This building caught my eye since the first time I came to Akihabara: it looked as if it was dedicated to all things meat and combining my proverbial perspicacity with my deep knowledge of Japanese, I came to the conclusion that it probably belonged to a company related to meat.
The conclusion is confirmed when you reach the entrance and see that the building's ten floors are indeed related to meat. Incidentally, the company is called "Niku no Mansei" (肉の万世) (http://www.niku-mansei.com/) -the name comes from the neighboring bridge on the Kanda river- and has been there since 1949.
Next to the central entrance, there is a side one leading to a restaurant serving ramen -with an emphasis on meat.
Apparently "Niku no Mansei" doesn't want to cause misunderstandings: on the side leading to the ramen restaurant, there is a huge plate of ramen with chopsticks going up and down.
We went into the entrance of the building for a while -above, a Shinto shrine (kamidana/神棚) dedicated to the patron deities of Kanda, Daikokuten (大黒天) and Ebisu (恵比寿) and below and center, a screen showing, ahem, meat.
A very good idea: in front of the ramen restaurant, a bench with stools for those who want to grab a quick bite of the various offerings from the "Niku no Mansei" building or smoke a cigarette drinking something from the vending machine. Next to the vending machine, a case with the ramen-ya dishes -did I mention that the ramen are topped with meat?
The most famous product of "Niku no Mansei" are the "katsu-sando" (かつサンド) or cutlet sandwiches (notice the bag with the laughing calves and pigs.)
And here's the sandwich itself, nicely cut in six biggish bites. One taste is enough to explain why they insist on the meat theme" I had no idea pork could be this tender.
(For a bigger version of these pictures both in color and black and white, check my"Japan Arekore" set on Flickr).
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