segen was originally founded by Masazo Tachikawa in 1830, when the 11th Generation of the Tokugawa Shogun was ruling the country. At that time, the restaurant was called Isesho (いせ庄)and was located in the area near Ginza. Later, the second generation owner Genshiro Tachikawa relocated the restaurant to its current location (Kanda) and re-named the restaurant “Isegen”(いせ源). The new restaurant name was derived by taking a part from Isesho and another part from the owner’s name Genshiro (源四郎).
The restaurant used to serve various kinds of hot pot (nabe) dishes. However, as Ankou nabe(Monkfish stew) was always the most popular choice on the menu, the fourth generation owner, Masazo Tachikawa decided to specialize and focus on Monkfish dishes. Since that time through to the present date, we serve only Monkfish dishes and Isegen is the only specialized Monkfish restaurant in Tokyo. During the summer time (May-August), when Monkfish is not available, we serve fresh water eel, loach, and other seafoods.
The restaurant was destroyed by the fire that followed the Great Kanto Earthquake in 1923 and re-built in 1930. It survived the WWII flames and still retains its old-Edo Era atmosphere as one of the oldest wooden structures still standing. Our restaurant is designated as an historic structure by Tokyo Government.
