In January of 2019, I traveled to the country of Japan and spent twelve amazing days touring its sites and food hotspots, including my first stop, Tokyo! I’ve loved Japanese food, especially sushi, since I was eight years old, so being able to get authentic Japanese cuisine in the culinary capital of the world was an incredible experience I will never forget!
My first full day in Tokyo continued when I linked up with my friend Brian from Tokyo by Food and Ramen Adventures for an outstanding nighttime ramen and yakitori tour that had me in Japanese food bliss! Come with me as I continue exploring the culinary world of Tokyo, Japan!
At our first stop, we placed our orders at the ticket machine to start. Brian suggests going with the option in the upper left corner if you don’t read Japanese. I couldn’t wait to have my fourth bowl of ramen of the day!
We ordered a creamy ramen with everything on top: duck breast, pork chashu, chicken chashu, bamboo, an egg, and more. The fantastic duck flavor hit me right away and I loved the creaminess of the broth. The thickness of the noodles was just perfect and the yolk in the egg was amazing! The chickens that produce the eggs are given a certain kind of feed that gives the yolk its incredible look and taste. I love how every ramen I’d had so far was completely different from the others. This one reminded me of a creamy Italian pasta, and you can tell how fresh the ingredients are.
Next, we took a 25-minute Metro ride to a yakitori, or skewered and grilled meat, place in the Hamadayama area, which had a lot of low-rise buildings and retail space. It was almost like a ghost town!
This place sells yakitori as well as a selection of Japanese spirits. They gave us towels to clean our hands. We started with some Japanese sours, which wasn’t strong, but was still very nice. We followed that with some ray jerky, which was like a fish jerky containing mirin and soy sauce. It was delicious, especially with the Japanese mayo it was served with!
Next, we had some shishamo, which is a type of fish from the waters off Hokkaido, which tasted like a nice, freshwater fish. They were full of eggs, which gave them an unbelievable flavor. They were the best salty, dried fish I’ve ever had!
Our next dish was a vegetable that was topped with bonito flakes, wasabi, and soy sauce. It reminded me of a radish, but was actually a type of Japanese yam. The texture reminded me of a carrot!
Then, we moved on to the yakitori! We got six different kinds and started with the most traditional, chicken thigh with green onions. It was tender and fatty and bursting with flavor, and the soy paste that came with it was incredible. After that, we went with a Japanese cheese that’s coated in herbs and wrapped with pork belly. It was sensational!
Next were the bacon-wrapped cherry tomatoes, which exploded in my mouth! Then I went with some of the sweet potato moonshine, followed by the asparagus wrapped with pork belly. The fattiness of the pork belly made it yet another delicious treat.
After that was the bacon-wrapped quail eggs, which exploded in my mouth and, combined with the fatty pork belly and the sauce on it, was out of this world. It was my favorite of the night so far! I followed that with the pork topped with grated daikon and soy sauce, which had a great contrast of flavors.
Everything here was grilled to perfection, and best of all, everything was only about $1 U.S. each, so you can have an extremely filling and delicious meal for just $10!
What an outstanding ramen and yakitori food tour! If you liked this tour of authentic Japanese food, please give this video a thumbs up, leave me a comment below, and subscribe to my channel if you haven’t already. I will see you in the next travel food adventure!
It's great.
Yeah.
Mmm.
Wow.
Yeah.
It's good stuff, right?
Great jerky.
Who knew?
Dude, I can keep going.
Hey, what's up, guys?
David Hoffman here from David's Been Here in Tokyo, Japan.
I'm here with my friend Brian from Tokyo by Food, and today we're going on a yakitori
and ramen tour, and what is this area called?
We're in Sasazuka, just sort of a little west of Shinjuku, which is kind of main Tokyo.
Okay, and what are we doing tonight?
Tonight, we're going to hit up a ramen shop where we're at now, and then after that,
go get some yakitori.
And what is yakitori?
Yakitori is...
Well, it's a lot of things, but basically skewers of delicious meat.
Oh, my gosh.
That's something I haven't had from Japanese food.
I've had a lot of ramen, I've had sushi, but I haven't had yakitori, so I'm super excited.
And Tokyo by Food is a tour company.
They basically focus on food, so they have food tours, and they also have cooking classes,
and for every single person that goes on a tour, they donate 10 meals to kids in Cambodia,
which is amazing.
