MustEatList

Where to eat, one dish at a time. Curated places, community votes.

Theme Want to try

The best Yakitori in Tokyo

Also spelt yaki tori, kushiyaki, negima and tsukune. A curated shortlist, shaped by your votes.

Editorial picks

Selected from published food guides and local reporting. How the list works

  1. Number 1.Torishiki

    Meguro Nakameguro, Ebisu and Meguro

    Open
    5pm to 10pm, Wednesday to Saturday only
    Where
    2-14-12 Kamiosaki, Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo 141-0021 (alley between the Takagi pharmacy building and the FamilyMart, 2 min from Meguro Station east exit)

    Ikegawa grills Date chicken from Fukushima; ask for the liver, which comes buttery rather than grainy. Twelve seats, four nights a week, and bookings run about two months out, so ring on the first service day of the month.

    What to orderChicken liver, then momo

    0 votes

  2. Number 2.Bird Land (Ginza)

    Ginza Ginza, Yurakucho and Shimbashi

    Open
    5pm to 10pm, Saturday to 9.30pm, shut Sun and Mon
    Where
    B1F Tsukamoto Sozan Building, 4-2-15 Ginza, Chuo-ku, Tokyo 104-0061 (Ginza Station exit C6, by the Sukiyabashi crossing)

    The counter that brought course dining to yakitori. Order the liver pate, then the oyakodon at the end. It sits in a basement by the Sukiyabashi crossing, takes its own bookings, and shuts Sundays and Mondays.

    What to orderChicken liver pate, then the oyakodon to finish

    0 votes

  3. Number 3.Kyobashi Isehiro Honten

    Kyobashi Ginza, Yurakucho and Shimbashi

    Open
    Lunch 11.30am to 2pm, dinner 5pm to 9pm, shut Sundays
    Where
    1-4-9 Kyobashi, Chuo-ku, Tokyo 104-0031 (3 min from Kyobashi Station Meidi-ya exit, 5 min from Tokyo Station Yaesu south)

    Grilling since 1921, five minutes from Tokyo Station. Have the dango, their tsukune, or come at lunch for three skewers over rice. The lunch bowl only starts after one o'clock, and Sundays are closed.

    What to orderDango, the house tsukune

    0 votes

  4. Shirokane Toritama Honkan

    Shirokane Nakameguro, Ebisu and Meguro

    Open
    5pm to 11.30pm, shut Tuesdays
    Where
    6-22-19 Shirokane, Minato-ku, Tokyo 108-0072 (under the expressway, 10 min from Hiroo Station, 15 min from Ebisu east exit)

    Under the highway in Shirokane, with thirty to forty cuts chalked on an anatomical chart. Get the chochin, the egg still on its tube. Skip the kidneys, and note Tuesdays are dark.

    What to orderChochin, the unfertilised egg on the tube

    0 votes

  5. Makitori Shinkobe (Akasaka)

    Akasaka-mitsuke Roppongi, Azabu and Akasaka

    Open
    Two sittings, 5.30pm and 8.30pm, closings vary
    Where
    1F No.R Akasaka-mitsuke, 3-9-2 Akasaka, Minato-ku, Tokyo 107-0052 (2 min from Akasaka-mitsuke Station exit 10, building behind the car park)

    Chicken over a wood fire, ending with soboro rice smoked in a clay pot. Order the momo. Booking runs through Omakase only, one visit a month, cards not cash, and you ring an intercom by a fire panel.

    What to orderMomo, then clay-pot soboro rice

    0 votes

  6. Toriki

    Kinshicho Asakusa and Ueno

    Open
    5.30pm to midnight, Saturday from 5pm, shut Sundays
    Where
    1F Kosaka Building, 1-8-13 Kinshi, Sumida-ku, Tokyo 130-0013 (3 min from Kinshicho Station north exit)

    A quiet residential corner three minutes from Kinshicho, where Akadori Satsuma chicken goes over binchotan. Take the tori kaiseki omakase rather than ordering singly. Eighteen counter seats, no Sundays or public holidays.

    What to orderThe tori kaiseki omakase course

    0 votes

  7. Yakitori Imai

    Jingumae, near Gaienmae Shibuya and Harajuku

    Open
    5.30pm to 10.30pm, shut Saturday and Sunday
    Where
    1F Rosa Bianca, 3-42-11 Jingumae, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo 150-0001 (6 min from Gaienmae Station exit 3)

    Takashi Imai's set menu opens with chicken liver pate on baguette before six skewers. Thirteen seats, closed all weekend, and walk-ins are only taken until nine, so phone ahead rather than turning up.

