Gyugin Honten, a long-established restaurant founded in 1902, has operated as a beef hot pot restaurant for generations, with a focus on the deliciousness of authentic Matsusaka meat. You can enjoy Matsusaka beef in a variety of ways, including sukiyaki, shiochiri (hotpot seasoned with light soy sauce and pepper), mizudaki (shabu-shabu), and amiyaki. It's so popular that customers come from all over the country (not just nearby areas like Nagoya, but also Tokyo, Osaka, and even Hokkaido!), and it was even featured in the Michelin Mie Guidebook in 2019. Photographer Masashi Asada takes a closer look at the deliciousness of Matsusaka beef at the famous restaurant "Gyugin Honten"!

​Click here for the profile of Masashi Asada, who is also the original creator of the movie “Asada Family!”

■Table of contents

• 1. Why is Matsusaka beef so delicious?
• 2. Delicious sukiyaki from the home of Matsusaka beef
• 3. About Gyugin Honten’s commitment
• 4. About the historic Uomachi Street where Gyugin Main Store is located
• 5. Photo taken by Masashi Asada

1. Why is Matsusaka beef so delicious?

The dish we will be having this time is "Sukiyaki Special Selection Kotobuki" (19,723 yen including tax *The photo shows the amount for 2 people). Matsusaka beef is characterized by its sweet, rich, and elegant Wagyu flavor, which is the secret to its deliciousness. Wagyu beef aroma becomes most intense when heated in diluted salt water at 80℃ for 2 minutes, so eating it with sukiyaki or shabu-shabu is the best way to bring out the flavor. In addition, Matsusaka beef contains more fat (unsaturated fatty acids) that melts in the mouth than regular Wagyu beef, so it has a melt-in-your-mouth texture that emphasizes its deliciousness. If you eat Matsusaka beef with sukiyaki, you can't go wrong! It is that.

We spoke to Koji Kobayashi, the fourth-generation owner of Gyugin, to learn more about the deliciousness of Matsusaka beef.

Owner Mr. Kobayashi: There are many factors that go into making Matsusaka beef delicious, but the fundamental thing is that the farmers raise it with care and care. When I visit farmers and show them their cows, I see them talking to and lovingly interacting with the cows from morning until night every day.

Masashi Asada goes to the farmers!

Mr. Kobayashi, the owner: Yes. No matter how good a calf you buy, no matter what kind of food you feed it, no matter how good the environment is, if the people who raise it don't work hard and think about the cow, you won't be able to produce delicious meat. Matsusaka beef refers to heifers made from female Kuroge Wagyu beef calves that are fattened by farmers in Matsusaka beef production areas. Furthermore, within Matsusaka Beef, calves from Hyogo Prefecture that are raised in Matsusaka Beef production areas for more than 900 days are allowed to be called "Special Product." That means spending 900 days working hard to grow it. Many of the Matsusaka beef farmers I know have a policy of raising a small number of cows with care, rather than raising a large number of cows.

Masashi Asada I see. It's precious.

Mr. Kobayashi, the owner of the Gyugin main store, serves aged Matsusaka meat. The red meat has a unique red bean color and the dull whitish marbling is proof that it is delicious. Some customers may be surprised by the bright pink red meat that is currently mainstream, as it looks different from the pure white marbling. In fact, Matsusaka beef has been improved over time, and its color and flavor have changed little by little to meet the needs of the times, but at Gyugin Honten, we are particular about the original deliciousness of Matsusaka beef. Therefore, we ask farmers to feed and raise their cows in the traditional way.

2. Delicious sukiyaki from the home of Matsusaka beef

The waiter will carefully prepare the food in front of you. Matsusaka's sukiyaki is characterized by not using warishita, but first grilling the beef with sugar and soy sauce, then serving the vegetables.

I’m looking forward to Masashi Asada! thank you.

Before the nakai-san's pot heats up, he adds the meat and grills it with just sugar and soy sauce.

Before Mr. Masashi Asada warms up, what is this?

If the waiter warms it too much, the meat will burn and stick to the pot. Now, let's bake them one by one. Sprinkling sugar like snow...

Masashi Asada, like snow...that's a good expression!

The delicious aroma of Masashi Asada's sukiyaki wafts through the air!

Masashi Asada is looking forward to seeing the finished product.

Sukiyaki is ready! Mix the meat with the egg and enjoy.

Masashi Asada is happy. The meat melts in your mouth...

Next, the Nakai-san says, ``Vegetables are delicious when they're still crunchy,'' and the chef prepares them to perfection.

Masashi Asada's vegetables are also delicious! I want to eat it every day. This will also impress your customers.

Thank you very much, Mr. Nakai. Even small children say, ``It's delicious!'' and eat it all.

3. About Gyugin Honten’s commitment

How did you like the owner, Mr. Kobayashi's sukiyaki?

