Isehiro is an 80-year-old yakitori place in Kyobashi, between Ginza and Tokyo Station. I’d heard a rumour that its lunchtime yakitori-don is the best in Tokyo, so I went to check it out.
The sign
It’s close to Tokyo Station, but the sign doesn’t really stand out. Remember the bird logo when you go looking for it.
A queue, even on a weekday
True to its reputation as the best, it’s not a cheap place. A bowl with four skewers on top is 1,500 yen, and one with five is 1,800 yen. Even so, seeing people queue from lunchtime tells you its popularity is the real deal.
Chicken broth
On its own it’s salty and a bit greasy, but with the yakitori-don it brings out hidden flavours.
The five-skewer bowl
Truly top-notch. Each piece is quite big, so you get that satisfying mouthful, and the meat releases its juices as you chew, a delight in the mouth like eating xiaolongbao. The leek on the negima was a little charred, but oh, how fresh it was.. This is the finest yakitori-don, possible only at this place. It’s pricey for lunch, but I didn’t feel for a moment that it was a waste of money. One bowl kept me full until dinner. It felt like the stamina I’d lost in the run of hot days had come back. That said, just like the unagi place I went to last time, the seasoning wasn’t strong. If you’re used to yakitori drenched in sauce, you might taste it and not be able to tell whether it’s really that good..
I was so moved by one bowl that I found myself wanting to come back for dinner. I’d like to return with someone really close, where there’s no need to stand on ceremony. For reference, drinks here are expensive (draft beer is around 840 yen), so I wouldn’t recommend using it just as a place to drink.