If you go down the hill to the south from Yamashina Station and turn right, you will find a shop. The shop is located above Nakau. Customers range from elderly people to young people. The shop is spacious. This shop is really affordable, the yakitori is large and delicious. It's popular among young people.

With a promise to a friend since last year's Gion Festival, we decided to go to Torikizoku despite the challenges of COVID. As we were both born in the Year of the Rooster, we settled on this restaurant. We had a thorough discussion via email and social media before finally meeting up. We decided to play it safe by choosing Torikizoku, a place neither of us were familiar with. The menu was bustling with local delicacies, but we settled on some drinks and dishes that we thought would be safe choices. We enjoyed dishes like chilled tomatoes, chicken hearts with salt, and chicken cartilage. Overall, the experience was pleasant, and we were able to catch up over some good food and drinks.

I think it was on May 19th? Due to the impact of the coronavirus, this place had been temporarily closed, but I saw the news online that they had reopened, so I decided to come here for dinner alone. This chain restaurant is affordable and I often use it for drinking parties with male friends. The area around my company is mainly for salarymen, but here there are many young people, probably because there is a pharmacy school nearby. It might be a bit noisy for older guys (laughs). Today, I was planning to investigate how they had reopened, but all the seats at the counter were taken. They were only using one side of the counter, leaving the other side unused. So, I had a 4-person table all to myself, enjoyed some drinks for under 3000 yen, and then left. It was a bit disappointing that they couldn't serve my favorite "stuffed bell peppers" or "grilled chicken bowl," but I'm happy to see the city slowly coming back to life. Thanks for the meal today as well.

I sometimes stop by after work. Even on less crowded days, I always find the food service to be slow, which is frustrating because my drink finishes before the food arrives. Lately, the manners of the staff have been unacceptable. They place the ordered drinks and food on top of the menu, take away the food without explaining why, and bring a new one without saying anything. I wonder if they receive any training when they are assigned to work. I start to doubt if it's okay just because it's a chain restaurant.

The restaurant is located a bit difficult to find, about a 5-minute walk from Yamashina Station. It is known for its affordable prices and delicious Premium Malt's beer, so I stopped by after work. I visited before 7 pm on a weekday, so the seats were not too crowded, which was unusual for Torikizoku. I quickly ordered a Premium Malt's beer, and it was brought to me promptly. There is a button to call the staff, so there is almost no stress. The seats are a bit cramped for adults, but it adds to the charm of Torikizoku. As time passed, I noticed the place was fully packed. It was great to enjoy drinking and eating for around 3000 yen.

I visited the restaurant to enjoy the cherry blossoms in full bloom. I arrived just before 6:30 and managed to get a seat. By the time my beer arrived, the place was already packed. Despite the busy atmosphere, the staff were working energetically and efficiently. However, they were a bit loud and their language was a bit rough. I wish they would tone it down a bit. All dishes and drinks were priced at 280 yen each (excluding tax). The yakitori skewers were large, almost twice the size of other places. At 140 yen per skewer, it's no wonder the restaurant is popular. It must be challenging to cook yakitori in a small space that can accommodate around 50 people, but they managed to keep up with orders. The taste was decent, but a bit too salty for my liking. As I ate more, it became a bit monotonous. Perhaps this is where their efforts are focused. After trying a variety of dishes, I was satisfied. It didn't even cost us 3000 yen for two people. So cheap!

It feels like this shop has been around for quite some time, but there were no reviews until now. Sorry for the first review being mediocre haha. As for the content, I didn't order too much because it was my second stop of the night. We ordered a few of the popular dishes and three drinks each with my friend. I debated whether to order the noodles as the last dish, but ended up not ordering it this time. However, all the dishes and drinks were satisfying. What surprised me the most was that the place was very crowded when we arrived around 10 pm. I had the impression that people in the Yama-shina area would take the train home early and the place would be empty later at night. Especially considering it's been around for about half a year already. So, it seems like it's a popular spot. If I have the chance to drink in Yama-shina again, I would like to come back to this place. Thank you for the meal.