Enjoy Matsusaka Beef at an Affordable Price! Top 4 Must-Try Restaurants in Matsusaka
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Matsusaka Beef is one of Japan’s three most renowned Wagyu brands. Known as a premium and high-end beef, and is probably a food that you don't usually have many opportunities to eat.However, in Matsusaka, the home of this famous delicacy, you can find places where you can enjoy Matsusaka Beef in a m...
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Matsusaka City, Mie Prefecture is located almost in the center of Japan, where you can enjoy world-class gourmet Matsusaka beef, rich history and culture, and beautiful nature. During the Edo period, Matsusaka was the final post town for pilgrimages to Ise-mairi (a pilgrimage to Japan's highest-ranking shrine). These merchants succeeded in trading Matsusaka cotton in Edo and brought prosperity to Matsusaka.
1. Fun for both kids and adults! Kaiten Yakiniku Isshobin Miyamachi Branch
In Matsusaka, you can eat Matsusaka beef in various styles. This is Kaiten Yakiniku Isshobin Miyamachi Branch. It is a long-established yakiniku restaurant founded in 1962. The Miyamachi branch that I will introduce this time opened in 2000.
It takes only 5 minutes by car from Matsusaka Station. There are many store signs on the way from the station, so you can easily find the store. The parking lot is spacious and can accommodate about 50 cars, so you can park with plenty of space.
The restaurant is divided into regular seats and rotating seats.
When you enter the restaurant, you'll find regular seats and rotating seats. The regular seats are served to you by order. You order at your seat and the staff will serve you meat, rice, etc. There are about 12 tables, so you can relax and unwind.
On the other hand, at the revolving seats, small plates of meat rotate in front of you! Just like at a conveyor belt sushi restaurant, you can freely take whatever cut of meat or fresh vegetables you want from the revolving seat.
Matsusaka beef going up the lane!
All the meat served on the plate is A5-ranked high-quality Matsusaka beef! The gap between Matsusaka beef and the turnover rate is surprising. The inside of the conveyor belt is kept at a constant, cool temperature, and fresh meat comes one after another. Before you know it, you'll be glued to the conveyor belt, staring at it in curiosity.
Isshobin purchases meat by the whole cow, so you can try a variety of cuts. You can even try the rare Matsusaka beef offal that is rarely sold outside the prefecture.
When the meat you want to eat comes around, press the red button (circled in red in the image) to open the door and quickly remove it. The door will then close automatically.
A conveyor belt yakiniku restaurant where you can eat your favorite cuts little by little
This time, we ordered the popular small intestine offal, as well as kalbi and loin. We dipped our meat in the rock salt and miso sauce that were set on the table. The secret to making the meat delicious is to only lightly sear the surface so as not to overcook it. Matsusaka beef fat has a low melting point, so the fat gradually overflows as it is grilled. With one bite, the fat is very sweet and has a melting texture. The offal also has no unpleasant odor, and the more you chew it, the more the flavor fills your mouth.
Kaiten Yakiniku Isshobin is a restaurant where you can enjoy a variety of cuts of meat at reasonable prices, starting from 350 yen per plate. It is guaranteed to be a hit with adults as well as children. Another great point is that the booth seats mean you can enjoy your meal without worrying about the people around you. Please come and visit us.
2. Gyugin's directly managed store opens! Matsusaka beef udon specialty store Aoyagi
Aoyagi is run by Gyugin Honten, a famous restaurant that serves Matsusaka beef shabu-shabu and sukiyaki. It just opened in October 2023 and is a meat udon specialty restaurant where you can enjoy Matsusaka beef in a casual atmosphere. It is about a 10-minute walk from Matsusaka Station, along a quaint street lined with the former residence of Motoori Norinaga and the former homes of wealthy merchants.
Originally they set up an antenna shop here and then ran a coffee shop, but they decided to open this restaurant with the desire to attract customers with their familiar udon noodles and further liven up Matsusaka.
