Komagata Maekawa

Komagata Maekawa is a long-established unagi (grilled eel) restaurant brand based in Komagata, Taito-ku, Tokyo, near the Sumida River. According to its official history, it was founded in the Bunka-Bunsei era of the Edo period, roughly 220 years ago, originally as a river-fish wholesaler before the first generation, Oobashi Yuemon, converted the business into an eel restaurant. The house name 'Maekawa' derives from its original location facing the Okawa (the old name for the Sumida River). In the Edo period, customers reportedly arrived by boat, stopping at Maekawa for kabayaki as part of a connoisseur's route along the river. The brand is known for its unagi dishes — kabayaki, shirayaki, and unaju — as well as items such as unagi sake and unacha. Its signature ingredient is 'Unagi Bando Taro,' a farmed eel raised to closely resemble wild eel in flavor, fed on a diet including walleye pollack and raw horse mackerel paste. The restaurant states it refrains from using wild Japanese eel (Nihon unagi) because the species is considered endangered. Its cooking method is notably elaborate, involving repeated grilling and re-grilling, and its tare sauce is said to have been continuously replenished since founding, about 220 years ago. The brand has been praised by figures such as the composer Kosaku Yamada, who described its eel cuisine as having a 'delicate flavor reminiscent of chamber music,' and it is noted as a favorite of the sculptor Kotaro Takamura and the writer Shotaro Ikenami. Komagata Maekawa operates its main Asakusa branch, a Shin-Marunouchi Building branch, and formerly a Tokyo Skytree Solamachi branch (announced closed in 2025). It also runs an online shop for home delivery of its eel. The company behind the brand is Komagata Maekawa Inc. The restaurant positions itself as a historic, tradition-bound unagi specialist offering views of the Sumida River and the Komagata Bridge from its seats.

Komagata Maekawa traces its origins to the Bunka-Bunsei era of the Edo period, roughly 220 years ago, when it was established along the Sumida River (then commonly called the Okawa). It began as a river-fish wholesaler (kawazakana donya). The first generation, Oobashi Yuemon, converted the business from a river-fish wholesaler into an eel restaurant. The house name 'Maekawa' was chosen because the shop originally faced the Okawa. In that era, customers are said to have traveled by boat; a connoisseur's itinerary involved boating from Nakasu to Yanagibashi for amusement, stopping at Maekawa to enjoy kabayaki, and then continuing on to Suijin. Urban planning, including the construction of Komagata Bridge, led the restaurant to relocate to its current location in Komagata, Taito-ku. Across generations, the heads of the house have maintained the belief and pride that 'Maekawa' kabayaki cannot be made unless the master himself takes up the knife, preserving a flavor unchanged since founding. The restaurant's tare sauce has been continuously replenished since its founding, about 220 years ago, and is cited as one of the reasons for its consistent taste. Its cooking involves careful steaming and grilling with repeated re-grilling; the Japanese Wikipedia entry notes a method of grilling and re-grilling 16 times. The brand has been celebrated by notable cultural figures. The composer Kosaku Yamada praised Maekawa's eel cuisine as a 'delicate flavor reminiscent of chamber music.' The sculptor Kotaro Takamura and the writer Shotaro Ikenami are noted as lovers of the restaurant. In the modern era, Komagata Maekawa has expanded beyond its main Asakusa branch to include a branch in the Shin-Marunouchi Building and, until its 2025 closure, a branch at Tokyo Skytree Solamachi. It also operates an online shop for home delivery of its eel. The operating company is Komagata Maekawa Inc.

• Founded in the Bunka-Bunsei era along the Sumida River as a river-fish wholesaler

• First generation Oobashi Yuemon converts the business into an eel restaurant

• Relocates to current Komagata location due to urban planning including Komagata Bridge construction

• Shin-Marunouchi Building branch opens

• Tokyo Skytree Solamachi branch closes (announced 2025-07-09)

Historic, tradition-bound unagi specialty restaurant offering Edo-period heritage, a continuously replenished tare sauce, and river views.

• Unaju

  Eel over rice in a lacquered box

• Unagi kabayaki

  Grilled eel basted with tare sauce

• Unagi shirayaki

  Grilled eel without sauce

• Unagi Bando Taro

  Farmed eel raised to closely resemble wild eel in flavor

1. 1東京浅草の老舗うなぎ料理専門店｜駒形前川unagi-maekawa.com
2. 2歴史とこだわり｜東京浅草の老舗うなぎ料理専門店 駒形前川unagi-maekawa.com
3. 3Komagata Maekawa - Wikidatawikidata.org
4. 4駒形前川 - Wikipediaja.wikipedia.org