Matthew H.
Yelp
It's not everyday that you find a cool yakitori spot in the US - especially in this area of Boston - so I was super excited when I saw Tori Jiro open a few months ago. I've been meaning to stop by since then, but apparently they're actually still in a 'soft opening' phase (according to their website), and their hours are quite limited at the moment, so it was a lucky moment when my schedule finally worked out for a weekday dinner with two of my friends.
The interior looks amazing - clearly newly renovated (or built?), with a very chic/modern aesthetic - and when we arrived, all of the tables along the walls were busy. The three of us got seated at a large table, and we were joined later by another group of 4 at the other end - but it's definitely large enough that this didn't really bother us.
We ordered a bunch of skewers down the menu - (would recommend this strategy - just to get a taste first before deciding which to order more of!). To be honest, nothing we ordered was short of delicious, but particularly memorable were the hanger steak - expertly cooked to melt-in-your mouth - the chicken meatballs, and the pork belly.
We also had the chicken karaage which was also amazing - nicely fried without being too heavy, and the meat was so tender and juicy that we ended up ordering 2 plates! The accompanying mixed greens salad was also so delicious that it's worth a mention - fresh veggies with a perfect amount of a sweet dressing that just perfectly complemented the heavier, more savoury tastes of the meats.
Gyoza was nice, too, but for the portion size and price I'm not sure if it was necessarily worth it, especially with so many other fantastic choices.
My sole complaint was just that the service was quite slow and our servers were not the most attentive - it took ages for us to order, to get our food, to ask for the cheque, etc. That being said, all in all, everything was extremely delicious and inexpensive; and, even though their menu isn't the largest, there's definitely so many great choices, from skewers, shared plates, or even ramen (which I'll have to try next time!). I'm already planning my next visit :P