Last week, I went to Niku Yokocho in Shibuya's Chiseto Kaikan. Niku Yokocho is one of the most famous spots in Shibuya. There are over 20 meat-themed restaurants.
By the way, yokocho has a meaning similar to a shopping arcades. It is a street lined with various types of shops such as restaurants, pharmacies, and game centers. Yokocho will only have restaurants. Shibuya Niku Yokocho differs from a shopping arcade in that restaurant is concentrated inside the building rather than outside.
This time, I went to "Irotori" located in Niku Yokocho. The thing which is good about this restaurant is yakitori. Here is the yakitori menu.
There is a wide range of dishes such as king trumpet mushroom, grilled squid, pork perilla skewers, and gristle. At first, I thought all the yakitori were about the same price, so I ordered a few. However, it turned out that the beef tongue skewer I ordered by chance was the most expensive. The beef tongue skewer is 490 yen, the thigh is 190 yen. I was surprised at the huge difference in price.
The beef tongue is thin and not very tasty, so I recommend other cheap yakitori.
Here for the alcohol menu.
At first I thought of ordering a kuppy sour, but it was sold out so I ordered another drink. kuppy is a ramune sweet that is popular among young children in Japan. It's a unique idea to mix it with alcohol. I ordered baisu Sour instead of Kuppy sour.
Baisu sour contains perilla. Refreshing and sweet. I realized later that beer is about half the price of sour. Just like with yakitori, I didn't look at the price of alcohol. Please be sure to check the prices carefully so you don't repeat my bad example. If you just order cheap yakitori and beer, it will cost you just over 1,000 yen per person. By the way, otoshi at this restaurant is tripe stew.
For those who don't know, otoshi is a small appetizer that is served first at Japanese pub. You cannot refuse the order, and everyone will be charged the same fee. average is around 300 to 500 yen. Be sure to remember this as part of Japanese pub（izakaya） culture.
Returning to the original topic, You can have as second helping of Irotori's Otoshi as you like. When it's time to get a refill, you have to go pick it up yourself. I went to get 3 refills, but when I get the 4th one, it was gone. I guess it's popular after all.
If you keep eating it as much as you can, your bill will be cheaper. You may think this idea is mean. However, apart from tourists, most of the people who visit Niku Yokocho are students. They are around 20 years old. For students who are short on money, money-saving techniques can be very helpful.