A note on the words: mapo tofu is a classic Sichuan dish of tofu simmered in a fiery, aromatic sauce spiced with rayu (chili oil) and tingling huajiao (Sichuan pepper), built here on a Chinese stock. Malamian are cold or hot noodles seasoned with that same numbing-and-spicy mala profile.
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Sichuan Gaen on Tabelog (English) — opening hours, payment details and the Japanese address are kept up to date there, not here.
Hello, this is Hangover Meshi. Hot… so hot! Surely the rainy season has already ended, right? Wondering what to do for lunch, I was wandering around Akasaka. Turning into an alley, just as I was thinking, “Oh no, what was down this way again?” “Sichuan Gaen” caught my eye. Well, people have always said to eat spicy food when it is hot outside, though I was already drenched in sweat before even taking a bite. Perhaps because it was a bit past the peak lunch hour, the place was half empty. It is usually crowded, so I was in luck.
Vegetable set — 900 yen
Meat set — 950 yen
Seafood set — 1,000 yen
Mapo tofu set — 950 yen
Chilled chicken malamian — 1,000 yen
There are various choices, but for set meals it seems they have meat, vegetables, seafood, mapo, and noodles. I wondered which one to go for, but felt that since I had come to Sichuan Gaen I wanted to eat mapo tofu, so as always, I went with the mapo tofu.
The first to arrive were the soup and rice for the mapo tofu set.
It looks so good!
The mapo tofu here really comes in a generous portion; this bowl is quite deep, so there is plenty inside! If you do not pace yourself carefully, you are bound to run out of rice. I have a feeling refills might be possible, but this time I decided to adjust my pace carefully as I ate.
Taking a bite, the savory depth of Chinese soup stock spreads gently across the palate. Delicious. It is not overwhelmingly spicy, but that clear kick from the rayu (chili oil) and huajiao (Sichuan pepper) is irresistible! A mapo tofu that pairs so well with rice, almost like it was created specifically to be ladled over rice. Delicious. I wonder how they make it. Surely they are using ingredients you can get here in Japan, right? You could never produce this flavor at home, though.
In the end, the rice ran out first, but scooping up and eating just the mapo tofu on its own was delicious too. Ah, I see — if there were beer, it might make a great snack to go with it. Hmm, next time I will come when I can have a drink.
And so, I was reminded once again: the mapo tofu at Sichuan Gaen is delicious! I had intended to beat the summer heat with something spicy, but with the air conditioner blasting inside the restaurant, my sweat had cooled off completely, and I stepped outside in total comfort. Thinking to myself, “Ah, in about five minutes I will probably be dripping with sweat again,” I headed back. I think I will come again.
Sichuan Gaen (Sichuan / Akasaka Station, Akasaka-mitsuke Station, Tameike-sanno Station)
Tabelog lunch rating ★★★☆☆ 3.6
I ate here and paid for it myself. Nothing on this site is a comped meal.
One more for the road?