And, yeah, dude, I'm excited.
You ready for this poem?
I'm ready.
This is like my point poem of the day.
Hello.
How you doing?
I mean, almost all ramen shops have these ticket machines.
Super simple.
You put your money in.
You choose what you want, and if you don't read Japanese, you know, you can always go
up or left, and you're going to win.
That's kind of my advice for people, but, you know, they basically have two kinds.
They have a light style and a creamy style.
All made with duck.
I'm doing it.
I'm going for it.
Yep.
So get it easy.
Bam.
Let's do this.
Oh, another creamy ramen.
Oh, I can't wait.
So I'm catching up to him.
He has 300 a year.
I'm having 400 a day.
You're doing all right, man.
You're almost, yeah, you're almost beating my January, so it's been a slow start this
year.
Brian, so what are you having?
So we got the tokusei, which means it's like all the toppings on it.
You know, you got your noodles, your soup, and then some toppings.
This is all the toppings, but duck, some duck breast, pretty uncommon in the ramen world.
We got pork chashu, right?
We've got chicken chashu, so pork, chicken, duck, almost like turducken style.
And then this is the bamboo, memba.
They're using just the tips of the fresh stuff, so really nice.
And the egg, I'm not going to, I can, whoa.
You're good, you're good.
There we go.
We're good.
We got it.
All right, chefs.
Cool, man.
Creamy, creamy duck broth.
Usually your pork or chicken would be creamy styles, but yeah, this one's something new.
Oh, man.
I'm excited.
All right.
Oh, my God.
Look at that.
You ready?
This is beautiful.
A little too much?
Right when you take it in, the duck hits you.
It does, right?
Oh, wow.
It's fantastic.
No, but I love the creaminess to this, too.
And the noodles aren't too thick, but they're not too thin, either.
Nice, nice creamy duck broth, dude.
This is like, what I love is that every time you have a ramen bowl here, it's like completely
different.
It's crazy, man.
The variety is just insane in Japan.
You wrote a book, right?
I've written a couple books about ramen, and yeah, I've traveled all over every prefecture.
I've had multiple bowls.
You know, some people say there's like 126 styles of ramen.
126 styles?
Yeah.
And how many do you think?
I don't know.
All of those.
I mean, how many do I think?
That's a little tough, because you have these really local spots that are claiming that
their style is something unique when it's not.
No, but it's just like a broth of duck, right?
Yeah.
And then here I got the bamboo.
I'm going to try the bamboo now.
So good.
I'm becoming addicted to ramen.
I'm going to gain so much weight on this trip, bro.
You gotta live a healthy lifestyle if you're going to eat a lot of ramen.
But I feel like everybody here in Tokyo is very thin, but I think that's because they
walk in the small portions, right?
You know what?
There's no preservatives in this.
Exactly.
It's super healthy.
Everything's fresh.
Like fresh ingredients.
So it's mainly just the carbs that are like...
It's the carbs and the salt, but you know, it's salt from like a really nice soy sauce.
And I don't know.
I think when it comes to healthy ingredients, you can eat...
You could eat forever.
You could eat food that's in the bad food category, but you'll be alright.
It almost tastes like a creamy Italian pasta in a way.
Yeah.
But I think this is where the calories are.
Like if you have all of this, that's what you gain.
Yes.
I don't know if I'm supposed to eat four eggs in a day, but...
Nah, eat as many as you like, man.
So they give a special feed here and then it affects the yolk.
This is good stuff.
Dude, you're crushing.
I'm still going.
I'm taking it easy tonight.
Oh my god, this is so much.
I told him half the noodles.
The danger is as soon as it pops, you just have to bite into it, right?
Oh my god.
Oh man, the yolk.
The yolk is ******* amazing.
It's good, right?
It's so good.
Mixed with some of these noodles.
It's a great combination of what they put into it, you know?
Yeah.
Like everything matches.
Turkey, my boy.
From Turkey.
From Bursa.
Yes.
Iskir Gambab.
Best city in Turkey.
Yeah, no, it's amazing.
It's amazing.
We're gonna go not super far, but a little hole in the wall yakitori place.
My jam.
You'll like it.
Yeah, I've got a pass so I can just swipe in, but you gotta get a ticket, right?
It's 140 yen for our trip now.
We're going like three stops.
