Toriyasu 鳥やす
Add: 890 Changning Lu, near Huichuan Lu / 長寧路890號，近匯川路*
Tel: 5241 1677
Hours: [lunch] 11am-3pm [dinner] 6pm-2am
Price: 100 RMB/person
Visit: Oct 2010
Generally recognized as the best Japanese yakitori restaurant in Shanghai. Once you manage to find and enter the door to this discrete izakaya, you’ll see the menu on paper slips all around the walls, a crowd of chefs behind the grill, and waitresses rushing here and there to deliver yakitori and dishes like ramen, cold soba noodles, onigiri, ochazuke, etc., etc., etc. Noisy, squashed tables, and always packed. Reservations highly recommended.
*Second location in Gubei: 1/F, Peace Plaza, 20 Shuicheng Lu, near Hongqiao Lu / 水城路20号1楼 和平广场， 近虹桥路 (6295 8286)
Here’s a list of things we went through (plus sake and ice-cold beer, of course): chicken skin (6 RMB/skewer) and king oyster mushroom wrapped with pork (12 RMB/skewer).
Grilled mackerel (25 RMB) and salad (25 RMB).
Chicken heart (6 RMB/skewer).
Chicken liver (6 RMB/skewer).
CEO ramen (35 RMB).
Mentaiko stuffed chicken wings (28 RMB/2 pcs).
Gyoza (pan-fried dumplings, 15 RMB).
Seaweed ochazuke (rice with soup, 15 RMB) ad soba (28 RMB).
Grilled onigiri (20 RMB/2 pcs).
Deep fried chicken cartilage (15 RMB).
Overall, the food at Toriyasu wasn’t bad. I’d like to think that there are better yakitori restaurants in Shanghai, but before I find that alternative, I will come to Toriyasu whenever cravings for Japanese-style grilled chicken arise. Here are some items that I will order again: mentaiko stuffed chicken wings (definitely my favorite of the night), chicken heart, liver, skin, grilled mackerel, CEO ramen, ochazuke, and deep-fried chicken cartilage.
Atmosphere was lively/noisy and service was satisfactory. Let’s end with a dramatic snapshot of the waitress stopping me from taking a picture…