When it comes to feng shui, Xie Wang Fu occupies a significant piece of real estate. It looks out directly at the imposing stone facade of the venerable Bank of Japan building in Nihonbashi. A bastion of wealth, prestige and enduring solidity, there’s no other location in Tokyo to rival it.
As the first overseas offshoot of Shanghai’s best-known specialist crab restaurant — Cheng Long Hang, with five branches to its name, plus a Michelin star — nothing was left to chance. To make it extra auspicious, the doors officially opened on Dec. 12 at precisely 12:12 p.m.
In Shanghai cuisine, freshwater Chinese mitten crabs are the supreme delicacy of autumn-winter, valued not so much for their pale flesh as for the rich tomalley and roe prised from under the carapace. But since the season is limited — October through January — they are normally served in restaurants as part of a wider menu.