My husband and I visited Tokyo in November of 2013 when we were on our honeymoon. We learned about Echikatsu from a New York Times review from the 1980s and it was as amazing as the article promised(with new century prices of course, haha). We first tried visiting すき焼き 江知勝 at the start of our trip but upon arrival we learned that you really need a reservation for this place. The staff at Echikatsu was SO kind. they felt really bad we couldn’t get in that night and talked amongst each other about what other delicious restaurants were in the area. After several minutes of serious debate they recommended てんぷら天庄 本館, a tempura restaurant, and a waiter from Echikatsu walked us over! I have never ever received service that excellent anywhere in America or Europe. We still reallllly wanted to try their famous shabu shabu so we made a reservation at Echikatsu with 2 friends for later that week. Wow, what a treat one we did finally get into Echikatsu!!! This was probably my favorite meal in Japan. My husband and I enjoyed shabu shabu while our friends had the sukiyaki. Both were superb; very high quality meat and a great array of vegetables. I loved sitting in our private room and eating a traditional Japanese meal seated on the floor. We drank and ate late into the night and I saw many other parties going into their own rooms doing the same. We love Echikatsu and hope to visit again the next time we come to Japan. They go above and beyond, providing amazing cuisine AND stellar service. A++++++, a very special treat.
