Licking your lips over the branded "Matsusaka Beef" at the home of Matsusaka beef
When you travel to Mie Prefecture, you cannot miss Matsusaka beef.
Matsusa beef is known as a brand beef as good as Kobe beef among Japanese.
Selected cattles of excellent breed are raised slowly taking a long time and consequently marbling is fine-textured and often called ""Arts of meat"".
The visuals of beautifully curved marbling makes you excited before eating.
Matusaka beef is charcterized by the quality of fat which can be melted by the heat from your palm as well as being tender and sweet.
You cannot stop appraising the beef as ""exquisite!"" or ""delicious!"".
The way of eating beef is quite various including ""Grill"", ""Sukiyaki"", ""Steak"", ""Shabu Shabu"", ""Fried beef (of entrails)"", ""Beef nigiri sushi"", ""Hamburg steak"", ""Split-roasting"", ""Beef curry"" and ""Beef stew"".
The difficulty to choose how to eat is part of the joy of eating beef.
Recommended ways of eating the beef are ""Steak"", which will enhance flavor of fat by broiling, and ""Sukiyaki"", which the beef is cooked in shallow iron pot being broiled and stewed.
Try one of the local restaurants.
To the Matusaka Station where you can find many well-known stores and restaurants, it takes approximately 10 minutes from Ise-shi Station and 25 minutes from Toba Station by Kintetsu Limited Express. Matusaka is well located to visit before or after Ise Jingu pilgrimage. Let us introduce a tour of Matusaka including a walk at the castle town and teatime at a retro-inspired café.
Related link:
>shop guide for servicing delicious Matsusaka beef (in Japanese)
https://www.kankomie.or.jp/sp/special/iseshima/guide/files/matsusakaushi.pdf
Famous "Wadakin" Sukiyaki restaurant as a representative of Matsusaka beef
For the Matsusaka beef lunch or dinner you are looking forward to, if you take the highroad, well-established restaurant "Wadakin", which is considered to be a representative of the town, is recommended.
The restaurant owns its own large pasture and you can enjoy the carefully bred exquisite Matsusaka beef.
Particularly, "Sukiyaki" is the leading menu of Wadakin.
Beautifully marbled fatty beef will melt on your tongue and the taste will be difficult to forget.
Related link:
> Wadakin
Matsusaka beef at a well-established inn "Taiya Ryokan" in the post station town
Established in the Bunka era of Edo period (early 19th century), well-establish inn named "Taiya Ryokan" offers traditional beef cuisine in a casual atmosphere.
Sukiyaki of Matsusaka beef is prepared without using Sukiyaki stock, being quickly grilled and lightly flavored with specially ordered soy sauce and sugar.
The recipe maximizes the unique taste without sacrificing the meltingly tender Matsusaka beef.
Taiya Ryokan
Address: 780 Hino-machi, Matsusaka-city, Mie Prefecture
Phone number: 81-0598-23-1200
Opening hours: 11:30 - 14:00 for lunch (last orders taken at 13:30) 17:00 - 21:30 (Reservation required)
Closed: on Mondays for lunch only
"Shoto-an"; Café and restaurant with a Kura (traditional store house)
Graceful Japanese lunch at "Iseji"
The Japanese restaurant "Iseji" is located in the HOTEL FREX.
Tatami room seats are available at the restaurant and you can relax and enjoy the meals in a calming atomosphere.
It is also recommended to those who would like to try various local delicious foods in addition to Matusaka beef.
The hotel location is 5 minutes walk from Matsusaka station along the National Rout 42 and is also suitable for Ise Pilgrimage as it is conveniently located being very close to a convenience store as well.
Japanese restaurant "Iseji" (4F Matsusaka FLEX HOTEL)
Address: 36-18 Chuo-cho, Matsusaka-city, Mie Prefecture
Phone number: 81-0598-52-0800
Opening hours: 11:00 - 14:00 for lunch 17:00 - 21:00 (last orders taken at 20:30)
"Maruyoshi" restaurant run by a speciality meat shop of Matsusaka beef
As a speciality restaurant, Maruyoshi offers a variety menu of Masusaka beef.
Amongst the menu, its leading dishes are "Beef steak", classic "Sukiyaki" and "Shabu Shabu".
Exquisite marbled beef can be purchased at the adjoining meat shop for souvenirs.
Matsusaka Maruyoshi (Kamada Main Shop)
Address: 239-2 Kamada-cho, Matsusaka-city, Mie Prefecture
Phone number: 81-0598-51-2240
Opening hours (restaurants): 10:00 - 21:30 (last orders taken at 20:30)
Closed: on Wednesdays (opens in case Wednesday falls on a public holiday) and Year-end and New Year holidays
Steak at "Beef Club Noel"
"Beef Club Noel" is a steak restaurant with at-home atmosphere.
