Fukuoka Part 3: Fine Street Dining

Imagine getting the freshest and best ingredients simply prepared by your chef before your eyes… being cramped up in a little counter table on the streetside… total strangers squashed up right next to you… cold beer… loud conversations… and you basically have yatai… street dining Fukuoka style.

We had a fantastic meal at Tsukasa - a well known yatai run by the lady chef and her family of helpers. She does all the cooking which is really impressive… basically handling the grill as well as the deep fryer, she whips up the most succulent dishes to go with your choice of beverage.

Grilled beef tongue on a bed of onions was so simple… but so perfect in every way… as was the grilled shitake mushrooms seasoned only with sea salt. The mixed grilled dish of pork, squid, chicken gizzards and beef rolled with shiso leaves were great and we’ll never forget the massive local oysters that were simply barbecued and served with a wedge of lemon.

A meal at a yatai doesn’t come cheap – but if you enjoy great food in unpretentious surroundings and hearty communal eating – this is the place to come when you’re ever in Fukuoka.