We're going close, man.
Okay, so after like a 25 minute metro ride, we finally made it to the yakitori spot.
And what is this area called?
So this is actually, this is Hamarayama.
Hamarayama.
You're the first tourist to ever come here, by the way.
Oh my god.
No, this is really, like this is a commuter line.
So people are gonna live out here, but apart from this street with some shops on it, nothing.
Nothing, yeah, because it's not apartment buildings, right?
This is just like offices and stuff?
Well, these are like small offices, but then one block either way.
But it's very low rise, because it's only like three story buildings.
So a lot of retail, a lot of people walking around.
Feels almost like a little ghost town in the middle of Tokyo.
Pretty amazing.
Yeah, I mean this is a bed town.
This is where people live.
Okay.
So this is my first time trying yakitori.
This is the menu.
Can't read Japanese, you're screwed.
Thank you.
Oh, perfect.
Nice.
With the yakitori place, izakayas, things like that, it's a place where you drink and eat.
And first thing you do when you come in, get your drink.
You always get your beer, draft beer, highballs, whiskey soda.
Sours, which are juice and shochu.
All these up there, you were filming earlier, that's shochu.
So we're starting with a sour.
Yeah, a sour drink.
It's going to be...
I need something strong, dude.
We're going to see how it is.
And then we can go up or down.
Only up.
Only up, nice.
Cheers, dude.
Japanese sours.
Let's try this.
It almost tastes like a ginger ale.
But very sour.
I don't know.
It shouldn't be too high in alcohol.
Doesn't feel like a sake.
They're not real strong.
It's a mixed cocktail.
But it's nice.
Next up, we'll try something stronger.
Alright, my friends, so what do we have here?
So right here, this is ehire.
Try a little bit.
Ehire.
I mean, it's a fish.
A little mayonnaise if you like it.
It's like fish jerky.
It's from the sea.
That mayonnaise is awesome.
It's not salty.
Like, very little salt.
Seasoned with the mirin and the soy sauce.
It's a real Japanese seasoning.
A little bit salty.
A little sweet.
Dude, this is so good.
I can keep going.
I just can't stop.
It's ray.
Oh, it's ray?
Yeah.
Wow.
Yeah, it's good stuff, right?
Ray jerky.
Who knew?
I mean, the best thing I can compare it to is like beef jerky.
Yeah.
But no spice.
Very little salt.
And dude, just an awesome snack.
I think this is great with beer.
This and beer.
Great combination.
And this, it looks like a, I don't know, like a big sardine or something.
Okay.
Yeah, it's not a sardine.
No, obviously.
It's called a shishamo.
Shishamo?
Yeah.
Another fish.
It's another fish.
It's from Hokkaido, up in the north.
Okay.
Yeah.
So, like a really cold water fish.
Yeah.
Once you bite into it, you'll see something special.
So, yeah.
Mmm.
Very little salt.
Actually, it tastes like a fresh water fish.
Mmm.
And what's this?
Mayo?
Yeah, that's the Japanese mayo.
That's some good mayo.
Do you see that?
Inside?
Eggs.
Oh, it's eggs?
They're full of eggs.
Oh, wow.
Yeah.
That's why it's so good.
Yeah, right?
Mmm.
The best, like, salty dried fish I've had in my life.
It's way better than sardines.
Like, blows out of the water.
I mean, all the fish in Japan is just like top notch.
Yeah.
The fish scene is ridiculous out here.
And then here we have...
We have a vegetable.
Oh, is it a vegetable?
To make it healthy.
Okay.
Yeah.
And so, we have some wasabi on the side?
A little wasabi on the side.
Topped with the katsuobushi.
Okay.
The bonito flakes and a little nori seaweed.
For this, just drizzle a little soy sauce.
Got a little of the bonito flakes.
Oh, I'm getting too much of that stuff.
Oh, wow.
Look at that.
Mmm.
It's almost like a radish.
Right?
Yeah, it's a root.
It is a root.
It's like a Japanese yam.
Yeah, I was gonna say, it's actually more like a yam.
I had yam this morning.
But like, more like a pound of yam.
Which is different.
Dude, this is great, though.
It's a...
It almost feels like a...
I don't know, a thin-cut carrot?
Like...
Mmm.
Just in the way the...
The consistency of it?
Yeah.
You know?
The wasabi's hot.
