Ushikoi Ebisu

The Ushikoi — meaning “cow love” — restaurants are the kind that don’t take themselves too seriously. The restaurant’s founder chooses to remain anonymous, only portraying himself as fictional superhero “Koinosuke,” wearing a full Superman-esque outfit with a paper lantern on his face to obscure his identity. So what is Koinosuke’s mission? Growing up in a lower-income household, Koinosuke made it his life’s mission to make yakiniku an everyday luxury for the common man, rather than the once-a-month indulgence imposed on his family by their limited budget. As such, the first Ushikoi was founded in 2012 in Kanda, with a clear focus on not providing the most fatty and marbled meats, but those that would give the best price-performance ratio. In spite of the tongue-in-cheek approach that Koinosuke takes towards its restaurants, Ushikoi doesn’t play around with the quality of their meat. Koinosuke sources his meat from the finest wagyu producers in western Japan, incorporating some of the finest brands from suppliers based in regions famous for their wagyu beef, like Saga, Kagoshima and Miyazaki Prefectures. In contrast to most yakiniku restaurants, however, which have their selling points as serving the most marbled cuts, Ushikoi is a specialist in leaner meats. The logic is that eating too much fatty meat leaves one with a sickly feeling afterwards, explains Koinosuke. As such, each cut at Ushikoi is chosen for its “lean flavor,” and is prepared in a manner that brings out the characteristic flavor of that specific cut of meat. This emphasis on lean meat makes the restaurant popular with women and athletes, or those looking to indulge in a lot of yakiniku without feeling too guilty afterwards. Perhaps the dish at Ushikoi that best reflects the philosophy is the “Peace Beef.” Dubbed “pure edible protein,” the Peace Beef is a hand-cut piece of beef that is said to have half the fat of a typical beef loin, more than twice the amount of protein, and an even deeper flavor. Another popular item is the “neginchu,” which is chopped green onions in spicy sauce. When wrapped in cuts of meat, it’s an explosion of spice, umami and pure lean meat flavors in a single bite. The Ebisu outlet of Ushikoi is an extremely short walk from the West Exit of JR Ebisu Station, making it popular not just for casual dates, but also for parties among friends after a long work day. Being just outside Shibuya also means it’s ironically the more popular choice for those who don’t want to contend with the Scramble Crossing crowd.