Yokohama Yakitori Koubou

This is more like 4.5 stars. I would give it 5 starts but it’s inconsistent. Some days everything is amazing and some days it’s just ok. This place is great for chicken, the beef is good but you come here for the chicken. if you want amazing beef got to Tsurahashi next door, I think they own that too. Yokohama is my go too spot for good food.
Tips:
Great place for late night eats (open until 1am)
Great for beer drinking and nibbling
Always order the chicken hearts
Kimchi side dish goes with everything
Takoyaki is good

Came back here for the second time, and I am absolutely amazed at their service during rush hour!
My friend said he did call to put us on the waitlist/​reservation! But when we got there, we were only acknowledged by the nice girl and we continued to stand in front of the entrance, huddled away from the cold, for about another 45 minutes.
LESSON 1: Be prepared to wait! (Even late night gets crowded…)
After a few death glares to slow customers (just kidding… I would never do that!) to urge them to eat faster, we were finally seated.
We quickly ordered:
–Quail eggs, chicken wings, chicken gizzard, chicken heart, beef tongue… /​/​The usual izakaya menu options. Still AMAZING as always!
–Wasabi octopus (appetizer) /​/​This isn’t the actual name, but that is literally what it is. Fresh, octopus, mixed with hints of wasabi and green onion. Refreshing and delicious!
–Edamame (appetizer) /​/​Standard. Actually a pretty big portion! It was good to munch on while we waited for our food.
-«Crispy tofu skin» /​/​I totally forget the name of this dish… but it’s sitting on the bar! It’s these thin, yellow sheets of tofu skin (I’m assuming) that is deep fried and then you can dip it in sauce! YUM! Nothing super special, but it is a classic Japanese snack, I hear.
-«Plum rice soup» /​/​Butchered the name again… but it’s a rice dish with soup! (So…technically congee.) The soup is plum flavored, and it’s very refreshing! An acquired taste, but a very classic Asian flavor.
–Namiki /​/​I GOT THIS NAME RIGHT! It’s a Japanese version of the Taiwanese dish «beef noodle soup» except it has no noodles but filled with lots of white radish, beef chunks and Japanese rice cake pieces (dark blotches in the photo). YUMMY! Super filling, heart-​warming and tastes amazing. Broth is delicious!
Pros:
–Amazing service. Our server is half Japanese and half Chinese so she speaks Mandarin, Japanese AND English! She is definitely helpful in recommending dishes if you are troubled.
–A calm mess. There is a Chinese saying that basically says «within the mess, there is organization.» And this place – chaotic and booming, was calm and composed. Everyone was enjoying their food and staff was on point. No one was slacking!
Cons:
–Long wait? Enjoyable places require longer waits… so it’s understandable!
Overall, I am in love with the skewers! TRY IT!

I love this place! The people are great and friendly. Nice atmosphere. I’ve tried yakyudori down the street and its not as good and the people aren’t as friendly. The taste is on point here. Love the kimchi and beef tongue the most! Weekly regular!

#4 of 100 Unilocal Review 2016
Wow, what awesome customer service! Most importantly, the yakitori taste great here too!
Admittedly, I usually go to the main yakitori spot Yakyudori. However, as a Unilocaler I need to give these other competing joints a chance. Glad I did, because I found out that you can drink a shot of milk with your booze and yakitori! Say what?
Came in around 5 pm on Sunday, and it was slow. Greeted with a sweet smile, the hostess sat me down right next to the grill, the best spot in the house. By default, I will have the strongest smell of Japanese grilling on my clothes by the time I leave. No complaints though.
Got an Asahi on draft and man the head was great. Great pour and goes well with the food. Ordered the shiso pork, chicken hearts, and chicken thighs skewers. Takoyaki is a must order, as the octopus inside was so chewy and tasty… Bonito flakes were waving hello as the heat simmered on the plate.
My goodness these skewers were so flavorful, it is quite an attraction that the cooks spend such detail into each skewer. Prices add up so make sure you are planning to spend at least 20 bucks per person to be satisfied. It’s all about the quality.
Gonna come here again, I am getting sleepy from the food coma. Arigato Yokohama!