Oh, yeah.
Be careful.
That's really hot.
That's not regular wasabi.
Yeah, the wasabi here is brutal.
Mmm.
Alright, we got skewers, man.
Oh, my God.
We have so many skewers.
All kinds of skewers.
Alright, guys.
So here we have the yakitori.
We have six different yakitoris.
Yeah.
So what do we have here?
You know, let's start with the most traditional one.
The most traditional one.
Okay.
This is negima.
It's just chicken thigh with green onion in between.
Oh, my God.
Chicken thigh.
It's really simple.
Let's do it.
Mmm.
Oh, it's so tender.
It's, like, really fatty.
Mmm-hmm.
Mmm.
It's probably the most recognizable, like, yakitori.
Dude, this is incredible.
Right?
Mmm.
I love the sauce.
I was gonna say, it's almost like a soy paste, in a way.
Yeah, exactly.
Wow.
Five more?
Five more.
Let's do it.
So we got, um, this one, this one, this one, and this one are all bacon-wrapped.
They're pork belly-wrapped.
Pork belly-wrapped?
Yeah.
So not only bacon, but, you know, fatty pork belly is bacon.
Okay.
This...
Yeah.
Try it.
That's amazing.
Cheese.
And shiso.
So this is Japanese herb.
Okay.
They wrap the cheese with the herb, and then wrap the whole thing with bacon, and grill
it.
Holy sh...
Right?
This is amazing.
So cheese with herbs, and then pork belly.
Oh my god.
Oh, I guess I'll have to...
One after the other can be better.
Wow, so we got tomato inside?
Bacon-wrapped baby tomatoes.
What an explosion.
Yeah.
Mmm.
I'm gonna have to hold off.
I love it, but I'm gonna have to hold off.
Yeah.
I'm getting really full right now.
Yeah, we got a lot.
Alright, cheers, my friend.
Cheers.
Cheers with the moonshine here.
Potato moonshine.
Sweet potato.
Another standard drink at Yakitori or Izakaya is the shochu.
Asparagus off a pork belly?
Yep.
Oh my god.
Whoa.
I mean, kind of like...
Oh wow.
You wrap anything in bacon, right?
Exactly.
I'm gonna say that fat deliciousness...
Mm-hmm.
You can't go wrong with that.
Bacon-wrapped quail eggs.
Whoa.
That's the best one.
You like that, right?
That's like...
Whoa.
Kind of different level.
Explode in your mouth, and you have this nice pork belly flour on it.
And a nice sauce too.
They're not like hard cooked.
They're soft inside, right?
Yeah, I mean, they're super soft inside.
They grill it to perfection.
And what do these cost?
Do they have a certain cost?
They're like a buck each.
A buck each?
130 yen, 140 yen.
That's not bad.
So for like 10 bucks, you can get really full.
Dude, you can eat...
Anytime I come here, I just go crazy.
When the bill comes, you're like...
I spent like 30 bucks, I'm drunk, I ate all this food.
It's incredible.
Right?
So when you guys think Japan is expensive, it's not.
So this is called Oroshi.
Which means pork topped with grated daikon radish with a little soy sauce on it.
Oh my god.
Be careful because the top is just like a grated yam.
It can fall right off.
Good contrast of flavors here.
Very cold and moist on top.
Yeah.
One day, and I'm already 5 kilos up.
Yeah, so in case you didn't know,
literally means grilled, yaki grilled, and tori, chicken.
So grilled chicken.
Okay, so we did it.
We had some ramen, some yakitori, and some hard drinks.
That was an epic tour.
Ramen Adventures with Brian and Tokyo by Food.
And they also have over 80 other tours on their website.
This one's called Yakitori and Ramen.
Got it.
What was your favorite thing?
Man, I like that bacon wrapped tomato.
Oh.
It's good stuff.
That was good, but I think the quail egg.
It just exploded in my mouth.
It was so fire.
Oh, we're gonna get hit by a car here.
Hold on a second.
Car.
You gotta be really chill here in Japan.
And yeah, guys, if you want to take this tour,
definitely go to Tokyo by Food.
And if you love this video, please give us a thumbs up.
Leave us a comment below.
Follow him on Instagram, Tokyo by Food.
Subscribe to my channel.
I'll see you in the next child food adventure around Japan.
Arigato.
I love this place, dude.
