Tucked away on a side-street at the northern edge of Tokyo is a gem of an yakiniku restaurant, Sutamina-En (Stamina Garden). We were initially hesitant to make a trip so out of the way, despite the strong recommendation of a well-traveled foodie couple. But, since we were on a foodcation and Japanese wagyu is one of our favorite foods, we decided to make the pilgrimage.  This turned out to be one our favorite meals of the trip!

Sutamina-En is well known amongst the locals and is frequently featured in magazines and on TV shows.  Since they don’t accept reservations, we showed up before opening on a Friday evening to stand in line.  When we arrived there were a couple groups waiting.   A short 20 minutes later and the door opened for business.  While no English is spoken here, we were tipped by the same couple that mandarin however is.  Turns out, the 老闆娘, 帶 “姊”, is a fellow Taiwanese and a very excellent host.

帶 “姊” selected the dishes for us so as to include a sampling of the specialties of Sutamina-En.  The marbling and color of the wagyu served were all visual appealing.  The taste was a melt-in-your mouth butteriness with just of a bit of texture, a subtle reminder that this was beef that I just ate.   One of their signature dishes dubbed the “hormone mix” is a selection of innards that despite their appearance were delicious when grilled.

The side dishes at Sutamina-En were also well prepared.  Our favorites were the house salad- a must try with a slight citrus-tasting dressing and sweet seaweed topping, and a soup that was slow cooked and thickened with the bones and meat of the lower jaw.  And since there’s only one jaw per cow, limited quantities of this stew are available daily.

We finished our meal with a tasty homemade almond tofu, thanked 帶 “姊”  for her hospitality, and stumbled in to a waiting taxi, ready to take us back to the nearest train station.  Our total for the evening to stuff ourselves silly on quality meat? 13,000 Y!

A visit to the Sutamina-En is worth it just for the food and hospitality.  The price paid makes it an absolute must-try when in Tokyo.

More photos from Sutamina-En.

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Sutamina-En
3-13-4 Shikahama, Adachi, Tokyo
+81 03 3897 0416

Closed Mondays and Tuesdays.

Nearest train station is Oji Station.  From there it is approximately a 10 min taxi ride (~1700 Y).