Chanko-Nabe - Sumo Food in Tokyo

Chanko-Nabe, Ryogoku – Tokyo, Japan
Chanko-Nabe is a dish that is famous because sumo wrestlers eat it to gain weight. It is a ‘nabe’ dish, meaning it’s kind of like a stew that is prepared in a pot and generally consists of daikon, potato, tofu, onions, cabbage and pork. It is surprisingly tasty and a bowl of it is generally not as overwhelming as one might guess. Sumo wrestlers actually eat bowl upon bowl upon bowl of this in order to become massive…
So, I am in Tokyo with Jeff Inahara and his Dad. We are on a mission to pick up some souvenirs. Apparently Sam needs a pair of wooden ‘geita’ shoe/clogs. These are the cloppity-cloppity wooden sandels with two chunks of wood at the bottom that make a peculiar sound when walking. They are very cool in an anime-samurai kinda way. Thus Sam wants them. Sam has big feet. In Japan this is a problem. We first ask about these extra large ‘geita’ in what we figured was an appropriate store. The man at the store shook his head and explained that a size 10 was, well, “difficult.” Very Japanese of him. Not “impossible.” Just “Difficult.” This means it is going to be just North of Impossible. After living in Japan for over a decade I have heard the expression “Difficult” many times and can assure you the answer almost always means there is really no way in hell. I try to explain the meaning of “no” to Jeff. Jeff is American. He does not know the meaning of the word “no.” We press further. We are told “possibly” out in Ryogoku where the sumo stables are… Makes sense. Sumo wrestlers are huge dudes and can’t possible have small hands and feet… Later that day we also try Mitsukoshi Department Stores flagship store in Nihonbashi close to the Ginza shopping district. It is unquestionable one of the very best department stores in the world. Foreigners shop there. There most be large shoes. Wrong. They are very polite, but we can tell that we may as well be asking them if there are elves on the roof dancing with unicorns. They are polite because we are clearly nuts. There are no size 10 geita. But? Well, possibly out in Ryokoku. How far is it? About an hour away. Goodness. We thank them and wander off.

From Roppongi we take the Oedo subway line all the way out to Ryogoku. It’s a long way. One we get there I figured there would be all kinds of cute stores selling enormous shoes and comically sized yukata. Instead there is a long and busy road with traffic and little else to see. We go to the koban (police box) to ask a police man about shoes. He tells us there is a store that sells clothing for sumo wrestlers, but ‘geita?’ “Difficult.” Oh, no. Here we are again with "difficult." I thank him and we all set off. (it was, for the record in the complete opposite direction from where we had already wandered) Finally, I see the store. Inside there are indeed comically sized yukata and one pair of overalls that could quite effortlessly fit four of me inside. We have a good laugh at these overalls. Three thin men all laughing at overalls. The proprietor can tell we are not real customers. We are gawkers. She asks if she can help us. I ask about ‘geita.’ No. She does not have them. Incredible. Do giant dudes in truck sized overalls stroll around barefoot in Tokyo? She points us to a tiny traditional shoe place down the road. We go there. Yes, there are huge slippers and sandels and ‘geita.’ Nice! The little old man working there is surrounded by wood carving tools and helps us select an appropriate pair of wooden geita carved from single chunks of wood. Now, we are clearly close to the sumo holy land. I ask him about ‘chanko-nabe.’ He smiles. He tells me there are many places. But? There is only one that he likes. He gives us directions.
We wander off and eventually find the sumo-zone. There is a giant auditorium where the actual matches take place. There are chanko-nabe places everywhere. We are hungry. We are really hungry. It’s a good thing we find the place. I ask the guy, “You have chanko-nabe, the good chanko nabe?” I am told he does. “The best?” Absolutely. “The best in the World?” Yes!
That was one of the best meals we had on our trip. Wow. If you are going to Tokyo you really need to have chanko-nabe. Oh, and thanks to Sam and his huge feet. We would never have come all the way out here if he had small feet..