A note on the words: mapo tofu is the Sichuan dish of tofu simmered in a hot bean sauce with minced meat, and sansho is the Japanese name for the pepper that gives it its tingling numbness. Yunnan is the province in China’s far southwest, and guoqiao mixian, the kakyo beisen of the shop’s name, is its famous crossing-the-bridge rice noodles served in a scalding broth. Yakuzen, rendered here as medicinal, is cooking built on the herbal tradition. Prices are as of this writing (August 2026).
Table of Contents hide
Shokusai Yunnan Kakyo Beisen, Yushima, on Tabelog (English) — opening hours, payment details and the Japanese address are kept up to date there, not here.
I want something good to eat today too. This is Hangover Meshi. Yushima. What I headed for at lunchtime was a Chinese restaurant that looked like the real thing, visible from the crossing: Shokusai Yunnan Kakyo Beisen, Yushima. Yunnan cooking, I suppose. Something hot — that sounds good. Let us eat.
There is a photograph from a television program up on the wall; apparently they appeared on an episode about medicinal soups.
There are plenty of recommended dishes, and part of me did want to try the soup after coming all this way.
What I ended up ordering was mapo tofu. Somehow, the moment I saw the words Yunnan cooking, I wanted something hot. The soup, by contrast, looked like the deep, wholesome, good-for-you sort, and in my mood it lacked punch.
Oh, that looks good!
A dish whose seriousness reaches you from the moment it is carried over, bubbling and steaming in its stone pot. The steam itself is fairly spicy. One mouthful — good. Hot it certainly is, but not beyond eating. It is packed with savor, and the bubbling hot sauce clings to the tofu beautifully. A mapo tofu of the forceful kind, with the tingle of sansho and the chili heat balanced exactly.
Because the stone pot is scalding you can eat it hot to the last bite, and the crust that forms at the bottom smells wonderful. The heat can be adjusted, so anyone who likes it hot could enjoy the extra-hot, and there seems to be a milder setting for those who cannot. The aroma and savor of Sichuan fill the mouth, and beyond showing the character of Yunnan cooking it is also very well made as a standard mapo tofu — a plate where heat, savor and sheer temperature satisfy at once. I am glad I went for something hot when I wanted punch. Satisfied.
It was hot, so I added a beer. Mapo tofu plus beer is a superb combination.
So: I ate mapo tofu, but the soup is surely what this place is really known for. There were plenty of other dishes as well, so next time I would like to come at night and drink properly rather than at lunch. The menu is well stocked with what look like genuine Chinese dishes, so coming in a large group and eating a little of many things sounds fun too. I shall go again.
Shokusai Yunnan Kakyo Beisen, Yushima (Chinese / Yushima Station, Ueno-hirokoji Station, Ueno-okachimachi Station)
Tabelog lunch rating ★★★☆☆ 3.5
I ate here and paid for it myself. Nothing on this site is a comped meal.
