Bincho Yakitori, London – Mmmmm

What is it about yakitori (grilled chicken) and kushiyaki (grilled meat, fish or veg) that makes you crave smelling its intoxicating uplifting smoke while it sears and sizzles away on the grill. For me, its a distinct reminder to some of my favourite experiences when travelling in Japan.. especially in Tokyo’s Yurakucho and in Omoide Yokocho, Shinjuku… but back to Bincho.

I’d been craving Yakitori for months and months… so decided that I would pass by there for lunch on a lazy Saturday afternoon… having always wanted to go there and because i’ve only heard good things.

Bincho is based on an izakaya, an informal type of japanese pub where you go to drink and eat rather than eat and drink. They use a special bincho-tan charcoal, one that heats up very high temperatures without much smoke and so creates a charred caramelised crust outside whilst keeping the meat juicy inside.. which it did. Everything is prepared, on their imported Japanese grill, as you order and served as its ready… HOT!

I love the huge shochu barrels in the corner as you walk in. I sat at the counter, with a good view of the grill, and had a look over the menu trying in vain to decide what I wanted. Minimum order is 2 skewers per item…

Negima – Chicken with Spring Onion

Bincho Yakitori - Negima - Chicken with spring onion

This was quite nice and juicy… and the spring onions were nicely caramelised.. topped off with their yakitori sauce which was gooooooood…

Uzurabacon – Quails Eggs wrapped in Bacon

Bincho Yakitori - Uzurabacon - Quails eggs wrapped in bacon

I really like quails eggs, especially when grilled like this. The bacon was nice and crispy, but it lacked salt oddly – but none the less.. it was nice.

Tomatobacon – Cherry Tomatoes wrapped in Bacon

Bincho Yakitori - Tomatobacon - Cherry tomatoes wrapped in bacon

Ooh these were nice… just let them cool down before you eat them. I found out the hard way.

Sori – Chicken Oyster

Bincho Yakitori - Sori - Chicken oyster

I’d never heard of these until I’d read Gourmet Traveller‘s and London Eater‘s blog post on Bincho Yakitori. The chef described them as essentially the chicken’s love handles, the most tender and succulent part, found on the backbone connected to the chicken’s thigh, and was he right. They were delicious… slightly crisp on the outside and so so juicy… the love handles part was funny as it conjured this odd image in my mind…

Nankotsu – Chicken Breast Bone

Bincho Yakitori - Nankotsu - Chicken breast bone

This was their special today and I have a rule where I have to eat something I’ve never eaten at least once a week. The chef said it was really popular in Japan and amongst their Japanese customers so I thought why not give it a go. Served with salt and a slice of lemon it has a really different texture… sort of a soft chewy crunch, slightly gelatinous perhaps… but worth a try. They also had chicken hearts and tails on the specials… but I didn’t fancy those this time.. may be next time after a few sakes.

Gyutan – Ox Tongue

Bincho Yakitori - Gyutan - Beef Tongue

The first time I tried this was at Jin Kichi in Hampstead and I quite liked it. Bincho however serve their’s differently and I personally prefer it. The pieces are chunkier. I asked for mine a little charred, and it came out nice and crispy on the outside and soft in the middle. I was lovely and a good way to end the meal… so much so that I almost forgot to take a picture… which is why there are only two pieces left.

Overall the Nankotsu, Gyutan, Chicken Oysters and Tomatobacon were the best.. though it was all good. The range of textures across what I’d ordered was great and made the whole thing quite interesting.. the Nankotsu especially so… however if you’re not feeling as adventurous there are plenty of other ‘normal’ things to choose from like the chicken wings, mushrooms, asparagus, pork, salmon, sea bream and even the japanese comfort food ochazuke.

I also ordered sake – the sei-shu which was served in a masu cup. A masu cup is a square wooden box made from cedar wood. Sake is often drunk from it, and the wood enhances the taste of the sake. The only problem is that, when I have sake from a masu cup.. I end up drinking too much of it because it taste’s nice… it depends on the sake you are drinking. There are some sake’s I think should not be drunk out of a masu cup…

Throughout the meal I had a good chat with the chef – really nice guy! and the waitress megumi, who was also very cool… so service all round was excellent…

can’t wait to go back…

Bincho Yakitori is located at 16 Old Compton Street, Soho, London, W1D 4TL.