Ken Yakitori Bar Anzac

Ken Yakitori is my favourite restaurant in Auckland. I have been coming here for 20 years and it is always a great time. The food is delicious and the atmosphere is very cool and lively. They have a big selection of skewers and smaller dishes designed to be shared and also some larger dishes. Good selection of Japanese drinks too. Beer, whisky, sake etc…

Very good food although somewhat expensive. The yakitori combo is enjoyable in order to figure out what you like before ordering more. The small plates are good for sharing. I had the agedashi tofu on the side. It was very tasty as well with an excellent broth. Among the skewers, I really enjoyed the chicken meatballs, chicken thighs and chicken and cheese. As for drinks, the Oolong shochu was just okay. I wish they had the plum Zenkuro sake made on the South Island. As others have commented, the welcome you get is not as warm as it would be in Japan, especially from the owner. The staff are nice and prompt in service, which I appreciated. I also wish the chopsticks were real ones instead of disposable ones, to match the beautiful plates used.

We had read about this place before coming to Auckland for the World Cup and it did not disappoint. The portions are perfect and allow you to try multiple without getting full quickly. Definitely come here! Staff is all very friendly and attentive and made the experience pleasant along with the food. Worthy mentions: chicken with spring onion, okra wrapped with pork.

The best & authentic Yakitori joint I have ever been to in my life!!! Not only all the foods and drinks were great and authentic but also service provided was the one that made me really enjoy the whole experience while I was dining there. Its decors and atmosphere reminded me of good & traditional Yakitori venues in Japan as well. I found this place by accident. I went to a ramen joint nearby there and had a ramen and dumplings. I also wanted to have fried rice since I was super hungry without having lunch today. But that ramen joint don’t have it tonight (they had run out of it), so I checked if there was any other Japanese restaurant nearby. Ken Yakitori was just a minute away from there, so I went to check it out. They were full but there was a table open which was the smallest one they had. I took it since I was by myself and had no issue with it. Maybe after 30 minutes or so passed, 2 ladies at the counter left. Soon after that, 2 new customers arrived, so I thought they would give that space to these 2 new customers. To my big and pleasant surprise, one of the servers came up to me offering to move to that counter since it was more comfortable and I was at their venue before these new customers. He got me there! It was totally unexpected him to ask me if I wanted to move at all. What a caring person he was! I obviously declined since my table was too small for 2 people. 10 minutes or so passed and he came by asking me if I wanted to order more food or drink. Instead of ordering foods/drinks, I told him how much I appreciated his thoughtfulness and great hospitality. He then just said it was a natural thing for him to ask!!! What a great person he is and hospitality it was!!! With all that being said, I highly recommend this venue to everyone. I’ll definitely go back there next time when I’m in town without a doubt. FYI, all foods there were awesome but their Gyu tan (beef tongue) was my most favorite & AMAZING and the BEST I had ever had❤️❤️❤️