Minoya is a Tokyo landmark. For over 110 years, this venerable establishment has been serving sakura nabe, a sukiyaki-type dish but made with horsemeat, to Morishita locals and connoisseurs. Nowadays, though, most Japanese are not familiar with the taste of sakura niku. Pork, beef, and chicken are much more popular. Horseflesh, however, is truly delicious.

The sakura moniker comes from the bright red color of the flesh, which has a fine, close texture and a faint underlying sweetness. One of the best ways to discover this for yourself is with a side order of niku sashi (¥1,800), thin slices of horsemeat sashimi from the senaka, or lower back of the beast, served with a dab of freshly grated ginger and a rich shoyu dipping sauce. Another popular side dish is the pale pink abura sashi (¥1,800), slices of sashimi from the back of the neck.

The main attraction at Minoya is the sakura nabe (¥1,800), a dish you cook yourself at the low table. You will receive a shallow iron pot containing a rich warishita broth made of dashi, shoyu and mirin (rice wine). You’ll also get a plate carefully arranged with a mound of shirataki (thin noodles made from konnyaku), a few slices of negi (welsh onion), a couple slices of fu (wheat gluten dumplings), and some morsels of luscious fat which will later melt into the sauce. Draped over all this are thin slices of bright red momo niku, from the thigh, moistened with a spoonful of sweet brown miso.

Inexpensive additions to your one-pot meal are the side dishes (each ¥300) of yakitofu, tofu branded with dark grill marks, and enoki mushrooms. Bottled beer, Asahi Super Dry, (¥600) or sake (¥400 per cup) or a highball of Super Nikka (¥700) seem to be the tipples of choice—although half-bottles of wine are also available (¥1,200).