Azabu fox eel
Spring
While many rivers are no longer flowing in Tokyo, traditional food delicacies are carried on from Edo times. The famous “Kitsune Unagi” is still served by a 5th generation chef in a refined restaurant who traces its roots from the one depicted by Hiroshige.
Notes
The custom of eating unagi is believed to have started in the 18th-century mid-Edo period. The owner of an unagi shop, struggling to get customers in the heat, hung a sign outside the restaurant telling people that it was Ushi no Hi so they should eat food that starts with “u” to escape the heat.