If you’re a grazer and fancy eating small portions of food
while drinking, Kintori Yakitori is an idyllic dining experience. Think of the
restaurant as the Bar Raval of the Japanese scene – order a few items (most
dishes are sold in single units), chat whilst enjoying a drink, then order some
more. Repeat until you’re full and satisfied.
As Kintori’s name would imply, yakitori is what their known for – in the strictest sense, skewered
grilled chicken products. In reality, the restaurant’s menu encompasses many
other proteins and vegetarian ingredients as well.
The gyu-tongue kushi
($3.80) was fantastic, a thin slice of flavorful tender beef with a slight
springy bite. The dish offers such a rich flavour in a delicate way.
We tried two meat and onion options. The grilled spring
onions interlaced with the chicken thigh in the negima ($1.80) provides a slightly sweet and fresh contrast. While
the scallion sauce covering the beef ($3.20; negi shio gyu) was much stronger – if you enjoy the ginger and
onion oil that accompanies Chinese boiled chicken, this is very similar.
The chicken wing ($1.80; tebasaki)
was delicious, especially in the winter when the craving for BBQ starts to
creep in. Of all the meats, this had the most prominent hint of smokiness, the
end product of cooking the yakitori
over Binchotan charcoal that Kintori imports from Japan.
Although chicken meatballs ($1.80; tsukune) sound rather plain, the meat mixture was nicely seasoned
and when combined with the caramelized glaze quite tasty.
Kintori provided me with my first experience with numerous
chicken innards ($1.80 each). Despite the scary veiny looking exterior, the
chicken heart (hatsu) was the best of
the bunch and reminded me of a tougher gamier squab.
The chicken gizzard (zuri)
is what I like to think of as the bubble gum of the offal world; it’s good if
you can stand the bouncy texture. Despite having a delicious sweet and salty tare glaze on top, I regrettably couldn’t
stomach the chicken liver (reba) – it’s
quick change in texture becoming almost powdery and foamy is so different from
the whipped mousse normally eaten.
At times, Kintori also offers kushikatsu or skewered deep fried delights on a specials menu. The quail eggs ($2; uzura kushi age) and the bacon wrapped asparagus ($2.50) are
heavier than the grilled options but has such a satisfying crunch from the
panko crust. They went particularly well with beer, the malty bitterness of the
Asahi black ($8) a nice combination with the grease.
An order of the house made pickles ($3.80; oshinko moriwase) is a good idea, the
lightly marinated burdock root, cucumbers and napa cabbage works to clean the
palette. If you can stand the saltiness, the nikumiso kyabetsu ($3.80) could also work, the cabbage “salad”
accompanied with a strong miso pork sauce for dipping.
Should you need something more substantial, Kintori also
offers noodle dishes including the ramen from Kinton downstairs. To keep with
the grazing theme, we had the yakionigiri
($3), a grilled sticky rice ball with a smidge of preserved plum in the center providing
a salty sour kick. I thoroughly enjoyed the crunchy smoky exterior, which
reminded me of the crust that forms at the bottom of hot pot rice.
For a savoury end, the delicate dashi maki ($5.30 for 6 pieces) is nice, the egg’s texture light
and moist. Meanwhile, if it’s sweetness you crave, the nouji cha crème brulee ($5) was also enjoyable.
The roasted green tea taste was quite pronounced … I could see the matcha remnants
on the bottom of the ramekin.
With all the options, it may be difficult to decide what to
order. Kintori has an omakase ($17.80) menu where they’ll serve you a selection
of what’s fresh and delicious. Considering Chef Hiroki Takai has been
specializing in yakitori since he was
18, I’d say the restaurant knows a thing or two about what to try.
Overall mark - 8 out of 10
How To Find Them
Location: Toronto, Canada
Address: 668 Bloor Street West, 2nd floor
Address: 668 Bloor Street West, 2nd floor
Website: http://www.kintoriyakitori.com/
Follow me on twitter to chat, be notified about new posts and more - https://twitter.com/GastroWorldBlog
____________________________
Gastro World's Grading System
- Anything under 5 - I really disliked and will never go back
- 6 - decent restaurant but I likely won't return
- 7 - decent restaurant and I will likely return
- 8 - great restaurant that I'd be happy to recommend
- 9 - fantastic restaurant that I would love to visit regularly and highly recommend
- 10 - absolute perfection!
Is That It? I Want More!
Other Gastro World posts similar to this:
- My first dining experience at Kintori Yakitori
- Kushinobo
