Tiny Urban Kitchen

Exploring Food from Boston to Hong Kong and Beyond

  • About
    • About Me
    • Tiny Urban Kitchen’s Favorite Equipment
    • Press
  • Recipes
    • Recipe Index
    • Asian
      • Chinese
      • Taiwanese
      • Thai
      • Malaysian
      • Japanese
      • Korean
    • Appetizers
    • Soups
    • Salad
    • Pasta
    • Noodles
    • Rice
    • Vegetarian
    • Meat
    • Sweets
      • Baking
      • Ice cream
      • Cookies
    • Misc
    • Kawaii (Cute)
  • Travel / Restaurants
    • United States
      • Boston
        • Jen’s Picks
        • Boston
          • Allston
          • Back Bay
          • Brighton
          • North End
          • South End
        • Cambridge
          • Kendall Square
          • Inman Square
          • Central Square
          • Harvard Square
          • Porter Square
          • North Cambridge
        • Somerville
          • Davis Square
          • Union Square
        • Greater Boston
          • Brookline
          • Arlington
          • Belmont
          • Watertown
          • Newton
          • Lexington
          • Concord
          • Burlington
          • Natick
        • Cape Cod, Martha’s Vineyard, Berkshires
      • Vermont
      • Maine
      • New York
      • Washington DC
      • Philadelphia
      • Orlando
      • Chicago
      • Las Vegas
      • California
        • Los Angeles
        • San Francisco
        • Napa
        • Sonoma
      • Seattle
      • Hawaii
    • Canada
      • Montreal
      • Canadian Rockies
      • Toronto
    • Argentina
    • Europe
      • United Kingdom
        • London
        • Oxford
      • Italy
        • Rome
        • Piedmont
      • France
        • Paris
        • Bordeaux
      • Spain
        • Madrid
        • Barcelona
        • Catalonia / San Sebastian / Girona
      • Germany
      • Belgium
        • Brussels
      • Switzerland
      • Greece
      • Finland
      • Norway
      • Denmark
    • Japan
      • Japan Guide
      • Tokyo
      • Osaka
      • Kyoto
    • China (Mainland)
      • Beijing
      • Chengdu
      • Shanghai
      • Shaanxi
      • Shenzhen
      • Xiamen
      • Yunnan
    • Singapore
    • Hong Kong
    • Malaysia
    • Taiwan
    • Thailand
    • Australia/New Zealand
  • Michelin
    • Formerly had a star
    • Michelin Recommended
    • 1 Star
    • 2 Stars
    • 3 Stars
  • Jen’s Eating Guides!
    • Boston Restaurants
    • Boston Dishes
    • Tokyo
    • Hong Kong
    • Las Vegas
    • Napa / Sonoma
    • Taiwan (night markets)
    • Taiwanese (casual eats)
    • Street Foods of Bangkok (Part I)
    • Street Foods of Bangkok (Part II)
    • Kitchen Equipment
  • Trip Reports
    • All trip reports
    • New England
    • New York
    • Washington DC
    • Las Vegas
    • California
    • Canada
    • Europe
    • Florida
    • Japan
    • China

Shima Steak Tokyo – The famous steak sandwich

July 30, 2017 by Jennifer Che 14 Comments

Shima Steak Tokyo

Shima Steak Tokyo

We’ve had Japan’s famous steak a number of times.

We tasted it grilled at 3-Michelin starred Taian in Kyoto. We’ve enjoyed it in shabu shabu (hot pot) at Seryna, and we’ve had it teppanyaki style at Ukai-Tei (2 Michelin stars). All of the meals have been excellent, and I’ve enjoyed each one for different reasons.

However, my fondest memories would have to be from the new place I visited this past February, Shima in Tokyo.Shima Steak Tokyo
Shima is located in a non-descript basement of an office building in the Nihonbashi neighborhood in Tokyo. Chef Manabu Oshima uses steak from his hometown of Kyoto that he ages himself and then cooks over binchotan, Japanese white charcoal.

Diners have a choice between sirloin or fillet steak. A 150 gram portion costs 13,000 JPY ($120 USD) , which is very reasonable compared to most of the other top steak places in the city.
Shima Steak Tokyo Shima-Steak-Tokyo-5.jpg
On top of steak, there are also appetizers and small snacks. We started with some awesome black ink bread with butter.
Shima Steak Tokyo Shima-Steak-Tokyo-7.jpg
We also enjoyed some olives and a decadent but perfectly made crab croquette.

