The taste of yakitori is decided almost entirely by the chicken
Yakitori is a simple dish.
You put it on a skewer, season it with salt or tare, and put it over fire. Because there are so few steps, the quality of the ingredient goes straight into the flavour.
At YAKITORI DINER THE HICKORY BIRD Umeda, we use Banshu Akadori, a branded free-range chicken raised in Banshu, Hyogo.
Why we chose Banshu Akadori
Banshu Akadori has a firm bite and a flavour that opens up the longer you chew.
Its flesh is tighter than that of an ordinary broiler, so even over the fierce heat of charcoal it does not dry out – the juiciness stays.
Skewers such as Banshu Akadori Negima (salt) and Banshu Akadori Tsunagi are there so you can taste the chicken itself, without anything in the way.
Rare cuts: only a little from each bird
Working with a whole bird lets us serve cuts you will not always find.
Furisode from around the shoulder, sorireth taken from the hollow above the thigh, and the richly marbled toritoro. Each bird yields only a small amount of any of them.
Seseri, the neck meat (truffle salt / tare), is popular too – the truffle salt lifts the flavour of the Banshu Akadori.
What charcoal gives you: aroma and texture
Every skewer here is grilled over charcoal.
Charcoal cooks through quickly with infrared heat, so the surface takes on a toasted aroma while the inside keeps its moisture. That aroma is something a gas flame cannot give you.
We change the grilling for each cut: tenderloin is taken off before it dries, while skin and gizzard are given more time. Every skewer gets the heat that suits it.
Salt, tare, BBQ sauce: three ways to taste it
There are broadly three seasonings: salt, for the ingredient itself; a sweet-savoury tare; and a BBQ sauce in the spirit of an American diner.
Some cuts let you choose between two, such as kokoro (heart – salt / BBQ sauce) and kimo (liver – salt / BBQ sauce). Order both and you will understand how much charcoal grilling has to offer.
The full list of skewers is on our menu page.
Charcoal-grilled free-range chicken, in Umeda / Nakazakicho
Three minutes on foot from Nakazakicho Station on the Osaka Metro Tanimachi Line, and about ten minutes from JR Osaka Station, down a back street.
We would be glad if you came to try yakitori where the ingredient and the fire are both taken seriously.
Restaurant information and reservations
YAKITORI DINER THE HICKORY BIRD Umeda
Address: 1-8 Banzaicho, Kita-ku, Osaka, EH-UMEDA08 Room 102
Access: 3 min walk from Nakazakicho Stn (Osaka Metro Tanimachi Line) / 10 min from JR Osaka Stn
Open: 17:30-23:00 (L.O. 22:30)
Closed: Sundays
Reservations: 070-8945-5892
