Yakitori Daikichi, Kyoto, Japan

It was my last evening in Kyoto and I wanted to finish off 4 great days with a good meal. As I had had curry for lunch I decided to try to find a Yakatori restaurant that wasn’t too far from my hotel.

The usual review sites were consulted and it turned out there was a reasonable restaurant about 150m away, just across the road.

I crossed the road around 5:15pm, found the shop and proceeded in.

Yakitori Daikichi is quite small, less than a dozen seats all overlooking the grill. I took a seat at one end of the counter.

I was the first person in, and the staff were still prepping but I soon had an English menu and had ordered a Japanese Lager.

Over the next hour or so I ordered a good selection of pork, chicken and vegetable yakitori and a couple more beers. I enjoyed being able to watch my dinner being cooked in front of me, and served seconds after being taken off the flames.

As time progressed the number of people coming in increased. By the time I finished and left around 6:30 all the seats were taken and people were queuing up. This is obviously a good place!

The prices were quite reasonable, the food tasty, and ordering easy for someone who doesn’t speak Japanese. But get there early or face a wait!