BEST YAKITORI! I have gone to yakitori yakyudori ramen near Starbucks, but this place is amazing! Since yakitori ramen closes early. I was craving yakitori. Their quantity is a good amount, for an awesome price! Price is a lot cheaper than yakitori yakyudori ramen. I highly recommend this place, and they close at 2am!!! As much as people late at night get cravings, they are able to fulfill your Japanese bbq.
CUSTOMER SERVICE? AMAZING!
They always made sure we had water in our cup, they made sure we were enjoying our food. Very convenient when I asked them what kind of sauces they had for the bbq. They knew so much! They’re the type that you would be willing to listen to about their restaurant and what they serve. I will definitely go here for bbq again. It was really good! I enjoyed it! & I hope you all as well!

We were craving for some yakitori and decided to try this place since it was open late. Me and DH both ordered rice bowls (karaage for me, beef for him) and also got omakase whih consisted of 6 skewers selected by the chef for $ 15. For the price, we ended up getting two of that.
Ambience was not bad, not cramped. Service was decent. Now onto the food — our bowls were really yummy and they gave a lot. I even had enough for lunch the next day. However, the omakase yakitori was really disappointing. It was just grilled meats with not that much flavor. You would think that for omakase they will bring out some of their best to offer but that wasn’t the case here. Some of the skewers were a little too sweet (sauced up) for my palate. Maybe we’ll go back again for the bowls some time.
Btw, parking lot is big but if you go during prime hours, you’ll be circling the lot for a while.

Decent cost but not super tasty.
Ambience is typical Japanese izakaya. not luxury but cozy.
Sometimes servers are short hand, service is kinda slow and not attentive. But not boring ambience.

Never really been to a Japaneses restaurant as unique as this one! Probably one of the few restaurants you can get authentic Japaneses food late at night. The place is very small with an open kitchen. The dinning area is filled with crazy Japanese decors. I love everything about this place!
They serve tasty little portions, just as if you were ordering from a street vendor. We did a family style ordering, in which everyone orders whatever and shares the dish. Believe or not, but my favorite dish or item were the chicken livers! Favor so rich i thought i was a millionaire!
Before you drink an alcoholic beverage, they give you a shot of milk to help your stomach.
Overall, the food was delicious and the service was beyond superb. I really enjoyed my visit here and looking forward to coming again!

If you ever wanted to feel how it is like to experience a real Japanese street food cart and drinking while socializing with friends. This is the place, exactly the type of places and look and enjoy!
The reason I say this is because they offer small delicious portions of meals in which feels like you were walking downtown Japan and came up across one of the food carts. The price is ridiculously affordable by the way for such good food. I would recommend trying the chicken gizzard, heart and liver in a stick. They are small skewers with about 4 – 5 pieces in each skew. The plate of fries are definitely another good finger food as for $ 4 you are rewarded with a mountain full!
Aside from the food the drinks are all served with a shot of milk. Which I learned from our lovely waiter that it helps coat the stomach so you don’t get intoxicated too quickly. Therefore you can drink more… that’s great right!
If you are ever near, give this place a try and especially if you want a small taste of Japan! It’ll be a similar idea of how visiting Japan would be

I came here last night at midnight (so glad they are open late!!) and it was my first time having Yakitori. I came with a good friend of mine who is Japanese and he suggested because in his opinion it is fairly authentic. The service was good and the waitress kept checking on us.
What I ordered:
Rice, Calpico & Soju (Really good, would order more if I wasn’t driving)
Skewers — Prime Beef Short Rib, Prime Beef Tongue, & the Chicken + Salmon&Corn
I thought the beef was pretty tender and it went well with the rice. I really enjoyed the Chicken+Salmon&Corn because I love chicken, salmon, and corn. Haha! And for less than $ 3? More, please!
Parking is super easy if you come late night because I believe everything else is closed in the plaza. When I came here, it was just for a late night snack and I didn’t order too much. I am wary about coming here if I am hungry because I could easily see myself spending $ 20 – 30 on food alone.

Taste– ****
Ambiance– ***
Service– ****
Parking– *****
This place is legit! Came here 11pm and the place was still packed. One of the best places in SD open late. Everything I got off the menu was absolutely delicious, especially the fried chicken cartilage, chicken heart skewers and beef stew. Mm-​good. Great for hanging out with friends and sharing some smalls plates with a few drinks.

