Once a rare delicacy, the Japanese began eating beef when sukiyaki became a popular trend-setting food after the Meiji Restoration. Located in the Kodenmacho District, the famous sukiyaki restaurant Iseju was founded in February 1869. Nagasakiya, a lodge that was frequented by Dutch visitors during the Edo era, is located nearby, and the district was open to foreign cultural influences.

Iseju, the opening of which was mentioned in “The Cultural History of Eating Meat in Japan,” created a special Nihonbashi-bijin Lunch using pork called the Yakibuta Salad No Oju, for the mind-and-body-beauty-conscious Nihonbashi-bijin. The sixth-generation owner, Shigeki Miyamoto, decided to use pork in this dish precisely to help make people beautiful. Pork is low in calories and has high-quality protein. With the excess fat burned off, pork adds resilience to the blood vessels and helps maintain beautiful skin. The addition of avocado to the roasted pork salad makes this a very nutritious and well-balanced lunch. The lunch also includes Iseju's famous thinly sliced strips of boiled beef, followed by ice cream and fruit, brought to a satisfying conclusion with maccha green tea and Japanese sweets.

Of course, Iseju also features their delicious beef specialties with four set menu courses (Gokujo, Tokusen, Tokujo, Jo) and other delectable items. Masterfully cut portions of premium Japanese beef are cooked on an iron griddle heated over coals to make the taste extremely flavorful yet mild. The cooking sauce is prepared by the owner himself and only the finest eggs from Okukuji and Morokawacho are used for dipping. The store space on the first floor sells raw meat and tsukudani, and takeout lunches are prepared only after orders have been received so that they are exceptionally fresh. All seating on the basement floor is in private rooms, making it the ideal place to enjoy a relaxing meal away from the bustle of the city. The superior hospitality of this famous venue amidst a traditional setting in a quiet relaxing atmosphere has been specially reserved for Nihonbashi-bijin.

Iseju
14-9 Nihonbashi Kodenmacho, Chuo-ku
Tel: 03-3663-7841
http://r.gnavi.co.jp/g179900/
Yakibuta Salad No Oju: ¥2,620