirit of the Edo period. You really get a sense of the strong influence the Sensōji temple has had on Asakusa over the years.”

Consider visiting Asakusa Imahan for unique gastronomic experiences, set in a bustling, tradition-rich neighborhood of Tokyo.

The fifth-generation owner of the restaurant, Takaoka Shūichi, says his grandfather came up with the idea for the beef “tsukudani” sold as a take-away gift at the restaurant.
“Gokujō shimofuri sukiyaki gozen” served for two (¥10,500 per person), which literally means “a feast of the finest marbled beef sukiyaki.”
1. Pour a small amount of “warishita” (a mixture of soy sauce, “mirin,” and sugar) into the heated “nanbu tekki” iron pot (enough to cover half of the pan’s surface). 2. Before the “warishita” boils, gently beat an egg with chopsticks, being careful to avoid forming bubbles. 3. Place two slices of beef on areas of the pot not covered by the “warishita”; once the beef is slightly cooked stir the “warishita” around the pan to mix it with the meat. 4. Once the flavor and juices from the meat have dissolved into the “warishita,” add vegetables and tōfu to the mix.
More beef can be added as the mixture simmers in the pot, but it should not be overcooked, with a small amount of pink remaining.
The waitress makes sure that each piece of beef is cooked to perfection.

 

Asakusa Imahan

Address: 3-1-12 Nishiasakusa, Taitō-ku, Tokyo
Tel: 03-3841-1114
Hours: 11:30 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. (every day of the year)
Reservations available.
English menu available.
Average prices: ¥3,000–4,000 for lunch, ¥10,000 for dinner
http://www.asakusaimahan.co.jp/english/index.html

Return to map