Tsujiya yakitori near Kyoto Station. I enjoyed sitting at the counter watching the skewers and yaki onigiri being grilled over charcoal. The tsukune ground chicken with cartilage was served with an egg yolk. A few other interesting dishes including potesara, potato salad, tōfu with shaved kombu, and a simmered tomato with a cheese sauce. Staff…
Tag: yakitori
Kyobashi Isehiro Yakitori
Not far from Tokyo Station is one of my go-to yakitori shops. Isehiro has been grilling chicken skewers for over one hundred years (est. 1921). The tsukune chicken balls, my favorite in the city, have a meaty texture. Isehiro calls these dango on their menu. When I worked at Takashimaya depachika down the street I…
Table-worthy Canned Goods
We keep a big variety of canned foods in the pantry, in case of an earthquake, and because Japan offers great options. Canned foods in Japan offer a wide variety of seafood and meats, many worth putting on the table with a glass of wine or saké. Kokubu is a company that offers a colorful…
Nakameguro Sumi-Grilled Yakitori
Maru, just a few minutes’ from Nakameguro station, is a great lunch spot for sumi (charcoal) grilled yakitori. The chicken, Amakusa Daiou, from Kumamoto, is called the king of chicken, and is known for it’s rich in texture and flavor. The oyako-don (900 JPY), on the left above is a popular dish of chicken and eggs…
Family-friendly Yakitoriya
Once in a while we adults want to have yakitori, grilled chicken skewers, but many yakitori-ya are smoky joints that are not kid-friendly. Iseya in Kichijōji near Inokashira Kōen Park is both family-friendly and a good value. It is also perfect for groups as it is a large space. The only challenge is that it is wildly popular. On…
Abe-chan Yakitori in Azabu-Juban あべちゃん麻布十番店
On the shotengai street of Azabu-Juban it is hard to miss the smell of yakitori, grilled chicken skewers, coming out from Abe-chan. The shop opens at 3 p.m. and it is not unusual to see older diners come in before the evening rush. Abe-chan is a local yakitori-ya that is a good value and fun. It’s not competing with high-end shops…
Tsukiji Market Toritoh Bunten 鳥藤分店
Tsukiji Market Toritoh Bunten is in the Outer Market (Jōgai) and has not moved to Toyosu Market. While many people coming to Tsukiji Market are dining on raw fish for breakfast I usually beeline it to the non-sushi and donburi restaurants as I get enough of it at home. Toritoh is a chicken retail shop…
Tsukiji Market Cheap Eats – Toritoh Chicken
While many come to Tsukiji Market for sushi, I prefer to have warm dishes first thing in the morning. There is a wide variety of restaurants offering up more than just raw fish. Toritoh is both a restaurant and a retail shop. The retail shop in the outer market that sells both raw and cooked…
Tokyo Cheap Eats
Tokyo is a great city for eating well on a budget. The first thing to look for is restaurants that specialize in a dish, like ramen, tonkatsu, or soba. Also, remember the word “teishoku” which is like the daily special or set meal. It is often includes rice, miso soup, pickles, a main dish and…
Shotengai Shopping Arcades – Walking Food Tours of Tokyo
I love the shotengai, Japanese shopping arcades. Filled with ma and pa shops selling tofu, fresh produce, rice, pickles, miso, and other basics of the Japanese pantry. This article recently appeared in Metropolis magazine and features five of my favorite shotengai in Tokyo. http://metropolis.co.jp/dining/local-flavors/street-eats/ (text follows) While the one-stop food shopping at Tokyo’s depachika is an amazing…
Ukai Toriyama in Takao
On the outskirts of Tokyo in the shadows of Mount Takao (Takao-san) is Toriyama. Part of the famous Ukai chain of restaurants, is a garden filled with private rooms for a meal based on grilled chicken kaiseki. This is a dining experience that is worth the trip out to Hachioji, about an hour from Tokyo…
Food Sake Tokyo 