Masashi Asada-san... it was really delicious. The taste is the same, but the waiter next to me carefully grilled each piece one by one, and the vegetables were served at the perfect time, as well. It was delicious till the end. It's also fun to talk with Nakai-san. Being in a historic building, I felt that everything, including the space, came together to bring out the flavor.

Owner Mr. Kobayashi: What we are aiming for is exactly what Mr. Asada has said. I was wondering if space, food, and service could all be combined to create something delicious. Asada-san says, I think it's a good idea to keep the old buildings like this.

Masashi Asada I don't come here to eat on a daily basis, but rather to celebrate an anniversary, my 10th wedding anniversary, or my child's 20th birthday. I think each customer who comes to visit us often brings a special story with them. I wonder if Gyugin Main Store is also a place of joy in the lives of various people? I thought.

The owner, Mr. Kobayashi, agrees. Of course, it is important for customers to enjoy the meat that has been raised with great care by farmers, but it is also important to consider the purpose of the customers coming to the restaurant, other than just to eat. Masu. For example, if the staff member who greets customers at the entrance overhears a customer saying, ``Today is my grandma's 60th birthday,'' we try to share this with the staff as much as possible. I want to do whatever I can to make my customers happy! This is the spirit.

4. About the historic Uomachi Street where Gyugin Main Store is located

Gyugin Honten is a renovated inn with pure Japanese architecture. The ruins of Norinaga Motoori's house (a nationally designated special historic site) and the former Hasegawa Jirobee family home (a nationally designated important cultural property) are located along MotooriNorinaga Street, which is located near the Ise Sangu Highway in the castle town of Matsuzaka Castle.

Mr. Kobayashi, the owner: The Koizumi family home, which was once the official doctor of the Kishu clan, was located on Uomachi Street in 1996, and was purchased and renovated by Gyugin. In 2017, it became a nationally registered tangible cultural property under the name "Kian". I don't think there are many places, including Kenan, where nationally designated historical sites, registered tangible cultural properties, and important cultural properties are lined up on one street. If you walk further across the street, you'll come to the Matsuzaka Castle Ruins, the birthplace of the Mitsui family, and the former Ozu Seizaemon family, so there's plenty to see. Since it is located right next to the Ise Sangu Highway, many people come here to coincide with their visit to IseJingu.

The interior of Gyugin Honten is full of atmosphere. The stairs, hallways, and window frames are also made of wood, giving it a good old-fashioned warmth.

The owner, Mr. Kobayashi, left his hometown of Matsusaka at the age of 19 and went to Tokyo for training. In order to introduce the local area to a friend in Tokyo, I ordered the meat from Gyugin Honten and had him try it, and he was impressed and said, "What?! What is this?! It's so delicious." For me, the taste of meat has been familiar to me since I was a child, so I thought, ``Huh?! Is it that surprisingly delicious?'' I realized once again the appeal of Matsusaka beef.

On the other hand, there was something that surprised me in Tokyo, Kobayashi continues.

The owner, Mr. Kobayashi, was surprised that when he said ``katsudon'', ``pork cutlet'' came out. In Matsusaka, katsudon is a beef cutlet.

Masashi Asada's beef cutlet! It may be unique to Matsusaka.

The owner, Mr. Kobayashi, might be right (lol). In any case, I was able to see the good things about my hometown that I could only see once I left my hometown. I was able to experience the fact that Matsusaka beef is not just local, but nationwide. Of course, this is not only due to the power of Gyugin Honten, but also because of the efforts of various merchants and shops that sell Matsusaka beef since the Meiji era. Therefore, I believe that it is no good if only Gyugin is prospering, and that everyone involved in Matsusaka Beef must benefit as a whole. In the first place, it would be boring if only we were prosperous. I think other stores around me are thinking the same thing.

Masashi Asada and Team Matsusaka are going to make things more exciting. Matsusaka is a town of merchants, so perhaps there is a culture of being kind to people and wishing for the prosperity of those around you?

The owner, Mr. Kobayashi, might be right. It's a town with a lot of kind people.

Masashi Asada is wonderful!

Mr. Kobayashi, the owner: We hope that people who visit Matsusaka or Gyugin Honten will be impressed and come back again! I think.

5. Photo taken by Masashi Asada

I took a photo of the store owner and landlady at the entrance of Gyugin Main Store. The wooden decoration in the back is said to be inspired by the character for ``Kobatsu''. The frog the two people are holding is said to be a toad that attracts customers, and is also a lucky charm. The couple looks so happy with their smiling faces!

[Gyugin main store details]
Store address: 1618 Uomachi, MatsusakaCity City, Mie Prefecture
Business hours: 11:00-20:00
(Last entry 18:45, order stop 19:00)
Phone number: 0598-21-0404
Official website: https://www.gyugin-honten.co.jp/

Article production: MSLP