Firstly, make reservations for this place because it gets packed! As for parking, there is a bunch of parking in the back so go straight to the back instead of circling the lot a kajillion times like I did. Now, onto the food…
I ordered the negima (chicken thigh with leeks), pork belly, koubou gurume yaki (chicken breast with special sauce), and sunagimo karaage (deep fried gizzards with ponzu). The yakitori come chargrilled and the meat was juicy and flavorful. We ordered the chicken breast with wasabi and that was by far THE SPICIEST wasabi I have ever tried. It burned me to my core and I’m a hardcore wasabi-​ist. My only complaint with the yakitori was that the portions seemed a little smaller than most places. It’s never usually a lot of meat to begin with considering it’s on a skewer, but it seemed like it was 1 stack too short.
My favorite dish was the sunagimo karaage. That tangy ponzu sauce really helped complement the oiliness of the deep fried gizzards. It was a nice snack to wash down with some ice cold Asahi. The oddest part of my meal was that they gave me a shot of milk to go with my beer. It’s supposed to help with digestion or hangover? Not really sure this is true, but hey, I could always use the extra calcium.

I am a BIG fan of yakotori (or Japanese food in general). I love how they open till 2am, it gives people a lot more flexibility for a late dinner.
For some strange reasons, I never liked any American dark beer, but Asahi Black is my always goto in Japanese restaurant if they do have it. Yum!
Food:
Chicken Crackers — A pretty good appetizer, crunchy and savory. Although I have to admit that I have no idea what I was eating, just tasted like something thin and very fried. But fried food is always good…
Takowasa — It wasn’t bad, but they put a lot of green onions, and I… don’t like green onions :(
Skewers — My favorites were chicken hearts, chicken skin, and the pork belly. Beef tongues were huge cubes but they were too tough to eat.
Too bad they ran out of chicken liver that night, will be back to try more skewers!

I’ve been here a bunch of times and still have not written a review on it. I love that they open late, so always a good option to stop by after some drinking and get some yakitori to chill out and sober up. OR start off here with yakitori and beer. Come on now. yakitori and beer are meant to go together. The food is never disappointing and is always delicious.
Goods:
+ Chicken Gizzards
+ Chicken Hearts
+ Chicken Skin in Ponzu
+ Beef Tongue
+ Garlic
+ Takowasa
+ Daily specials are usually good and often sell out!
+ Servers are prompt and food comes out fairly quick.
So So:
– Beers only come in bottles and pints. no pitchers.
– Long wait times.
Once you get a table, you could end up here for a while. I’ll definitely be back for more.

Service was friendly and preparation was fast but nothing come out too quickly and made you wonder if it were pre-​cooked.
Dining area is a bit dim but there’s enough light to see that the floors are clean.
Yakitori were good. Meat quality was decent and seasoning wasn’t heavy.
Ground pork bowl was good.
Beef and egg bowl was also ok.
Over all, nothing astonishingly good, but it was satisfying.
Does this even qualify as a review?

4 stars
My second time here at Koubou. After my experience at Yakitori Taisho, I have to give this place ½ less of a star. All the kushiyaki were cooked just right and seasoning was on point. However, finished aroma and the smoky taste of the charcoal just couldn’t compare to Taisho’s.
This place is very group friendly and has more selections in terms of beyond the grill variety. They also have draught beer. Service was friendly.
But I would go to Taisho if I am craving just the skewers.

Looking for an authentic Japanese dining experience? This spot is up to par with what you’d expect at a yakitori joint in Japan. Everything from the way the plates are served up to the service is on point. And they aren’t too crowded on any given night in comparison to the other yakitori spots around the area.
You can order plenty of animal body parts! Yes, they have tongue, liver, heart, gizzards and other tasty organs that’ll make your mouth water. The skewers are grilled to perfection and come with complementing sauces that pair up just right!
Bringing a vegetarian/​vegan friend? They’re covered as well with the vegetable skewers (which are quite tasty as well).
The Takowasa here is also on point! If you aren’t up on game with what it is, it is wasabi drenched octopus bits served up in a little bowl. The portion isn’t too big but it’ll get your palate worked up for the tasty skewers they’ll be bringing to you. Takowasa pairs up very well with beer or sake too!
Don’t expect to get entirely stuffed by just the skewers. They do have some decent rice dishes and noodles to choose from if you’re looking for a proper meal. My friends and I usually come here just to have an outing while we converse over some tasty organs and a cold brew or two.
Get your grub on and wash it down with a cold beer! Oh, don’t forget to take the shot of milk before you start knocking back those cold ones.

