Kokekokko!!!

Yakitori artists at work.


Junmai-Jingo Sake, chicken broth to cleanse the palate,(saboro) ground chicken with rice and a quail egg, and my chicken liver skewer.


A well marbled chicken breast done the yakitori way.


Hearts and livers!


Chicken breast skewers with okra and eggplant.

A group of friends went out to partake in the after work tradition and Japanese cultural experience that is yakitori cuisine. The art of barbecued chicken skewers. Yakitori is a style of food that goes with alcohol, a way to pass the time before heading home after a long day at the office, to talk, eat,drink, and muse your worries away.

I went with the 5-course tasting menu, they offer a 10-course as well. It consisted of chicken breast, liver, gizzards, hearts, and thighs, all barbequed with a delicious sauce. I ordered my chicken skewers to be cooked medium which meant that I was subject to the health code warning on the wall extolling the dangers of eating raw chicken.I was the only person in my group that ordered this medium cooked tasting course, but it was recommended by our waiter as the ideal presentation of their yakitori.Oh, and the saboro, ground chicken with rice topped by a quail egg is pure decadence.

It's instinctual to fear raw chicken but for the first first time I was able to appreciate the more refined flavors of quality chicken cuts.Each offering of the bird sang its own virtues in soft and deep tones of savory bites.It looked fabulous too!The smooth texture of the chicken breast skewer dotted with vulpine specks of wasabi, but not enough to distract from the main event.There were two dipping powders, one being very potent and the other mild, as condiments.

But, what is the point if you aren't drinking?The newly arrived Yebisu, a Japanese fine brew, and a junmai-jingo sake were my after work Yakitori accessories of choice.Gotta love the Metro!

Kokekokko is a refined Yakitori-ya.I look forward to some more rustic Yakitori experiences, but this is a great place to start.

Kokekokko

360 E 2nd St

Los Angeles CA

213.687.0690

Enter on Central Ave.