The type of eel Tamai serves is anago (a type of conger or sea eel), rather than the more usual unagi (freshwater eel). In the old days, anago was more of a bit-part fish, commonly batter-fried at tempura restaurants or lightly simmered and served ...

He keeps a bucket of live eels under his kitchen floorboards. When an order comes in, he fishes one out, fillets and skewers it, then grills it slowly over charcoal. After steaming the fillets for five minutes or so, he dips them into his ...