Archive for April 4th, 2008

Jidori-Ya Kensou Yakatori – Bangkok, Thailand

Friday, April 4th, 2008

Best Yakatori in Bangkok

10/12-13,
Soi Sukhumvit 26, Sukhumvit Road,
Klongton Klongtoey,
Bangkok 10110
Tel. 02-661-3457
email: kenzobkk@hotmail.com
Open 5:30pm – 1:00am
Specialty: Yakatori (chicken skewers)
Prices: Moderate

Jidori-Ya KensouI can easily say that this is my favorite Japanese restaurant in Bangkok. It has the feel, flavor and lighting that reminds me of Japan. It got off to a rough start, due to the Thai cooking staff’s inexperience with rotating the skewers. They had to get the timing right, as even 15 seconds without rotating the skewer can scorch it and if the charcoal is not hot enough, the skewers will not be evenly browned and will be dry instead of juicy inside. Within a short time the owner trained them “on the job” and now things are working perfectly. That is why never rush in too soon to a newly opened restaurant, give it a month or more to find its pace.

I regularly order Ginko nuts, acclaimed to be good to prevent memory loss, (I can certainly use as much protection against that as I can find) pumpkin salad, an extraordinarily innovative dish that I have not seen anywhere else in the world, lightly cooked Japanese pumpkin, tossed with ground chicken, thinly-sliced Gobo root (burdock) deep fried and sprinkled on top of lettuce dressed with a sweet-sour vinaigrette. Natto, (fermented beans) mixed with fresh avocado and soy sauce and placed on top of a shiso leaf that is seated on top of a piece of fried tofu, which resembles a piece of toast. Another new creation you do not find elsewhere!

Ginko NutsAt this point you can order a variety of chicken skewers, which encompass every part of the chicken. I really enjoy the chicken meat ball (pictured in More Photos below) and also chicken skewer with Shiso leaf.
My daughter, really enjoys the caramel pudding to finish things off.

On the drinks side, they have a large selection of Sho-Chu and Sake that may be ordered by the glass or bottle. The sake by the glass is presented in an attractive pouring bowl and accompanied by sake cups. The beer on draught is very cold, as Japanese prefer it, and Asahi and Heineken are on offer. A good selection of wine is also available.