    What to orderThe set menu, liver pate first

    0 votes

  8. Yakitori Omino

    Oshiage Asakusa and Ueno

    Open
    4.30pm to 10.30pm, shut Sundays, other days vary
    Where
    1F Seiryu Building, 1-38-4 Oshiage, Sumida-ku, Tokyo 131-0045 (3 min from Oshiage Station exit B3 or A1)

    Fourteen seats wrapped round the grill, three minutes from Oshiage. The whole chicken heart with ginger is the one to ask for. Salt, not sauce, is the house habit. Sundays are shut and other closures shift monthly.

    What to orderWhole chicken heart with ginger

    0 votes

  9. Tokoshima

    Sangenjaya Shimokitazawa, Setagaya and Kichijoji

    Open
    5pm to 10.30pm, shut Sundays and the first Monday
    Where
    Luna Park Sangenjaya 105, 2-8-10 Sangenjaya, Setagaya-ku, Tokyo 154-0024 (3 min from Nishi-Taishido Station)

    Twenty parts of the bird, salt and pepper with a splash of tare, at a ten-seat counter in Sangenjaya. Ovaries if you are curious. Last entry is nine, and it closes Sundays and the first Monday.

    What to orderThe run of twenty parts, ovaries included

    0 votes

  10. Yakitori Honda

    Shintomicho Tsukiji, Tsukishima and Toyosu

    Open
    6pm to 10.30pm, booking only, shut Sundays
    Where
    1F S.U Building, 3-5-1 Minato, Chuo-ku, Tokyo 104-0043 (4 min from Shintomicho Station exit 7, 7 min from Tsukiji Station exit 3)

    Nine seats near Shintomicho, Hinai jidori through a kappo-style course with proper wine pairings. Honda dresses skewers with condensed soy and herb vinegar. Doors open whenever the first booking is, so you cannot walk in.

    What to orderThe Hinai jidori course with the wine pairing

    0 votes

  11. Asagaya Bird Land

    Asagaya Shimokitazawa, Setagaya and Kichijoji

    Open
    5pm to 10.30pm, shut Sunday and Monday
    Where
    3-37-9 Asagayaminami, Suginami-ku, Tokyo 166-0004 (short walk from Asagaya Station south side)

    Jazz, a small counter round the grill, and Okukuji shamo grilled by a Bird Land alumnus. Ask for the oyster cut. Set menus only, wine rather than beer, and it shuts Sunday and Monday.

    What to orderThe oyster cut, within the prix fixe

    0 votes

  12. Jimbocho Gokita

    Jimbocho, Nishi-Kanda Tokyo Station, Nihonbashi and Kanda

    Open
    5.30pm to 11pm, Sunday to 10pm, shut Mondays
    Where
    2-4-9 Nishikanda, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 101-0065 (short walk from Jimbocho Station)

    French sauces stand in for tare here, red wine or Madeira matched to each skewer, after hors d'oeuvres. Come for the course, not a quick plate. Mondays are closed and the room is small, so book early.

    What to orderThe course, Madeira-sauced skewers

    0 votes

  13. 124. KAGURAZAKA

    Kagurazaka Shinjuku

    Open
    Evenings, last entry 9pm, closing days vary
    Where
    3F Fill Park Kagurazaka Wakamiya, 12-4 Wakamiyacho, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo 162-0827 (5 min from Iidabashi Station, 6 min from Ushigome-Kagurazaka)

    Third floor off a Wakamiyacho side street, twelve seats, omakase that opens on chicken heart and finishes with ramen in chicken broth. Start times move with the bookings and closing days are irregular, so confirm.

    What to orderThe omakase, ending in chicken-broth ramen

    0 votes

  14. Soten Minamiguchi (Otsuka)

    Otsuka Ikebukuro and Takadanobaba

    Open
    5.30pm to 11pm or until sold out, shut Sat and Sun
    Where
    1F Saga-Kato Building, 3-39-13 Minami-Otsuka, Toshima-ku, Tokyo 170-0005 (3 min from JR Otsuka Station south exit)

    Three minutes from Otsuka south exit, Nagoya Cochin and guinea fowl over binchotan, with fourteen counter stools and tables behind. Order the Nagoya Cochin momo. They sell out and close early, and weekends are dark.

    What to orderNagoya Cochin momo, plus guinea fowl

    0 votes

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