Satou is a butcher’s shop on the edge of Harmonica Yokocho whose minced-beef cutlet, a menchi-katsu made with Matsuzaka wagyu and onions, fried to order in a window on the street, has had a queue outside it since the 1980s. The line is a Kichijoji landmark in itself; people who have never bought one still measure the neighborhood’s mood by how far it stretches.
Join it, it moves fast. Take the hot cutlet out of its paper, bite in while it is still crackling, and keep walking into the yokocho. For the full experience, book the steakhouse upstairs for lunch, where the same beef comes seared on a plate for a fraction of the Ginza price.
Tips
- The queue is for the takeaway window; buy one or two at around 300 yen each and eat them on the spot
- The queue is shortest soon after opening or in mid-afternoon; after 16:00 they sometimes sell out
- The steakhouse upstairs serves the same Matsuzaka beef in a sit-down lunch set that is much cheaper than dinner