Go up the stairs from Exit 6-1 of Shibuya Station and you will see the main restaurant of Matsukawa right in front of you. People after people come from all over the world… Once you get out of the crowd and come in through the curtain at the entrance, you'll find yourself in a nice quiet restaurant. Sit down at a relaxing table and enjoy a special moment with a delicious eel dish.
Matsukawa has 2 restaurants. In addition to the main restaurant, we have "Shibuya Tokyu Toyoko restaurant". Tokyu Plaza Shibuya reopened in 2019 as a fashionable shopping building directly connected to the railway station. You can feel traditional Japanese atmosphere near Shibuya Station at all of our 2 restaurants which also have private rooms.
We also provide takeaway service, so you can enjoy the food outside our restaurant alone or with your family, or even buy it as a gorgeous souvenir for your friends, colleagues and relatives.
Japanese food was registered as a UNESCO's world intangible cultural heritage in December, 2013. Among the food included, Kabayaki or broiled eel is a traditional food unique to Japan. Japanese people were already eating eels in the Jomon period and they were popular as a nutritious food that gave people energy during the Heian period.
Kabayaki is a cooking method unique to Japan where you slice open eels to remove their bones and broil them with sweet and salty sauce made from soy sauce and mirin until brown. It is said that this method was first used during the Edo period. Sharp knives, fermented seasoning such as soy sauce and mirin and the skills of the professional cooks that make full use of these...Kabayaki is filled with Japanese culture.
Kabayaki is now being mass produced at factories, which makes it easier for people to eat it, but Kabayaki eaten at an eel restaurant is a feast for Japanese people to enjoy on a special day or for a celebration.
Matsukawa is located in Shibuya in Tokyo, the center of a big city, but we have Tateba (a facility to keep eels alive), so we can serve fresh eels at any time. We also have a variety of eel dishes including Shirayaki (eels broiled without sauce), Umaki (Kabayaki wrapped in Japanese omelette) and Yanagawa-jitate (Kabayaki cooked in soy sauce with eggs and burdock). We hope you'll enjoy the delicious flavor of Kabayaki. Sprinkle Japanese pepper on top if you like. Have a good time with our delicious Kabayaki dish and enjoy to your heart's content.
Matsukawa's eels are always fresh. Why? It's because we have Tateba, a facility to keep eels alive, even though we are located in the middle of a city.
We buy strictly selected domestic eels and keep them alive in Tateba.
Eel
The sauce of Matsukawa has a light flavor, which keeps the flavor of the eels itself alive.
The secret sauce
As people say 3 years for skewering, 8 years for slicing, entire life for broiling, acquiring skills to cook eels is very difficult.
At Matsukawa, specialized eel chefs cook live eels every time an order comes in.
Professional skills
Kabayaki was originally eaten by itself. It is said that people often enjoyed it with sake.
It first started to be served with rice as it is now around the end of the Edo period.
"Una-don", where rice and Kabayaki were served in a bowl, was the first style.
Rice Bowl Dish
What's served in our original Arita ware bowl is the rare "Kyosui Eel".
This is an eel brand carefully and slowly raised in Yaizu City, Shizuoka Prefecture, using the pure water of Oi River whose water comes from South Alps. Kyosui eels have milky and light fat which gives a refined flavor.
Enjoy our Una-don, "Takumi" (the highest quality and the professional skills), a perfect dish for a celebration.
Una-don
The most popular dish at Matsukawa is Una-ju. We have several types of Una-ju depending on the amount of Kabayaki, but the most popular one is "Sakura".
Una-ju uses fresh live eels from Japan. Kabayaki, where experienced professionals slice open and broil the eels, is prepared according to the Kanto-style which adds a "steaming" process. The eels turn soft and fluffy, finished with light sauce, which taste great with rice.
When you open the lid, you smell the fragrant flavor of fluffy and savory Kabayaki fresh from the grill. Enjoy it with rice … This is the best moment of Una-ju.
Una-ju
Matsukawa has a reputation for the consistent quality of flavor of their dishes. If you want to try more variety of dishes, how about a Makunouchi set meal which allows you to enjoy Kabayaki with tempura, stewed food and grilled food?
You can also try a different dish sometimes such as a set meal of Unagi Yanagawa (Kabayaki cooked in soy sauce with eggs and burdock) or Unagi Shirayaki (eels broiled without sauce) and Hitsumabushi which is an eel dish with a lot of spices. Set meals without eels such as a Sashimi set meal or a tempura set meal are also popular.
Set meal
Have a drink before Una-ju… Try our delicious a la carte dishes with your sake.
Hot "Umaki" which is Kabayaki wrapped in Japanese omelette and "Uzaku" which is vinegared Kabayaki and cucumber are menu items unique to Matsukawa, a traditional eel restaurant.
Our original dish called "Tokusei Hitashi Tomato" (a special marinated tomato) which you can enjoy with a refined dashi soup stock is also recommended. We also serve individual dishes including Chawanmushi (savory egg custard) and assorted tempura.
A la carte dishes
Try Nishinoseki, which we highly recommend.
The drink that best matches eel dishes is Japanese sake. Among all varieties of sake, the perfect pair for eels is Nishinoseki. No other sake is said to be better for eels than this.
It has won the top prize for 11 years in a row in the competition of "Japanese Sake that goes well with eel dishes, selected by professionals" hosted by Japan Prestige Sake Association. Professionals have confidence in this sake.
We pasted our unique original label of Matsukawa on Nishinoseki, a local specialty of Oita Prefecture, which is Junmaishu (pure rice wine) that has a perfect balance of high quality sweetness, umami and soft acidic tastes, a delicious taste that will melt in your mouth.
Please witness the perfect harmony of Kabayaki and Japanese sake with your own tongue.
Beverages
It is hard to believe such a nice quiet restaurant is right in front of Shibuya Station. We also have a private room upstairs.
Enjoy the authentic flavor of eel dishes, including popular Una-ju, that only a traditional restaurant can offer.
*Private room can accommodate up to 10 guests
Hours: 11 a.m. – 10 p.m.
(Last call 9:30 p.m.)
*Open 365 days
1-22, Udagawa-cho, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo, Japan
Shibuya Matsukawa returned to the Tokyu Plaza! Designed under the basic concept of "a new Shibuya for mature persons," Tokyu Plaza Shibuya (aka Shibuya Fukuras) reopened in December 2019. Shibuya Matsukawa is waiting for your visit on the building's 6th floor. It provides an excellent option for dining after your shopping trip. We also have individual dining rooms which could serve as a good place for business entertainment.
Please enjoy the tastes offered by the old-established Matsukawa including the famous Unaju (grilled eel rice served in lacquered food boxes) and others.
*Private room can accommodate up to 12 guests
Hours: 11 a.m. – 10 p.m.
(Last call 9:30 p.m.)
*Opening hours are same as those of the Tokyu Plaza Shibuya.
Tokyu Plaza Shibuya (aka Shibuya Fukuras) 6F, 1-2-3, Dogenzaka, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo, Japan
Eel Sushi