Tsujihan Arc Hills : Tokyo Best Kaisendon Restaurant Review

If I had to pick one restaurant I was looking forward to the most on my trip to Tokyo, it would have to be Tsujihan. As so many people have recommended it as one of the best places to eat while watching travel videos on YouTube. I’ve been checking it off my Google Maps for a while now and have been looking forward to checking it out.

• Japan, 〒103-0027 Tokyo, Chuo City, Nihonbashi, 3 Chome−1−15 久栄ビル １階
• Opening Hours : 11:00 – 21:00

• Japan, 〒107-0052 Tokyo, Minato City, Akasaka, 1 Chome−12−32, Ark Mori Building, 3階
• Weekdays Opening Hours : 11:00 – 21:30
• Weekends Opening Hours : 11:00 – 20:30

• Japan, 〒162-0825 Tokyo, Shinjuku City, Kagurazaka, 3 Chome−２ Yamanouchi Bld, 1F
• Opening Hours : 11:00 – 21:00

• 935-1 Izumicho, Tachikawa, Tokyo 190-0015, Japan : LaLaport Tachikawa Tachihi 3F
• Weekdays Opening Hours : 10:00 – 20:00
• Weekends Opening Hours : 10:00 – 21:00

I visited the Tsujihan Arc Hills branch, not the main restaurant in Tokyo Station. I had heard that the Tokyo Station branch can have a wait of up to 2 hours if you don’t get there early enough before it opens, so I opted to go to the branch. So I went to the one in Arc Hills, which was close to Shibuya, where I was staying. In addition to Ark Hills, there seem to be branches around Roppongi and Idamashi stations, all of which seem to have shorter waits than the main branch.

To find Arc Hills, take the Ginza Line from Shibuya Station, get off at Tameikesanno Station. And walk for about 10 minutes.

When you arrive at the Ark Hills building, you’ll see a sign listing the restaurants in the building. And this is where you’ll find Tsuji-Han. Tsuji-Han is located on the 3rd floor of the restaurant area. Because the architecture of the Ark Hills building is a bit uniquel. I didn’t enter the building on the ground floor and go upstairs. But instead took the outdoor stairs and escalator to the 3rd floor.

The area around the Ark Hills building is more of a neighborhood with a high concentration of companies than a shopping or tourist destination. My visit to Ark Hills also felt like a restaurant district attached to an office building.

I arrived at Tsujihan at 11:30 on a weekday, just as the office lunch rush was starting. So there were a lot of office workers having lunch in the Ark Hills dining area. The dining area offers a variety of options besides Tsujihan, such as curry and ramen. Also there were quite a few restaurants with lines out the door, not just Tsujihan.

We visited Tsujihan Ark Hills a little after opening time, so there was a bit of a wait. But it cleared out quickly and we were seated after about 20 minutes.

During the wait, the staff will give you a menu and take your order a little later. The menu is available in English if you ask for it. The more expensive the menu, the more ingredients or new ingredients are added.

• Ume Course – 1.200 yen (salmon, tuna, nakaochi – tuna spine cartilage, shrimp, kodon, clam, squid, salmon roe, cucumber, onion)
• Take Course – 1,650 yen (+ crab meat, extra salmon)
• Matsu Course – 2,200 yen (+ sea urchin roe-uni, extra crab meat, extra salmon)
• Tokujo Course – 3,600 yen (+ sea urchin roe and uni, extra crab meat, extra salmon)

On the back of the menu in front of me was a description of how to eat the kaisendon.

I ordered the Matsu Course for ¥2,200 with uni, and since I wanted a quick drink, I ordered sake. For some reason, cold sake is expensive, so I ordered it warm.

As you can see from the menu, takeout is available. I think it’s great that you can get your meal right away without waiting. Tsujihan Kaisendon also serves sea bream broth, which is an important part of the experience, so I don’t think there’s much of a difference between eating at the restaurant. However, the sea bream broth is best enjoyed when it’s warm, so I recommend eating at the restaurant if possible.

When you’re seated, there are four pieces of sashimi in front of you: two pieces are to be eaten with the accompanying peanut sauce. And the other two pieces are to be dipped in the sea bream broth that comes at the end. I dipped the sashimi into the peanut sauce first. The savory peanut sauce went well with the fresh, oily sashimi.

On the side, I was offered some soy sauce to pour over the kaisendon. And some pickled ginger to go with it. I didn’t try it because I didn’t like the idea.

Unlike the usual sliced sashimi, Tsujihan’s kaisendon was made by mashing the ingredients together and placing them on top of the rice. This was then mixed with the soy sauce and wasabi on the side and drizzled over the kaisendon.

The kaisendon looked so delicious, but I wondered if it would have a good texture since the ingredients were all bland enough to be mashed together. Tasting it with the rice changed my mind.

It had a texture that made me think that one of the ingredients was nakaochi (tuna spine cartilage), although I couldn’t quite place it, so it was fun to chew on, and the combination of that with the oily, savory fish and rice was really delicious.

The warm sake we ordered with the kaisendon was served, and it went well with the kaisendon, as expected. Since kaisendon is made with cold sashimi, the temperature difference was a good match. The warm sake enhanced the flavor of the food and brought out the flavor of the sake itself, so it was a pleasant experience.

When you have about a third of your kaisendon left, the instructions say to ask for the sea bream broth and eat it after you receive it. I found it so delicious that I ate it all with only a little bit of rice left, lol.

Anyway, I asked for the sea bream stock here, and they poured it out of the boiling pot in front of me, and asked if I wanted extra rice, which I did.

I loved the kaisendon, but I also loved this sea bream broth. It’s a thick fish broth, but it’s not fishy, it’s oily and savory. Eating it with rice was the perfect way to finish it off, just like Koreans eat sashimi and have a hot spicy soup to finish it off,

Then, I ate the last two pieces of sashimi in the sea bream broth. When I ate it, it was more delicious when it was slightly cooked on the outside than when it was cooked for a long time and had some time in the middle. It was like eating sashimi by shabu-shabu, but it was good to taste various flavors.

I cleaned up the sea bream broth and rice and left the restaurant.

I’ve introduced you to Tsujihan, a popular Kaisendon restaurant in Tokyo. I visited the branch in Ark Hills and found that I liked it even more than I thought I would, with no wait at all. Even the sea bream broth at the end of our meal was perfect. And I would definitely go back if I were to visit Tokyo in the future.