The menu includes other dishes such as fresh seafood with lemon, boiled abalone with seasonal vegetables, and duck liver with green peppercorn. There were a few soups as well.

We didn’t order any of those. After all, our main reason for coming here was for the steak.
Shima Steak Tokyo
And the steak was awesome. It was tender, not at all too “fatty” tasting, and full of meaty flavor. Shima Steak Tokyo
I loved eating it with the fried garlic pieces. It reminded me of the steak + fried garlic we had at Ukai-Tei, though the steak at Ukai-Tei was definitely more buttery and “melt-in-your-mouth”. Shima Steak Tokyo
The BEST part (IMHO) is the takeaway steak sandwiches you get at the end of the meal. I believe they are made with smaller, scrap pieces. You can’t just order the sandwich. You only get a sandwich if you order a steak at the restaurant.

The sandwich is made with this lovely thick Japanese toast, and it’s DIVINE.
Shima Steak Tokyo
Perhaps I’m biased.

It just so turns out that we were flying back to the US that day.  So naturally, I took my steak sandwich onto the airplane. About 8-10 hours into the flight, I was famished and decided to eat my sandwich. Yes, I know it was at room temperature. And yes, I know the meat had been sitting out for HOURS.

But I still ate it, and it was amazing.

It was by far the best steak sandwich I’d ever eaten in my life.

I will never forget this sandwich. This sandwich makes me want to ensure I visit Shima again on my next visit to Japan. In some ways, I almost think I enjoyed the sandwich more than the steak, ha ha.

For fun, here’s a video of the steak sandwich being made.

So cool!
Shima Steak Tokyo Shima-Steak-Tokyo-14.jpg
Dessert was simple. We just had some ice cream and little cookies, and they were nice.

Shima Steak Tokyo – General Thoughts

I really enjoyed my meal at Shima. I’m sure a big part of it is that Chef Manabu Oshima speaks excellent English and is genuinely a really warm guy. We sat at the counter, which gave us more opportunities to talk to him and also watch the flurry of activity behind the counter.

The steaks are very good, and his prices are very reasonable compared to other high end steak places (which can be 3-5x the price!). The best part, of course, is that the already-reasonable price also includes the very awesome take-away steak sandwich.

So worth it, and so fun! Can’t wait to go back!

IMG_2746.jpg

Shima Steak Tokyo
3 Chome-5-12 Nihonbashi
Chūō-ku, Tōkyō-to 103-0027, Japan

Related Posts 
Sushi Ya
Bird Land Tokyo
Tour of Top Taiwanese Restaurants Part I: Noodles, Dumplings, and Breakfast
Tour of Top Taiwanese Restaurants Part II: Taiwan Night Markets
Matsuya Kanda Soba
Afuri Ramen

Filed Under: Japan, Tokyo, World Travel

« Afuri Ramen Tokyo – Yuzu Shio Ramen in Ebisu
Tsukiji Fish Market Auction + Sushi Bun Breakfast »

Recent Posts

  • L’Atelier de Joel Robuchon Hong Kong January 18, 2021
  • Nostalgic Reminders of Home: Five Guys Hong Kong January 6, 2021
  • Elementary Hong Kong January 5, 2021
  • Happy New Year 2021! A Look Back at 2020 January 1, 2021
  • Restaurant Le George Paris December 29, 2020
  • Nice Yakiniku and Fine Wine Hong Kong December 28, 2020
  • Merry Christmas 2020 December 25, 2020
  • Sushi Shikon Autumn 2020 December 24, 2020

Latest Chinese recipes!

Comments

  1. Abraham Viktor says

    July 30, 2017 at 11:23 pm

    I can totally relate with you on how impressive this restaurant is. I love the food and Oshima san himself is very warm to foreign guests. On the sandwich, you can actually order just the sandwich to go. I ordered it once and picked it up before lunch time. They just wouldn’t allow you to eat the sandwich there since their space isn’t too big, but they allow you to order just the sandwich to go. I ended up eating my sandwich on the coffee shop right next to it!

    Reply
    • Jennifer Che says

      August 11, 2017 at 10:57 pm

      Wow really??!! I didn’t know you could just order the sandwich. I am totally going to do that next time. THANKS!

