Uomasa steams the unagi before grilling it, while Kabuto does not steam it before grilling. So I think it's personal preference as to which style is more delicious.

I think the quality of the Unagi one experienced during the visit might just be the most important factor, especially for people who live overseas and only get to eat Unagi once in a while. Besides that, like Saito San said, personal taste differs.

For me, the best experience was a wild Unagi shiroyaki dish I had a couple of years ago st uomasa. I have been to kabuto only once, and while it was a much more fun experience, I didn’t get to try the wild Unagi. During my last visit to uomasa i heard people from overseas sitting next to my table talking about their favorite Unagi place being Obana, whose Unagi I personally found to be way too strong and lack of layers for my palate. But I can see why some people prefer it.

@guest In Kanto, Uomasa is my most favorite Unagi restaurant. In Japan, Uomasa is in my top 5.

@guest
Then I will go to Uomasa next time to have a look.
KABUTO has been robbed three times and can’t get it. I feel sad.

What are the differences between the 12000, 15000 and 30000 yen natural eel options?

The size

@guest They will require you to indicate your order of preferences 0f Unagi from 1 to 5 ether is it wild caught Unagi, bando taro deluxe, bando taro Superior etc etc. There is already tare sauce on Unagi though it looks quite plain. Can't comment on the best way to ordering as the bando taro Unaju was really luscious and fatty enough on a personal level.

The wild caught eel has a firm meatiness with distinct flavors, so it depends on personal preference.
Personally, I recommend you order the shiroyaki with wild caught eel, and the unaju can be ordered with Bandotaro.

Hi, thank you both for your replies!

saito-san, for the unaju whether it's with wild caught eel or bandotaro, it will come with sauce anyway right? as I mentioned most photos I've seen of unaju at this place (including yours) seem like they have sauce on it. but a few seem to have no sauce on it at all and looks almost like shirayaki on rice. thank you again

@guest They definitely have tare on it. I happen to have a close up photo of the Unaju for your reference.

@D Am not Saito-san, but would like to share what I know. Actually the best season for Unagi is during winter period and Its fattest when it gets cold. Jan would be a decent month for Unagi and legend says the idea of Unagi being a summer food was conceptualised by gennai hiraga to boost sales.

If you ask kabuto chef, he actually think unagi best season is in the fall and not summer and each season has it own distinct flavor but he source his unagi from different prefecture depending on season just like maguro, so I don't think there is a poor time to eat Unagi but maybe different story for Uomasa since he sourced it from one place but they do offer wild unagi

Uomasa's signature dish “bandotaro” uses eels raised in a farm that resembles their natural habitat, so the quality is stable all year round.
Yes, Many people think that natural eels are at their best in summer, but that is not true. In fact, their best season is from October to December, when they store ample nutrients in their body to survive winter.

Thanks for the feedbacks. Always learn something new here.

@D I actually ate the bandotaro at uomasa during summer period(early Aug) and it was pretty fatty and delicious. Am sure it will be equally good during Jan. Saw your other post on solo dining places. Uomasa is pretty good for solo dining as once you order, they will just leave you there to slowly enjoy your luscious unagi. Saw a few other solo diners there when I dined there, though no fantastic ambience.

Can somebody share what's the difference between the deluxe and superior unaju? Thanks!