Mr. Sato sacrifices his hands on the altar of all-you-can-eat shrimp

We all have foods that we love perhaps a little more than we should, but for Mr. Sato, a man whose love of food in general has taken him on many a colorful, abdomen-abusing adventure risking his health and even his sanity, the gustatory passion that tops all others is shellfish. So when he headed off to report on an all-you-can-eat shrimp restaurant for us, we feared for his life.

Here is his report:

I love seafood even more than meat, and among seafood, shellfish, and especially shrimp, are my favorite. I have a very important announcement to any other shrimpaholics out there: I found an all-you-can-eat shrimp restaurant! And it’s only 500 yen (about US$5)! This is surely shrimp heaven, a pleasure garden of sweet crustaceans! Let’s shuck those little rascals and stuff ourselves until our hands are too swollen to go on!

For once, eat your fill

This dream shrimpathon is brought to you by Rumoi Marche, a restaurant found in Tokyo’s Akihabara neighborhood. As the name indicates, they serve Western-style meals featuring seafood from the town of Rumoi in Hokkaido.

Without a doubt, their most popular item is the all-you-can-eat deal. At just 500 yen for endless raw shrimp, not just shrimpaholics, but anyone in their right mind would want to give it a try, right? We certainly did.

Dinner only, if you’re lucky

Rumoi Marche is open for lunch, but this deal is only offered from 5pm on, so don’t make the mistake of going too early. Also, the deal is dependent on the availability of shrimp, so you may want to give them a call before going to make sure they are offering it on that particular night.

Don’t get complacent

I turned up at 6pm on a Friday night, thinking I would be getting in early enough to get a head start, but the place was packed with tourists and couples chowing down and the calls for refills were already coming fast and heavy, so don’t think you’ll have an advantage just by showing up early.

Then, sublime shrimp ecstasy

Almost immediately upon ordering, a bowl appeared with mounds of shrimp piled atop ice–roughly, 10 per serving, I would guess. Shucking off the brilliantly red shell, the translucent white and pink flesh was revealed. A little dip in the soy sauce and… HEAVEN! The slight sweetness of the meat seemed to melt in my mouth. This is bliss. If you like shrimp, these crustaceans will have you fainting in an agony of deliciousness with just one bite!

Shucking and eating

From then on, I tucked in. Perhaps because they are on ice, but the shells seemed to stick to the body and I wasn’t able to take them off cleanly. The shrimp also seemed a bit fragile. If you tugged too hard on the shell, sometimes the flesh tore, but despite that, they were delicious! Once you start eating, you won’t be able to stop, and before you know it, you’ll be calling for a refill.

A happy shrimpaholic

When you do that, the staff will come take your bowl of ice and then bring it back topped up with more delicious shrimp. And they’ll just keep doing that for as long as you can handle it! Yes!

In the end, I ate about 30 shrimp, and for 500 yen, that’s an unbelievable bargain. I don’t think there is another deal anywhere that would make a shrimpaholic quite as happy! You can’t help but smile when those endless shrimp are heading your way.

But maybe not a great date spot…

I just have one more piece of advice for you today. I mentioned before that there were a lot of couples when I arrived, but I definitely wouldn’t recommend this for a date. For one thing, when you peel off the shell, a little water squirts out, so you have to be resigned to a certain amount of mess. More importantly, if I can speak bluntly, peeling shrimp makes your hands absolutely stink, and who’s going to want to hold a hand that reeks of shrimp?

Maybe it would be OK for a couple that shares a consuming passion for shrimp, though… In any event, solo or with a friend, you will want to check this place out!

Shop Info
Rumoi MarcheAkihabara Ekimae Plaza 5F
Sotokanda 1-18-18, Chiyoda-ku
Open every day 11:30-2:30, 5:00-11:00 (Fri and day before holiday until 11:30, Sun and holidays until 10:00)

▼ If you order the all-you-can-eat shrimp, you will also get a bowl for your shells, a dish from soy sauce, and a moist towelette. This moist towelette is VERY important.