Popular yakiniku restaurant 'Beef Kitchen' celebrated its​ ​7th anniversary with a pop-up store in​ ​2015. 'CHICKEN KITCHEN' opened for a limited time that summer. Regrettably,​ ​2​ ​months later it closed, but on​ ​9/13th (Thursday) it reopened as a permanent restaurant in Shibuya. Based on a conversation with Takahiro Oya who runs Beef Kitchen, we’ve put together a list of​ ​7​ ​things you will want to know before going.

Photo & Text, TRYOUT

1.​ ​Updated dishes and uniforms

'CHICKEN KITCHEN' will also collaborate with Hiroshi Fujiwara this time, but staff uniforms and tableware used at the pop-up store from​ ​3​ ​years ago have been redesigned. “I don’t want to continue what we did then since I'd like to do my best on each occasion, but I am thinking about how to make customers more happy. It was neither Hiroshi's idea nor mine to keep even the same one dish from​ ​3​ ​​ ​years ago,” said Oya. There are no oversights in any or all detail.

2.​ ​Branded chicken used according to cuisine

Last time it was only Daisen poultry from Tottori, but we also use Date chicken from Fukushima Prefecture at the new store. Even though its fresh and soft, the chewy texture is excellent. It is said the flavor increases if cooked slowly, and suits Chinese style chicken wings with egg stew and Chicken curry. However, because the flavour becomes way too strong the other side of Daisen poultry is used when roast chicken is mixed with miso. With a plump and juicy quality of meat, it becomes extremely delicious when mixed with miso. Hopefully the exquisite menu making best use of each brand of chicken will be enjoyed to its fullest.

3.​ ​The use of original recipe Hatcho Miso

The grilled chicken in the main menu blends together a thick tasting salty-sweet miso sauce with chicken which is then grilled and originates from Matsusaka city, Mie Prefecture, birthplace of the average foodie. Speaking of Mie, the image of Matsusaka beef is strong, but there are many chicken farmers who produce eggs in Matsusaka, it is also a soul food of the prefecture who has a long history of starting to eat using the neighboring Nagoya's Hatcho miso. In terms of miso, was previously a blend of rural, Hatcho, and white miso, but it is​ ​100% Hatcho miso at the new store, and through trial and error Oya has created an original recipe. How perfect is it too! It may be nice to put a bit on your little finger and lick before sticking on the grill.

4.​ ​A wide array of irresistible well-known side dishes

The side menu is also fulfilling. Chicken barbecue appears as a set meal at lunchtime, with Chicken Wings and Steamed Chicken, Chicken ramen with Chicken Soup noodles, Chicken Sasami-Katsu, Chicken Menchi-Katsu, and potato salad also added. And this alone is not everything. Continuing on Nerima's famous ‘Torichō’ from before and this time Minami-Aoyama's Shanghai restaurant ‘Mimosa’ which won 1-Star at ‘Michelin Guide Tokyo​ ​2018'​ ​​have joined together to develop side menus. When it comes to chicken curry rice, every version by ‘Torichō’ and ‘Mimosa’ are served as​ ​“Today's ~​​ ​and certainly need trying. How lucky a problem it is to get full before ordering the grilled chicken?

5.​ ​The lunch menu has greater variety too

A wide variety of set menus are served at lunch time from 11:00 to 14:30. There are​ ​3​ ​types of grilled chicken including young chicken and older chicken, for Chicken Namba, and the newly introduced Chicken Menchi-Katsu, Chicken Curry rice and Chicken Soboro-don, and just following these words is making my stomach rumble. Miso soup with lots of ingredients such as root vegetables is refreshing and tastes good. The first thing I would like to recommend is, again, the grilled chicken. It also goes well with beer and whiskey high-ball, but Hatcho miso with chicken rich in taste can’t be helped to be eaten with freshly cooked rice. Hopefully stumbling across the set menu will be an enjoyable test of appetite.

6.​ ​Alcohol focuses on refreshing Sours

For grilled chicken mixed together with a sweet and rich miso sauce, a cold glass of beer is absolutely necessary for juicy fried food that’s crispy on the outside and tender in the middle. In ‘CHICKEN KITCHEN’ although we have gathered together both speciality brand draft and bottled beer, we want to focus on to sparking refreshing Sours. Pour distilled Koshi shochu into a cold glass with plenty of ice. Slowly add strong sparkling water, with a squeeze of domestically produced citrus like fragrant lemon, Jabara, and Kabosu lime. A sour bursts with a fizz with delicious chicken cuisine. The urge to visit ‘CHICKEN KITCHEN’ keeps on building​ ​​​ ​

7.​ ​Hiroshi Fujiwara’s philosophy expressed through in-store ceramic tiling

2015's ‘Beef Kitchen’ pop-up interior staged that summer has gone on to become a sophisticated space based around the basic theme of pure white tiling and gray mortar. Fujiwara has focused on tiles especially for their outward appearance, with the gentle curved surface of every rectangular tile reflected in the flicker of a single movie scene. There is nothing as breathtakingly beautiful like the Egg motif neon tube logo reviewed previously, and cannot tell if it curves at all unless seen close up. However, it’s his style to pursue things to such a level of detail and also an important factor that makes up the global outlook of ‘CHICKEN KITCHEN’.​ ​Background music​ ​is also Fujiwara's department. The unpredictable playlist mixes genre and generation, and is the one topic that fans can’t get enough of.

■ CHICKEN KITCHEN
Shibuya Stream 2F, 3-21-3 Shibuya, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo 150-2000
TEL / FAX: 03-6805-1539
Open Monday to Friday: 11:00-14:30 (LO 14:00) / Dinner 17:00-23:00 (LO 22:30), Saturday & Sunday: 12:00-16:30 (LO 16: 00) / Dinner 17:00-23:00 (LO 22:30)