The exquisite Matsusaka beef steak is served in a casual atmosphere at a reasonable price.
Lunch menu includes "Whim Steak Lunch of Matsusaka Beef" and "Boxed lunch of Grilled Matsusaka Beef" etc.
As it is a popular restaurant, prior reservations are recommended.
Beef Club Noel
Address: 25 Kyo-machi, Matsusaka-city, Mie Prefecture
Phone number: 81-0598-26-6410
Opening hours: 11:30 - 14:15 for lunch (last orders taken at 13:30) 17:00 - 20:45 (last orders taken at 20:00)
Closed: on Thursdays, on the third Wednesdays
Nigiri Sushi of fatty marbled Matsusaka beef at "Sushi-man"
The Sushi restaurant offers exquisite sushi and dishes with carefully selected world branded Matsusaka beef and local seafoods from Ise Bay and, because of the elaborate foods, the restaurant has many regular customers.
Top recommendation at the restaurant is "Matsusaka Beef Toro Nigiri".
"Anago" (conger eel) nigiri with traditional boiled down sweet sauce is polular as well.
Sushi-man
Address: Yumeno-ki-dori, 14 Hirao-machi, Matsusaka-city, Mie Prefecture
Phone number: 81-0598-21-1891
Opening hours: 11:00 - 14:00 for lunch (last orders taken at 13:30) 17:00 - 22:00 (last orders taken at 21:30)
Closed: on Thursdays
Conveyor belt yakiniku (grilled beef) enjoyable at "Issho-bin"
If you would like to have Matsusaka beef at popular prices, try "Issho-bin".
It is a fairly unusual place across Japan where "Kaiten Yakiniku" (conveyor belt grilled beef) instead of "Kaiten Sushi" can be enjoyed.
Raw meat including "Matsusaka beef speciality loin" and "Matsusaka beef calvi (ribs)" will be delivered on the belt and you can choose the raw meats as you like and grill them on your table.
This unusual experience may give you the good taste and the joy at the same time.
Issho-bin (Miyamachi branch shop)
Address: 144-5 Miya-machi, Matsusaka-city, Mie Prefecture
Phone number: 81-0598-50-1200
Opening hours: 11:00 - 22:30 (there is a break on weekdays, hours may be different for conveyor seats)
Holidays: open seven days a week
Town walk in a Kimono made of Matsusaka Momen
Matsusaka is not only famous for Matsusaka beef.
Would you like to try a stroll wearing Japanese kimono made of tradional Japanese fabrics named Matusaka Momen (cotton cloth)?
It is approximately 7 minutes' walk from the Matsusaka station to "Matusaka Momen Rental Center" where you can rent Matsusaka Momen kimono for a town walk.
It only takes 3 minutes to get dressed in kimono.
You can rent a series items including Tabi socks, Zori sandals and Kinchaku (drawstring bag) at reasonable prices.
Let us go for a walk in stylish kimono.
Matsusaka Momen Rental Center (Yawata-ya Kimono Rental Center)
Address: 589-1 Hino-machi, Matsusaka-city, Mie Prefecture
Phone number: 81-0598-21-0551
Opening hours: 11:00 - 18:00 (hours may differ depending on seasons)
Closed: on Thursdays
Time slip to old times ! "Mansion of Matsusaka merchant"
At the "Mansion of Matsusaka merchant", you can take photos as if you have slipped into old times.
The prosperity of a merchant dealing paper and cotton many years ago can be thought of.
Mansion of Matusaka merchant
Address: 2195 Hon-machi, Matsusaka-city, Mie Prefecture
Phone number: 81-0598-21-4331
Opening hours 9:00 - 16:30 (9:00 -16:00 between Oct. and Mar.)
Closed: on Mondays (opens in case Monday falls on a public holiday; the following Tuesday will be closed) and Year-end and New Year Holidays (12/29 - 1/3)
Shop limited goods at "Matsujiro-no-mise"
After enjoying exquisite Matsusaka beef, please enjoy your dessert time with comforting sweets.
As "Hachimitsu Monaka Aisu" (honey ice cream in wafers) is only sold at the shop, please visit the shop and try it there.
They offer a variety of flavors including milk, matcha, black sesame and kinako (roasted soybean flour).
You can purchase all goods using honey including cosmetics, towels and soaps, in addition to honey itself.
Hachimitsu-ya Matsujiro-no-mise
Address: 1873 Naka-machi, Matsusaka-city, Mie Prefecture
Phone number: 81-0598-26-8133
Opening hours: 9:30 - 18:30
Holidays: open seven days a week (closed only on new year holidays)