Ningyocho Imahan Shinjuku Takashimaya — Restaurant in Tokyo

revisited on 15.12.2023

imahan reservation system very problematic..cannot reserve online as dates are blanked out

we were there 1.20pm there were no seats but imahan guy said cannot reserve for dinner and for next day

we went back at 4.15pm and I waited first in queue on the chair.

the same guy came to ask if I had reservation..I said you told us cannot reserve that’s why we came to queue.

other 3 arrived before 5pm opening time & we duly gotten our tables

we ordered 3 sukiyaki quality beef ¥9020+10% tax + 1 amiyaki ¥9680+10%tax

amiyaki was Aomori beef 150g sirloin..it was very good..marbled, sweet and flavourful

so was the Kagoshima sukiyaki beef..3 large pieces each I think 120g..very smooth, tasty, sweet beef..

service was ok but not great.

server did not use a block of fat & fry the leek, heating up and flavouring the hot cast iron pot..there was no block of fat & he just cooked the first 3 beef for 3 of us + we requested he cooked one for the 4th diner which he did nicely, but he said they have to charge if he bring another egg..maybe so it is restaurant policy not service issue ..when he cooked the 3 eggs at the end of the meal he scoooed like 3/4 of the cooked eggs then took away the ladle..we have to ask for the ladle and he came back to scoop a bit more not all and still took away the ladle…kind of the heart is not there..,

overall beef/food was good..the problem with reservation, the non standard cooking and inflexibility over a super minute matter of an egg brings the dining experience some notches down

went to imahan at level 14 Takashimaya Shinjuku

excellent sukiyaki also steak set

today they had matsuzaka 松板A4 kuroge wagyu 黑毛和牛..we order a slice additional 单品alacarte

my steak was gunma also A4..very good too..about same standard as teppanyaki 10 kagoshima wagyu, this one 150g so 2x the serving size

very good lunch excellent wagyu especially the sukiyaki matsuzaka wagyu

overall teppanyaki 10 much better deal..for ¥9700 vs ¥8800..you get excellent dishes- salad, snapper, abalone, very nice crepe, and...

Amazing dinner with generous portions of melt-in-your-mouth beef and appetizers, in a cozy setting with attentive waiters. Imahan is probably one of the top go-to places for sukiyaki, provided that you are able to get a reservation at one of their many branches. We were lucky to be able to be seated as walk-ins at this branch after some perseverance.

Conveniently located on the 14/F restaurant floor of Takashimaya, the restaurant is perfect for after a long day of shopping.

We ordered the Hoshi Top Quality sukiyaki course, which included four small appetizers, a sashimi platter, and seasonal dish. These were cold dishes that were refreshing and delicate, while the sashimi platter was fresh.

The star of the show came shortly after with a plate of fine wagyu beef, raw egg, and a platter of vegetables. The course had six slices of beef for two people, and the waiter helps to prepare the first round of beef and vegetables. You are then free to cook yourself at your own pace. The beef was perfect in thickness, and while melts in your mouth, was not overly fat that I’ve seen at other establishments. Nevertheless, the richness of wagyu fills you up pretty quickly. The sukiyaki sauce was delicious and could be saturated with the kombu water when it gets too thick.

Lastly, they offer you a bowl of rice and scrambled eggs cooked using the residue sukiyaki sauce and beef fat, and then finishing off with a pretty big portion of dessert.

Service was 5/5; our waiter was friendly and attentive. He spoke very good English especially when he said he only learned it on the job! We would definitely enjoy...

I’m a westerner who cooks. This is an opinion of a gaijin and I realize my tastes and preferences are shaped by my own background. I definitely eat Asian food more than any other. We ordered the premium beef dinner for two. Rice to follow at the end. The service of course was wonderful. And the quality of ingredients of the highest order. We spent 3weeks in the Tokyo area and this was our most expensive meal. We followed our server’s instructions, added dashi stock and the soy based liquid to cook the beef, the vegetables, and tofu. At the end, our server scrambled eggs in the beef liquid and served them over rice. My impression is that everything had the same salty soy flavor. Maybe I added the liquid in the wrong proportion. How would I know? In the end, I felt very full and as though I had too much salt with my dinner. I hope my comments are not off base. It was perfect in so many ways, but I will proceed with caution the next time I go...