What is Yakitori?

Yakitori can be literally translated to "grilled chicken," from the Japanese words yaki (grill) and tori (chicken). Yakitori consists of bite-sized pieces of meat (usually chicken) served on a bamboo skewer.

In Japan, yakitori can be a street food dish or a casual meal served in a parlor, frequently paired with Japanese beer or sake. In America, it's becoming trendy in restaurants, with chefs using all parts of the chicken for their skewers and getting creative with other proteins and foods.

We’ll add seafood, vegetarian skewers, and curry udon soups and salads to the menu for Boulder…

Good Vibes

We’ll also channel the current trend of Jazz Listening Rooms, utilizing high-end turntables and speakers throughout the space. These listening rooms, like Bobby Stuckey’s Sunday Vinyl in Denver, have proven very successful

Simply prepared, the menu items we are proposing take a minimum of kitchen equipment and staff. We look to have a small footprint.

Planned hours are: Breakfast/Coffee 7:30am-11am daily. Open nightly 5pm to 11pm. Lunch Weds-Sunday.

Why Yakitori?

I was lucky to visit Tokyo and Japan quite a bit in my 20’s and 30’s for both business and as a tourist. Yakitori became my favorite over there, unfussy and informal, but scratch made with pride and love. My brother and I would frequent one spot owned by a woman and her grown son, they took turns on the grill and pouring beers. They only took a few days off every year, we knew if we went back they would be there, they always remembered us as their Colorado friends. On their few days off the son went snowboarding, so we bonded over that.

We are trying to bring this same energy to Yakitori Gareji in Boulder. A landmark building on the East end of Pearl Street. A building we all remember from our childhood as Joe’s Garage.

Skewers cooked over charcoal, a simple menu and simple concept.

Bringing this old building back to life has been quite a chore and we are starting to see the end of the tunnel…

Coming soon!

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