The best izakayas in Hong Kong

This cosy hidden izakaya located in Tin Hau offers a wide array of creative Japanese dishes, sushi and sashimi, maki rolls, tempura, and various skewers. Some of our favourites include nodoguro nirigi sushi topped with a sea urchin sauce, which uses slices of slow-cooked nodoguro that are charred over sakura wood; as well as Hokkaido bafun uni-topped shrimp crackers. Ippaiki Sakaya also hosts live music performances every Tuesday, which makes this restaurant a great spot for you and your friends to chill out.

An intimate 24-seater, Chi Yawaragu is a boutique kushiyaki destination hidden among the antique stores on Upper Lascar Row. Presenting a wide array of selections ranging from yakitori to kushiyaki prepared with pork, beef, lamb, seafood, and vegetables, the restaurant sources ingredients locally and prepares them with simplicity to ensure balanced taste and texture. Make your way through the chef’s exclusive selection menu, which includes appetisers, seasonal dishes, nine pre-selected skewers, udon in chicken broth, and finish off with dessert.

Yakitori specialist Yakitoriya Hon is the newest addition to Sai Ying Pun’s ArtLane. This Japanese restaurant provides ample space for diners to kick back and relax as they enjoy a wide variety of yakitori fired over binchotan charcoal grills. Upon arrival, all guests will receive a bowl of chicken soup that’s been simmered for countless hours as an appetiser. Yakitoriya Hon’s menu boasts a curated selection of skewers on its menu like hamstring and tsukune meatballs, or even daily specialty offal skewers such as chicken ovaries or testicles. Guests can elevate their dining experience with the restaurant’s extensive beverage menu to find sake options like Masano Chichutori Junmai Daijingo or Tashu Special Junmai, alongside drinks like highballs or zero-proof sodas.

Yakitori joint Kido stays true to yakitori traditions with their cosy counter table setting and a classic menu that includes every part of the chicken. But on top of that, this yakitori skewer bar also serves up traditional, Fukuoka-style 'hakata-ku' skewers, extending the menu to healthier, more diverse skewered dishes that include other meats and vegetables such as Kagoshima yam and shishito peppers. A must-try at Kido are their fried chicken wings made with Awaodori chicken, which offers a rich chicken flavour while having a low fat content. Enjoy an authentic experience echoing the timeless tradition and culture of yakitori feasting at this trendy, classic, and distinctly Japanese hideout.

Priding themselves on the mastery of the charcoal grill, Kicho specialises in exquisite tori kappo dishes. The restaurant offers a farm-to-table dining concept, as they work with a Kagoshima-based farm to serve Kuro Satsuma chicken – noted for retaining an optimum fat content and fine fibres regardless of cooking method. Here, diners can enjoy curated omakase dining experiences, where they can dig into Kicho’s extensive list of starters, yakitori skewers, slow-cooked chicken, vegetables, main courses, and desserts. Grab a counter seat to admire Kicho’s chefs as they expertly grill each skewer with care.

Censu is an intimate Japanese restaurant and independent venture helmed by chef Shun Sato. The eatery is inspired by the traditional izakaya-style cooking of Sato’s father, but offers a more refined menu fusing Japanese dishes with global flavours and ingredients, such as a three yellow chicken and scallop dashi paella, flathead lobster kataifi, and even 48-hour slow cooked Hokkaido pork char siu. Their menu, complete with craft cocktails, rotates a series of specials to showcase the best of the season.

Head to Sheung Wan to find Yardbird, a popular Japanese izakaya that attracts diners from far and wide. When it comes to the restaurant’s offerings, you can find almost every part of the chicken on their menu – from thighs and wings right down to the thyroid, ventricle, and tail. Aside from skewers, the izakayaalso has sharing plates like katsu sandos, sweet corn tempura, and duck fried rice. In the mood for a drink? Yardbird’s beverage menu has plenty of highballs, cocktails, beer, wines, sake, as well as Japanese shochu and umeshu to whet your whistle.

Fan of Wagyumafia? Check out Yatchabar, an intimate venue from Wagyumafia’s co-founder Hisato Hamada. This venue curates a collection of excellent sake spotlighting breweries that offer small production of nihonshu, which Hisato has personally visited to ensure their premium quality. Yatchabar’s menu is classified into five elements, and just likeall of Hisato’s other restaurants, the menu features cuts of wagyu beef. Dig into various kushiyaki skewers, teppanyaki, as well as hearty dishes like wagyu bak kut teh and wagyu yakisoba.

Tucked away inside a quiet commercial building in Causeway Bay, Nagomiya offers traditional Japanese oden in a simple, no-fuss setting. Choose from a wide variety of ingredients, including beef tendons, fishcakes, daikon radish, konjac, egg and many other delicious morsels – all of which are cooked in a soul-satisfying and flavourful dashi broth. Alternatively, Nagomiya's menu also offers a small but delightful variety of grilled skewers like chicken heart, cartilage, or pork belly. The restaurant is open until 5am from Mondays to Saturdays, making it the perfect place to refuel after a heavy night of drinks.

Based on the name alone, it should be obvious what you're getting yourself into at Birdie – lots of grilled chicken. From livers and hearts to smoky, crispy skin, thighs, and wings, the restaurant also offers succulent cuts of pork belly and Japanese beef. To top it all off, there's a decent selection of sake, shochu, and highballs to wash it all down.

Elgin Street is home to Fukuro, a Japanese izakaya by Black Sheep Restaurants. This lively venue is always buzzing with energy, and you’re bound to have a fun night out while dining here. Menu highlights include beef tartare served with wasabi relish, crispy caramel butter corn, spinach ohitashi with white sesame, and mapo tofu ramen – all of which are sure to go great with Fukuro’s extensive range of alcoholic beverages. Sip on shochu and awamori as you nibble on your bites, or slam their refreshing highballs if you want to let your hair down.

If you’re keen to shell out for a refined izakaya experience, Ronin is the perfect spot to check out. This intimate dining venue is tucked away in a quieter pocket of Sheung Wan and offers premium jet-fresh ingredients. Try Ronin’s crowd favourites like scallop and uni miso sandwiched between monaka wafers, oysters topped with refreshing cucumber granita, or flagrant clams served with a fluffy milk bread roll. While customers can flick through the izakaya’s drink menu to find sparkling, red, and white wines, Ronin boasts a sweeping selection of premium sake and Japanese whiskies that are sure to please.

TokyoLima nails the convivial izakaya atmosphere, pounding out its punchy playlist late into the night. The brainchild of the team behind Pirata, Pici, The Optimist, this popular eatery serves up the Japanese-Peruvian fusion cuisine known as Nikkei in its swish dining room. It may sound strange, but the two cuisines marry wonderfully. The menu offers raw and seared items, Nikkei-style sushi and larger plates, allowing you to enjoy a few small plates and maki rolls with your sake and cocktails, or go all out on a full meal.

Tokyo import Uoharu specialises in the robata cooking style – pieces of fish, meat, and vegetables are cooked at varying speeds over hot coals. Highlights from the open grill include whole atka mackerel, seared cherrywood smoked bacon, and thick-cut beef tongue. Alternatively, this izakaya's menu also provides delicious non-grilled specialities, such as the indulgent sea urchin and salmon roe macaroni gratin. As for drinks, Uoharu's menu offers libations such as refreshing whisky highballs, draught beer, or plum wine to go with your bar bites.