Nanbantei of Tokyo, a restaurant devoted to yakitori, has been open in Greenbelt 3 countless years. I still fondly remember the place where I first tried garlic yakitori I was forced to eat because it was part of their sets. Yakitori is not uncommon to many diners because Japanese restaurants usually serves chicken yakitori. I got an invite to try out some new dishes they added to the menu.
Shiitake Mushroom Salad (P180). Simple and fresh ingredients tied together by the sesame sauce on the side. A nice starter before delving in the smoky sticks of meat.
Nanbantei of Tokyo cooks their yakitori sticks over an electric griller to maintain consistent cooking quality. I understand their reasoning but charcoal still imparts more flavor which they actually use this during catering events.
Gyu-Tan Yakitori (P170/2 sticks). Beef tongue infused with garlic then grilled. I took a teeny tiny bite and did not like it at all, I guess this is an acquired taste.
Buta Negi (P90/2 sticks). Pork slices enveloping onion leeks. Quite enjoyable unless you hate leeks like Irene.
Shrimps With Bacon (P270/2 sticks). What is there not to love with these skewers, you’ve got sweet and succulent shrimps covered by charred and smoky bacon. The drawback is that it’s their most expensive yakitori. I’ve ordered this previously or more like had multiple orders of it.
Potato Bacon Yakitori (P100/2 sticks). I’ve had this previously at the now closed Yakitori Kitchen so I was quite happy to find it in Nanbantei. Sliced potatoes wrapped with bacon and lightly seasoned, give me a couple of 3 orders of this and I’m good.
If you come in groups and want easy-peasy ordering that’s also economical then the Nanbantei Samurai sets are for you. Each set costs P888 and is good for 3 people to share but is available from Monday to Fridays only. Each sets comes with 15 sticks of yakitori, 3 bowls of plain rice, 3 bowls of miso soup plus Shrimp Tempura.
Shiitake Rice (P100). I had this a couple of weeks before this invited visit so I knew it was good so I requested it in lieu of plain rice. It’s Japanese rice topped with shiitake mushroom sauce and nori (seaweed) strips. The sauce adds a nice sweet and earthy flavor to the rice that balances the charred flavors of the yakitori.
They also recently introduced some cocktails fro those who want a more sophisticated alcoholic companion to their yakitori.
For dessert, they served us Avocado (P100) and Green Tea Ice Cream (P100). Each serving comes with two scoops, nothing special though.
I much preferred the Coffee Jelly (P120). Nice strong cubes of coffee jelly paired with vanilla ice cream. It’s like eating a frozen and chewy latte.
Nanbantei is adapting to the local diners’ eating habits of having everything in one place. I remember that Nanbantei used to only offer yakitori, a specialist restaurant like many in Japan. Shrimp and Bacon plus the Potato Bacon are my favorite and some coffee jelly to finish off the meal.
Have you tried Nanbantei of Tokyo yet ? It’s a nice place to have a light meal before moving someplace else or go all out and stuff yourselves silly with their array of smoky yakitori.
Nanbantei of Tokyo
Upper G/F Bonifacio High Street Central 7th Ave. corner 29th St. South, Bonifacio Global City (BGC), Taguig City Contact No.: (02) 621-3224-25Facebook: Nanbantei of Tokyo Philippines
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nice article…
thank you.