A note on the words: yakiniku is Japanese tabletop grilling, where you cook bite-sized cuts of meat and offal yourself, seasoned with salt or with tare, a sweet-savory soy-based sauce. Harami is skirt steak; jo-mino (“premium mino”) is crunchy first stomach; gyara (also giara) is the fourth stomach, or abomasum. Bakudan, literally “bomb,” is a bowl of raw meat or fish surrounded by sticky toppings to stir together; here the niku bakudan (“meat bomb”) brings raw beef with hikiwari natto (chopped fermented soybeans), egg yolk, takuan (pickled daikon), shiso, nametake (seasoned enoki mushrooms) and green onion, which you mix and wrap in Korean seaweed yourself.
Sanpoen on Tabelog (English) — opening hours, payment details and the Japanese address are kept up to date there, not here.
Thanks for waiting, fellow drinkers, it’s time for another meal!
Since I had come all the way out to Numabukuro, I figured I might as well walk a little further over to Nogata. There is a well-known spot right here!
It is a yakiniku restaurant in Nogata, Nakano Ward, called Yakiniku Restaurant Sanpoen. Founded in 1966, it is a long-running spot, and since its 2023 renovation it is often introduced as a “neighborhood yakiniku that BBQ fans talk about.” Ordering is a breeze — you just scan the QR code on the table with your phone. On the wall there is a poster titled “Sanpoen’s recommended way to eat,” which carefully explains how much to grill each cut. And then the very last line says: “Ignore all of the above and enjoy yakiniku however you like” lol.
Because it was still early, there was only one other group of customers, so we had the place almost to ourselves.
Now then, let’s start with a drink!
It is so ice-cold that my fingertips feel chilled the moment I pick it up…!
So good!
First up is my beloved harami (skirt steak). Described on the menu as having a “juicy flavor,” the harami arrives coated generously in tare sauce. According to the guide, harami cuts are delicious whether you grill them rare or cook them thoroughly. When I grill a piece just right and pop it into my mouth, it bites through tenderly, meaty juices spread across my palate, and the sweet-savory tare ties everything together.
Delicious!
The tare has a bold presence that makes you want a bowl of white rice too!
Next is the Niku Bakudan (“meat bomb”), which had a star next to it on the raw meat menu and caught my curiosity. The bowl arrives topped with raw beef, hikiwari natto (chopped fermented soybeans), egg yolk, takuan pickled radish, shiso leaf, nametake mushrooms, green onion, and more, served with Korean seaweed on the side. Aha, so that’s the “bomb” (bakudan — a mixed bowl of sticky toppings)! You stir everything all together and wrap it up in the seaweed to eat. The rich, sticky sweetness of the raw beef, the stickiness of the natto, the crisp crunch of the takuan, and the fresh lift of the shiso all come together in a single bite, while the saltiness and toasted aroma of the seaweed pull the whole thing together.
This is seriously delicious!
Another favorite of mine is the premium mino (first stomach), described on the menu as having a “crunchy texture.” The wall poster says to “grill it more briefly than you think.” It comes generously tossed in a salt sauce with green chili peppers, and as soon as you lay it on the grill, a sharp, peppery aroma rises up. Grill it quickly just as instructed and take a bite: after that signature chewy crunch of mino, the heat of the green chili clears through refreshingly. Because it isn’t greasy at all, it is just the thing between richer cuts of meat, and it goes so well with drinks.
And then, a dish you cannot skip here: the oxtail! Usually when you order tail, it comes chopped into chunks right on the bone, doesn’t it? Here, they neatly strip it off the bone and slice it up for you. This grilled oxtail is available in limited quantities and has “Owner’s top pick” written next to it in red, so there was no way I could pass it up, right?
It is the meat from around the cow’s tail, marbled with red meat and white fat and seasoned generously with salt and coarse black pepper. The poster inside the shop has a line for it: “Grill it twice as brown as you think!” Following orders, I wait patiently by the grill until the surface takes on a deep, browned crust. Biting into a freshly grilled piece, the outside is fragrant and well browned while the inside has a dense, springy bounce. The more you chew, the more the sweetness of the fat and the umami of the meat seep out, with the salt and pepper sharpening the finish. That gelatinous, bouncy texture is a joy too! This one is a total winner.
Last up is gyara. Also called giara, it is the fourth stomach of the cow (abomasum), and it comes out in a bright red spicy tare with green onions on the side. When you grill it slowly starting with the fatty side down, the fat dripping onto the grate sends up clouds of savory smoke. Bite into it and sweet fat floods out from deep within its plump, springy chew, mingling with the sweet-savory, fiery tare in a way that makes it impossible to stop drinking. If you love horumon (offal), you really ought to order this! I have been hooked on giara lately.
Sanpoen, Nogata’s long-running neighborhood yakiniku spot. Starting with an ice-cold highball and moving through the niku bakudan, harami, premium mino, gyara, and the owner’s top-pick grilled oxtail, every single plate brought its own kind of fun. You can follow the grilling guide on the wall, or of course ignore it and grill everything however you please. The boldly seasoned meat keeps the drinks flowing, and before I knew it I had put away three mega highballs. If you want to spend an evening working your way into a cheerful hangover, this is a place well worth a visit.
Here’s to finding more great food today!
Yakiniku Restaurant Sanpoen Menu
Yakiniku (Grilled Meat)
Hand-sliced fresh tongue, served with seasoned green onions
A luxurious cut using only the base of the tongue (tan-moto)
Japanese Black Wagyu chuck eye log (kata-shin), direct from Shibaura
Japanese Black Wagyu ribeye (rib-rosu) and similar cuts
Japanese Black Wagyu ribeye heart (rib-rosu-shin) and similar cuts
Japanese Black Wagyu chuck eye log (kata-shin), direct from Shibaura
Lean, clean beefy flavor. Be careful not to overcook
Japanese Black Wagyu rump
Be careful not to overcook
Juicy flavor
Generous thick cut
Carefully selected domestic harami
Wasabi, sesame-salt sauce, soy sauce, ponzu, grated garlic, gochujang, spicy seasoning, and more are available at the table.
Horumon (Offal)
Crunchy texture
Shimacho (striped large intestine)
Beef aorta. Crunchy, firm texture
Be careful not to overcook
Be careful not to overcook
Please cook thoroughly before eating
Owner’s top pick
Chicken & Pork
Matsusaka pork. Known for its sweet fat
Matsusaka pork, served with sanchu lettuce and kimchi
Platters
Kalbi, Sanpoen Rosu (loin), Harami
Premium Mino, Premium Horumon, Korikori
Premium Tongue, Premium Kalbi, Premium Rosu (loin), Premium Harami
Seafood & Grilled Vegetables
Sashi (Raw & Cold Meat Dishes)
Side Dishes
No. 1 most popular starter
Rice, Noodles & Soups (Shime)
Meat garlic rice
Rich, slow-simmered oxtail and royal fern (zenmai) soup
House specialty soup
Optional toppings: oysters (700 yen), natto (200 yen)
Any soup can be made into gukbap (rice soup) or udon for +200 yen.
Drinks
Roughly double the regular size
All sours can be upgraded to Mega size (900 yen)
Shochu bottle keep (Kyogetsu Green from 3,000 yen), makgeolli, champagne, and more are also available.
*From the restaurant menu at the time of our September 2026 visit. Prices exclude tax. Menu items and prices are subject to change; please check at the restaurant for the latest details.
Sanpoen (Yakiniku / Nogata Station, Toritsu-Kasei Station)
Tabelog dinner rating ★★★☆☆ 3.6
I ate here and paid for it myself. Nothing on this site is a comped meal.
One more for the road?
