I don’t have much reason to come out to Uguisudani, so since I was here I couldn’t skip the local favorite.
This is a place called Yakiniku Uguisudanien.
Honestly, a Korean doesn’t really need to go out of their way to eat yakiniku in Japan. But at a highly rated place you can taste the essence of Japanese wagyu, which is something different from Korean hanwoo, so it’s worth a visit. This place is famous for serving good-quality meat cheaply, and maybe because of that it gets packed and the service isn’t great. When we went in they told us to finish eating and leave within an hour and a half. Well, we had no reason to stay longer anyway (budget issues, and I don’t drink much…), so it didn’t really bother me.
The grill
Somehow it feels Korean. The part-timer serving us seemed Korean too… it all felt kind of familiar.
Beer first
Took this after the toast.
Namul
The preparation is Korean-style, but what comes out is Japanese-style.
Lettuce too…
Looking at just this, you wouldn’t think it’s a famous yakiniku spot, right?
Beef tongue to start
It’s not cut thick and rugged, it looks pretty ordinary, and it’s sprinkled with pepper. I wondered if it would really be any good, and it is. That proper chewy beef tongue flavor. Not expensive either… yes, with this it deserves to be called a top spot.
Probably a special cut
I don’t remember what it was, but it comes out in hearty pieces. The quality was good, but as expected it came marinated. The fat melting away, that’s wagyu for you. This is why you eat yakiniku.
Premium rosu (loin)
I’m a bit disappointed it was sliced thin, but the taste is real wagyu. It’s the top-grade item on a yakiniku menu. On taste alone, I don’t think there are many places in Tokyo this good. Considering the service, though, you should only come with really close friends.
Mitsuya Cider
After the beer, cider. The bottle has the old design. Tastes like plain old cider. The meat was so fatty that I wanted something crisp and fizzy, but it was too sweet to go all that well with it.
Premium kalbi
Delicious as expected. At a place like this you have to order the expensive stuff to get your money’s worth.
Kalbi
We’d had plenty of fat, so we ordered a grade down.
Naengmyeon to finish
The meal items are very ordinary. But the meat itself is really good, so I liked it. We ate all this and I think it came to about 8,000 yen, which is very good value for money. Premium wagyu yakiniku at this price! The neighborhood has a bit of a strange vibe, but if it’s before dark I’d like to give it another try.