A stylish, modern Japanese interior
The restaurant has a modern Japanese atmosphere, with counter seats and table seats, making it a great place to drop in even if you're alone. You order by purchasing a meal ticket from the ticket machine at the entrance, and you basically go and pick up your food when it's ready, but because of Gyugin's hospitality, the staff will bring it to your seat.
The menu includes the standard meat udon, meat and vegetable udon with thickened sauce, and soy milk cream meat udon, which is popular among women, with prices starting from 1,180 yen. There are also set menus that come with rice bowls and inari sushi. All meat is Matsusaka beef. Some of the menu items at Gyugin use carefully selected Matsusaka beef, a specialty of Matsusaka beef, and this meat, which is aged using the wisdom and skill of a craftsman, is quite valuable. Aoyagi also uses the same meat.
If you come to Aoyagi, try this! Luxury Beef Shabu Udon
A hearty bowl of udon topped with beef shabu-shabu. The broth is a mild bonito-based flavor with white soy sauce added, and the umami of the Matsusaka beef melts into it. The noodles are smooth and easy to swallow, and the broth clings to them. You can eat as much of the udon as you like, with the soft Matsusaka beef and umami of the broth. The crunchy pea sprouts and finely chopped green onions add a nice texture, and you'll finish the whole bowl in no time.
Although it is a udon restaurant, you will be impressed by the perfect taste! The warm service and hospitality of Gyugin, such as the friendly greetings from the staff and the support when purchasing meal tickets, are still alive and well, making it a restaurant you will want to stop by to make memories of your trip.
3. The classic ramen to try in Matsusaka! Fujiya's Chinese Noodles
About a six-minute walk from Matsusaka Station, there is a famous ramen shop called "Fujiya." When you hear "chuka soba," most people probably think of a soy sauce-based ramen topped with bamboo shoots and roast pork, but Matsusaka's chuka soba is a little different. We'll introduce it in detail later, so look forward to it.
In addition to its Chinese noodles, Fujiya is also famous for its yakisoba (hard yakisoba). These two signature dishes are a popular attraction for the restaurant, with many fans, especially among local customers.
All seats are at tables, providing ample space
The interior of the restaurant is bright and clean, with a wooden motif. In 2010, the restaurant was completely renovated to include all table seating, allowing you to relax and unwind. At the time of our interview, we saw a diverse range of customers, from families coming to eat dinner to people visiting alone. It is a restaurant that is easy for both men and women to use.
Matsusaka Chinese noodles
This is Fujiya's Chinese noodles. It is completely different from the Chinese noodles I had imagined, with no bamboo shoots, boiled eggs or roast pork. This is the so-called "Chinese noodles" you can eat in Matsusaka.
Fujiya's Chinese noodles are made with seafood-based broth, giving off an appetizing sweet aroma. The meat in the center is Matsusaka beef. The vegetables have a strong crunchy texture and are plentiful enough to rival the noodles.
The sweetness of the vegetables melts into the soup, and the thin Chinese noodles are soaked in the flavor of the vegetables and soup that you can't stop eating. Because it contains a lot of vegetables, it feels like champon noodles, but Fujiya also has champon on its own menu. If you compare the two, you'll find they are completely different, but the Chinese noodles also have a rich, full-bodied soup.
Matsusaka's Chinese noodles are a bowl of noodles that allows you to experience Matsusaka's food culture, full of surprises and discoveries that you can't find anywhere else. It's a dish you should definitely try if you visit.
4. Tamaki, a curry udon specialty restaurant filled with the owner's passion!
A 12-minute drive from Matsusaka Station or a 5-minute walk from JR Tokuwa Station, you'll find Tamaki, a curry udon specialty restaurant with an eye-catching yellow sign in a corner of a white building. Run by a husband and wife team, this popular restaurant can sell out as early as 12 noon.
