Torisho Sai, Kyoto

Michelin recommended, but I believe needs a star.

If you enjoy Yakitori, you will love Torisho Sai. The vibe is modern, warm and cozy, with a big charcoal grill as a centerpiece of the restaurant. There are 10 seats at the counter with another table for 4-6 people. The chefs are friendly and conversational (in English) and proud to speak about each dish.

The food itself ranges from simply cooked pieces of chicken, to more inventive approaches like wings that were deep fried then smoked, to chicken jerky. But my favorite dish was one of the closing dishes – a ramen soup made with roasted chicken bones. The deep flavor of the broth was on another level.

You will not go hungry here with too many courses on their omakase to count and the option add additional skewers at the end. Simply the best Yakitori experience I’ve had, and possibly the best meal of my trip.