ぽぽぽlぽーん
I had a job in Akasaka (Chuo-ku, Fukuoka City). After finishing my business on the 6th floor of a certain building in 7 minutes, it's time for lunch. I'm heading to "Yakitori Torifumi" restaurant. Normally they operate at night, but due to Fukuoka City's shortened business hours request, they are currently open for lunch until May 19th (12:00-Last Order 13:30). This is a great opportunity to visit. The location is at the intersection of Akasaka 1-chome, at a T-junction. It's next to one of Fukuoka City's famous yakiniku restaurants, Rikaen. There are a couple of coin parking spaces in front of the restaurant. I arrived at 12:10. The interior of the restaurant is very stylish and has a luxurious feel. There are counter seats in a U-shape, and also table seats in the back on the right. No other customers were there. As I entered, I made eye contact with a staff member. Since they didn't greet me with a "Welcome," my question of "Are you open?" seemed to be taken the wrong way, and I received a suspicious look from the staff... The atmosphere started off a bit heavy. Since I was dining alone, I sat at the counter. I ordered the "Torifumi Don" (1,320 yen, tax included), which is the restaurant's signature dish. It includes 3 assorted skewers, minced chicken, grilled vegetables, and chicken soup. There were two types of Torifumi Don, but I wasn't too impressed with the first one, so I decided to go with the second one for now. From where I sat, I could see the grilling area. Chicken and vegetables were skewered and grilled over charcoal. They used Binchotan charcoal. I could see the grilling process, including dipping the skewers in sauce. Once the skewers were grilled, they were taken to the back...? After a while, the Torifumi Don was served. Half of the rice was topped with minced chicken, and the other half had grilled chicken and vegetables. The vegetables included leeks, shiitake mushrooms, and green peppers. The grilled chicken was explained to me, including soft bone tsukune, neck meat, and a part called "Furisode" which is the base of the wing. It's nice to have explanations about the different parts. Let's dig in. The Furisode had a texture more like steak than chicken meat. Combined with the aroma of charcoal, it truly tasted like a dish from a specialty store. Unfortunately, the chicken soup was a bit off, with a strange taste, so I added some sansho pepper provided to enhance the flavor. There was quite a contrast between the quality of the grilled chicken and the soup... It was delicious, but considering the price, it may be a bit overpriced. Thank you for the meal.