Yakitori is comfort food. No matter how high-end or low-rent the location, it's all about the simple pleasures of chewing on grilled chicken and kicking back with a drink or a few. That's the tried-and-true formula at Toriki.
This unpretentious little place in suburban Hatanodai, Shinagawa Ward, boasts all the hallmarks of an old-school yakitoriya: a red paper lantern by the entrance; basic metal-and-glass sliding doors that open directly onto the compact dining room; and tables with squat stools where you rub shoulders and share drinks with your neighbors, whether or not you arrived with them.
And yet Toriki is far from typical. It is bright and clean, and the air is free of cooking fumes. It also draws a wide demographic, from student groups to salarymen dining solo, shopkeepers and local families with children. The most crucial difference, though, is the chicken itself.
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