Asakusa Kawamatsu

Asakusa, along the Sumida River. A house standing since 1873. Domestic eel, soaked in fresh water for two days, then grilled over binchotan — slow, from a distance, until tender. A quiet Japanese room.

Opened in 1873, in Asakusa. The shop was lost in the Great Kantō Earthquake, then rebuilt in the same neighbourhood. Since then, domestic eel, always. No flash, no fuss — the same work, year after year.