The shop has a counter and two sets of table seats. There are not many seats, so it is recommended to come early. The menu is extensive, with about 10 curry udon dishes alone. The most popular dish is the Shin Tamaki Curry Udon (890 yen) with pork, cheese, and boiled egg.
The key is the combination of ingredients and spices! Excellent curry udon
Tamaki serves a very unusual curry udon, with half Japanese-style soup base and half curry. The owner often ate curry udon and half bean-jam udon when he was little, and he decided to serve them in a half-and-half style at his restaurant. The restaurant is bustling with many customers from outside the city looking for this taste.
This time I ordered Matsusaka Beef Curry Udon, which is limited to a maximum of five servings per day. The meat is Matsusaka beef sourced from Gyugin. The Tamaki way is to eat the udon with the sauce on first, then the curry udon, and finally mix them all together. The thick sauce is packed with spring onions! It's light yet rich, and is delicious enough on its own.
The curry is made by carefully frying spices. It is an authentic curry with a stimulating spiciness that hits you later, combined with a bouillon made from Matsusaka beef tendons. The owner continues to research his use of spices, which has continued to evolve, and currently makes the curry by mixing over 30 types of spices in a special combination.
The wonderful combination of authentic curry and bean paste is so addictively delicious that you'll definitely want to return!
By the way, the brown spices in front are called "Biwako Spice", a spice mix with the aroma and spiciness of garam masala. Use it when you want a stronger spiciness. This is addictive and perfect for changing up the flavor! I recommend mixing it in little by little.
The curry udon, carefully prepared by the owner, is one of a kind and can only be found here! You will surely be surprised by its shocking deliciousness.
Bonus! Matsusaka beef tallow ice cream? A secret craze that's become a hot topic
Matsusaka Maruyoshi, a butcher shop and restaurant chain that specializes in Matsusaka beef, is selling Maruyoshi ice cream, which has become a hot topic among gourmets. It comes in two flavors: milk and Ise tea. It is made using Matsusaka beef fat and fresh pasteurized milk.
Matsusaka beef has a lower melting point than other beef, and its beef fat melts easily. By using high-quality Matsusaka beef fat, we have achieved the finest flavor and a rich, smooth texture. This will take your ice cream to the next level.
You can purchase it at the store or online shop, so if you're interested, please take a look at their website. It's also interesting to compare it with the ice cream you usually eat.
◆Product Overview
Product name: "Maruyoshi Ice Milk Flavor" "Maruyoshi Ice Ise Tea Flavor"
Capacity: 120ml
Price: 500 yen (tax included) for take-out and online shopping, 550 yen (tax included) for restaurants
Available at: Matsusaka Maruyoshi stores, Matsusaka Maruyoshi online shopping site, etc.
There are plenty of gourmet foods that make Matsusaka beef feel familiar to you!
We have introduced gourmet restaurants where you can eat Matsusaka beef at reasonable prices, but there are also many restaurants where you can drop in easily, such as conveyor belt yakiniku restaurants where you can order individual plates, Chinese noodles and udon noodles, etc.
The taste that has been passed down for generations is loved by locals and continues to attract tourists. Matsusaka is a gourmet town that will continue to be a hotbed of interest, with long-established stores like Aoyagi opening new stores in new formats. Why not go out and try some Matsusaka beef?
We also recommend these gourmet spots in Matsusaka:
Do you know the history of Matsusaka beef? Read this article for more details ▼
We also introduce various other Matsusaka specialties.
Matsusaka City, Mie Prefecture is located almost in the center of Japan, where you can enjoy world-class gourmet Matsusaka beef, rich history and culture, and beautiful nature. During the Edo period, Matsusaka was the final post town for pilgrimages to Ise-mairi (a pilgrimage to Japan's highest-ranking shrine). These merchants succeeded in trading Matsusaka cotton in Edo and brought prosperity to Matsusaka.
The contents on this page may partially contain automatic translation.
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