Hyperlocal Tokyo

Tamai, a long-established restaurant specializing in Edomae conger eel, has multiple locations in the metropolitan area, with this being the main branch. Located amidst the towering skyscrapers of Nihonbashi, its traditional facade stands out, showcasing the restaurant's long history. During lunchtime, long queues form outside, with a wait of 30-40 minutes being the norm. The interior is also beautifully crafted with wooden elements, featuring a few tables. Orders are taken at the table. The main menu consists of boxed meals, available in small, medium, and large sizes. There's also a smaller "meso-box" option with smaller pieces, making it easier to enjoy without worrying about bones. The conger eel is prepared in two ways: a fluffy simmered style and a fragrant grilled style. All but the smallest box offer a "combination" option with both styles. Additionally, a special broth can be ordered separately, allowing you to enjoy the eel in a "hiつまぶし" style. This broth is made from the bones of the grilled eel and is highly recommended. The staff will patiently guide you through the dining experience. A variety of condiments are provided, including green onions, wasabi, white sesame seeds, sansho pepper, and grated yuzu, allowing for diverse flavor combinations. The broth is served in a teapot halfway through the meal. The rice is mixed with chopped perilla leaves, adding a refreshing touch to the delicate conger eel and the special sauce, creating a flavorful and satisfying dish that doesn't get boring. Takeout options include boxed meals and thick rolls. Credit cards and other payment methods are accepted. Reservations are not available for lunch but are possible for dinner. Overall, it was a truly satisfying lunch experience. It was delicious, thank you for the meal 🙏

This restaurant was recommended by a friend. I tried both simmered and grilled conger eel, and while both were delicious, I prefer the simmered one! It was a truly enjoyable meal. The conger eel is so good, it's worth waiting in line for. I'll definitely be coming back! The staff was also very kind and attentive, which was great.

A "Hitsu-mabusi" style grilled conger eel boxed meal. The building is a traditional Japanese-style house built shortly after the war, so it's old, but the restaurant itself is not an old establishment like the nearby eel specialty store, Amerika-ya, in Nihonbashi. It's a new restaurant in Nihonbashi. This is because it didn't exist when I worked in the Nihonbashi area 30 years ago. Even so, it's a popular restaurant that has been around for over 10 years, and since there wasn't a line, I decided to drop in. (Speaking of which, the udon shop "Hanayama Udon" in Tatebayashi has been incredibly busy lately.) ▪️Food I ordered the "Sebikurabe" boxed meal, a shop-exclusive dish for 3,200 yen, and added the broth for 200 yen. "Sebikurabe" is a menu with two pieces of eel, a regular conger eel and a smaller "Meso" eel, like a parent and child. You can choose between "grilled" and "steamed" for the conger eel, and I chose "grilled." The grilled eel had a crispy texture. I think the white flesh of the conger eel is best enjoyed when grilled. Then, you can transfer the conger eel and rice to a teacup, leaving about one-third behind, and add the broth containing the conger eel bones to enjoy the eel like a "Hitsu-mabusi" style dish. You can add the scent of yuzu peel, and there's also grated fresh wasabi, so you can enjoy it like a genuine "Hitsu-mabusi" style dish. Personally, I think the broth is a must. Overall, I prefer conger eel that has gone through both "steaming" and "grilling" processes, like Kanto-style eel kabayaki. I think the combination of the melt-in-your-mouth texture of simmered conger eel and the fragrant grilled conger eel brings out the best flavor of the conger eel. I often eat conger eel like that at sushi restaurants. Incidentally, they don't serve that kind of conger eel here. ▪️Service and Atmosphere Being an old Japanese-style house, the interior has many steps and is a narrow space. The counter seats are also close together, making it a bit difficult to eat. Considering the price of the food, I think the seating could be more spaced out. As expected, following the recent trend, there were many inbound tourists here, and more than half were foreigners. It was something I anticipated, but Tokyo has completely changed after the pandemic.

This is an old-established restaurant specializing in conger eel dishes in Nihonbashi. For lunch, they offer two options: conger eel donburi (rice bowl) with sashimi, and conger eel donburi with a selection of side dishes, both priced at 1,300 yen. I always order the sashimi option. It comes in a cute, doll-like container with the conger eel donburi on the first level and the sashimi on the second. The container is absolutely adorable. The conger eel is incredibly tender and sweet, truly delicious. It's no wonder this place is so well-known.

I visited this restaurant for lunch over a decade ago and had almost forgotten about it. If you're looking for a place to eat anago (conger eel) in the Kanto region, this is highly recommended. I forgot to take pictures, but I had anago sashimi and an anago salad with ponzu sauce. Anago is known to have toxins in its blood, so I can't eat it raw, but it had a good texture and a delicate flavor. It's a rare dish, so it's worth trying at least once. The ponzu salad was made with cooked anago, leafy greens, and seaweed. It's clear that anago tastes better when cooked. (laughs) They also have a lunch set with simmered anago and grilled anago, and a final course of dashi tea with rice. I preferred the grilled anago, but both were delicious. The final course was a flavorful anago bone broth with condiments, which was fantastic. The building itself is a historic house, and the food, atmosphere, and service were all excellent. I will definitely be back. Thank you.