      Reply
  2. Nano B. @ Travel With Nano B. says

    August 1, 2017 at 7:40 pm

    I enjoyed Shima as well, atmosphere is so welcoming and friendly. But I agree, wagyu at Ukai-tei is much more decadent. Also, not everyone gets a sandwich to go. We got a homemade cheesecake instead! xx, nano | http://www.travelwithnanob.com

    Reply
    • Jennifer Che says

      August 11, 2017 at 10:58 pm

      Funny! I’d be so sad if I didn’t get a sandwich, although now I heard you can order just the sandwich to go! 🙂

      Reply
  3. Frances Fung says

    August 3, 2017 at 9:35 am

    Oshima-san is awesome! Such a lovely place too, so homey. 🙂

    Reply
    • Jennifer Che says

      August 11, 2017 at 10:58 pm

      Agreed!

      Reply
  4. Cheryl says

    October 13, 2017 at 4:34 am

    Your post looks great ! Im keen to try Shima as well, do you know how can I get a reservation ?

    Thank you !

    Reply
    • Jennifer Che says

      October 27, 2017 at 11:22 pm

      The easiest way is to have your hotel concierge contact the restaurant, if possible. That is how I typically do it. Otherwise, you can always try calling the restaurant yourself.
      Jen

      Reply
  5. john says

    November 20, 2017 at 8:47 am

    The steak sandwich wasn’t included in our meal (which included appetizers, mains and desserts), but we were happy to pay the 7500 yen for one sandwich.

    Reply
    • Jennifer Che says

      November 28, 2017 at 10:09 pm

      Interesting! Glad to hear you can still order one and that you were able to enjoy it. Yay!

      Reply
  6. kirsty says

    January 16, 2018 at 7:49 am

    it looks Devine !!! wanted to add this to my japan bucket list !!!

    may I know the price ? has to be in set ? or a la carte menu ?
    how about the sandwich ?

    how did you make reservation ?

    thankssss

    Reply
    • Jennifer Che says

      January 16, 2018 at 8:48 am

      Hi Kristy,
      You can probably email your hotel and ask them to make a reservation for you. I met a friend there who made the reservation for us. There is an a la carte menu and we ordered each item separately. I think the meal was around $200 USD per person.

      Reply

Trackbacks

  1. Tsukiji Fish Market Auction + Sushi Bun Breakfast - Tiny Urban Kitchen says:
    August 6, 2017 at 12:33 am

    […] super long waits. We decided we didn’t want to wait that long (after all, we had plans to eat Japanese steak at noon that day), so we went to Sushi Bun instead, also a highly recommended place that had […]

    Reply
  2. Happy New Year! A look back at 2017 - Tiny Urban Kitchen says:
    February 24, 2018 at 10:29 am

    […] be the yuzu-flavored ramen at Afuri Ramen and the the best steak sandwich I’ve ever had from Shima. The most memorable part of the trip had to be our visit to the Tsukiji Fish Market auction. […]

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Welcome to Tiny Urban Kitchen!

JenChe

Hi, my name's Jen and welcome to my cooking, eating, and travel site! I am a Boston to Hong Kong transplant, born and raised in Ohio with parents from Taiwan. Feel free to head on over to the About page if you want to learn more about me, or just explore away, maybe starting with the Recipe Index or one of the travel pages! I hope you enjoy this site!
  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Flickr
  • Google+
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • Pinterest
  • RSS
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Archives

Categories

Awards

Saveur
PFB

BostonGlobe

Most Recent Posts

L'Atelier de Joel Robuchon Hong Kong

L’Atelier de Joel Robuchon Hong Kong

Five Guys Hong  Kong

Nostalgic Reminders of Home: Five Guys Hong Kong

Elementary HK

Elementary Hong Kong

Happy New Year 2021! A Look Back at 2020

Restaurant Le George Paris

Restaurant Le George Paris

Great Yakiniku and Fine Wine

Nice Yakiniku and Fine Wine Hong Kong

Merry Christmas 2020

Sushi Shikon Autumn 2020

Foodhallen + Amsterdam Eats and Museums

4850 Restaurant Amsterdam

4850 Amsterdam – Nordic Inspired Creative Food

France!

Yam'Tcha Paris
David Toutain Paris
Divellec Paris
Breizh Cafe Paris
Clamato Paris

Kawaii! (Cute)

Norway!

Food Advertising by logo

Chinese Recipes

Okra with Chicken
Food Advertising by logo

Shop & Support us!

Spain!

Girona Spain
Amelia San Sebastian

Japan!

Bulgari Il Ristorante Luca Fantin
Sukiyaki Imafuku Tokyo
Sushi Ishimaya Tokyo
Disney Sea Tokyo
Tempura Fukamachi Tokyo
Shinjuku Gyoen

Cambridge restaurants

Privacy Policy

Copyright © 2021 · Foodie Pro Theme by Shay Bocks · Built on the Genesis Framework · Powered by WordPress