Iroha

While beef tongue often brings to mind a firm, chewy bite and a burst of savory juices, Iroha’s signature boiled tongue is stewed until remarkably tender, pulling apart easily with chopsticks. The gentle, nourishing broth makes it a fitting first dish to order alongside an opening round of drinks in the lively izakaya dining room.

Grilled cuts take center stage with the shop's marbled beef tongue and a limited-quantity miso-marinated version. Grilling over heat brings out the rich sweetness of the well-marbled beef, which can be balanced with a piquant green chili condiment or a salted scallion sauce. The kitchen also threads skewers such as beef tongue sagari and scallion-wrapped tongue, and prepares raw-style meat dishes including tongue sashimi and uncured beef ham sashimi, allowing diners to sample different textures and preparations side by side.

Between grilled and simmered items, warm oden cooked in oxtail broth provides another comforting dimension. Daikon radish, deep-fried tofu, and tofu topped with tororo kombu soak up the rich dashi stock. Tables frequently round out the meal with Iroha's potato salad studded with tongue pieces or a crisp minced beef tongue cutlet. The drink selection holds its own against these savory flavors, highlighted by the house salted lemon sour, draft Sapporo Black Label, assorted tea-based highballs, and regional sake from Tohoku.

To finish, diners can choose from thick-noodle yakisoba dressed with grated yam and egg, red-ginger-accented inari sushi, or a clear, soothing oxtail soup. Located on the 1st floor of the Suzuki Building in Kanda Misakicho, the restaurant opens on weekday evenings and starts earlier from 12:30 on Saturdays and Sundays, accommodating both post-work drinks and meals around local events.