Kodenmacho: Iseju (日本橋 和牛すき焼き 伊勢重)

Summary: Old school, traditional Japanese restaurant serving high grade wagyu beef sukiyaki. 

I can’t remember how it started, but my Vice President asked me about what kind of food I liked to eat. I told him that my likes and dislikes change drastically depending on my mood, and because I was talking about sukiyaki with the Boyfriend a few days ago, I casually mentioned that I was craving for sukiyaki.

Just FYI, but sukiyaki is a kind of food served in hot pot style, typically consisting of thinly sliced beef, leek, shungiku (chrysanthemum greens), shiitake mushrooms, fried-tofu and shirataki (konnyaku noodle).

These ingredients all placed into a shallow cast iron pot, where they are sauteed and simmered in a rich, sweet sauce called warishita - a mixture of soy sauce, mirin and sake.

He nodded, and agreed that sukiyaki would be perfect in this autumn season. He then said that he would bring me (and the rest of our team) to sukiyaki as a welcome party for me. (I had joined the company about just a month ago)

I thought he was joking, so I just went along with it, but a few days later I got an invite on my calendar for a sukiyaki course dinner at Iseju.

Holy cow – what have I done?

I quickly went to Iseju’s website to look at their prices – about 5600yen before tax per person.
I feel that I will be forever in debt to this company.

Located in Nihonbashi, Kodenmacho, Iseju is one of Tokyo’s oldest sukiyaki specialty restaurants - established in the 2nd year of Meiji period (1869), and has been passed on from generation to generation for almost 150 years.

They are famous for serving succeulent A5 rank wagyu beef (shimofuri beef) hand-cut to ensure maximum tenderness - A5 is the highest grade given only to the finest beef.

So, after our meeting at Ginza, we head over to Kodenmacho, and at that point I am salivating from the excitement of what is to come.

From the outside, it looks like any old traditional Japanese restaurants you would find on the street. I peered through the glass doors, and saw a glass counter with all kinds of mouthwatering beef lined up. My excitement increased tenfold.

We enter the shop, take off our shoes and go down a set of stairs. The actual dining location is located at the basement of a building, and each area is divided into Tatami style private rooms.

The rooms were sparsely decorated, the sliding shōji doors stained, and the tatami floors looked like it has seen better days.

We started the dinner with some appetizers.

While the appetizers were good, all I could think about was the beef.
(the kurikinton was really yummy though!)

kurikinton - on the left
(candied chestnuts with sweet potatoes)

Finally, the sukiyaki pot arrives, complete with coals and a water basin for safety.

The way to cook sukiyaki varies between regions in Japan – as we are in Tokyo, we had kanto-style sukiyaki, where the meat and vegetables are simmered together in the hot pot. In Kansai, the meat first grilled in the pot, and then the sauce and vegetables added afterwards.

It was Japanese style hospitality, with Kimonos clad waitresses preparing our sukiyaki at our table.

Holy cow - The wagyu beef was absolute divine.
I think I died and went to heaven on the spot.

The beautiful patterns of marbled fat was melt-in-the-mouth texture with a rich, luxurious taste.

The wagyu beef completely changed my entire concept of beef - what have I been eating my entire life? All that television shows I've watched about wagyu beef - I mean, meat that melts in your mouth? Come on.

Now I know. 

I gently dipped the wagyu into a freshly cracked egg.

sukiyaki is usually eaten with raw beaten eggs.

I know that outside of Japan, people do not have the culture of eating eggs raw, but I would definitely urge you to try. However, make sure it's really fresh, high quality eggs.

The meal ended with a small serving of fresh udon noodles. Thank goodness it was a small portion, or else I would have definitely exploded on the spot from all that food.

Overall, very very good...I would definitely recommend Iseju if you're looking for beautiful wagyu beef and a traditional Japanese dinner experience.

Despite it being quite expensive, I felt it was quite value for money.

But maybe that’s because I didn’t have to pay a single cent.

Address: 14-9 Nihonbashikodenmacho, Chuo, Tokyo 103-0001
〒103-0001 東京都中央区日本橋小伝馬町14-9
Phone: 03-3663-7841
Hours: Mon - Sat 11am - 10pm (last order 9.30pm)
Closed on Sundays
Website: http://iseju.com/