Ive never been to Japan so i cant say how authentic this is but i do know the food in this restaurant is pretty damn good.
Ive been here a few times and each time i try something new ive never been let down. The last time i came here i ordered Nippon no Nikomi, salmon nigiri, deep fried cheese wonton skin and pork belly asparagus. All of it delicious! Nippon no Nikomi was glorious. Good flavorful stew with pork that melts in your mouth goodness. The pork belly asparagus is divine. As soon as you take a bite the saltiness of pork and freshness of asparagus makes your palate sing and dance to a delectable tune. I love cheese and that deep fried cheese roll wonton skin was perfect in every way. It is a perfect combo of crunchy texture that goes very well with gooey melted cheese. Salmon nigiri is a classic for me as i also make it and that was also done well.
This restaurant get super busy but staff are friendly and does pay attention when your drink needs to be refilled. Parking does fill up quick on busy days so you might find yourself parking on the streets.
I love this place and I can’t wait to come back here to try out more items in their menu!

I have been here numerous times since my last review and I love it every single time. This place is my definite go to for yakitori goodness. The quality is high, but the quantity is low. I know it’s a sad sacrifice, but for the flavor and quality of the food, this place has always been one of my favorite places to go. Where else can I get consistently amazing tasting yakitori and food in San Diego? So far, this is my go to.
Food:
Negima (Chicken Thigh with Leeks): Juicy, tender, and lightly seasoned pieces of dark meat chicken without any tendon or cooked blood. The leeks were tasty, soft, and had a nice grilled flavor to it. They went really well with the chicken and it was even tastier with the sauce that was served on the side.
Shiso: A thin slice of pork rolled with a shiso leaf. Really tasty if you enjoy shiso because the tender and juicy pork complements it well.
Spicy Cabbage Kimchi: The skewer which is not to be confused with the kimchi a la carte on the green portion of the menu. Tender, juicy, and thin sliced pork rolled up with kimchi which is cooked together and tips with a spicy mayo. Delicious! This is my favorite thing to order here.
(Homemade) Chicken Gyoza: Tasty seasoned ground chicken with diced green onion and strong notes of minced ginger. The seasoned soy sauce with sesame seeds and diced green onions was light yet flavorful. I did enjoy this from the light breading to the pan fried crunch but the strong ginger notes will deter me from ordering it again. Though if you like ginger even a little bit, I would highly recommend it (I just happen to hate ginger and need to enjoy it in smaller amounts).
Beef Tongue: This is still more recommended for the adventurous types because it is a bit thick. However, the pieces were tender and juicy considering it was the tongue and cooked to a perfect medium rare. This was lightly seasoned but it was fantastic!
Takoyaki: Six tasty hot morsels that come on sticks. There was no crust that I typically enjoy but the flavor was all there! From the soft inside to the chewy octopus and the savory sauce to the creamy kewpie, it was tasty and filling.
Miso Soup: A light broth with miso flavor and a bit of saltiness to it. It’s what you expect out of a miso soup with the bonus of seaweed and diced green onions.
Special Fried Noodle With Sunny Side Up (egg), Miso Soup: Pretty oily noodles, but if you can get past them they are pretty tasty in an interesting way. It’s hard to break down because it was tangy and salty yet sweet. The thin sliced pork was perfectly cooked and not dry at all. The shredded carrot was a nice touch. The sunny side up egg with the yolk at a soft boiled yet firm consistency was interesting and tasty. The seaweed flakes added a nice touch of color to the dish. This also came with a side of shredded pickled ginger and kewpie but it tasted fine without that. Not to mention I’m not a fan a ginger so maybe those who enjoy it might like the ginger with it.
Beef Bowl: I was amazed on how delicious this was! Tender and juicy cubes of beef that tastes slow cooked with a tangy yet sweet sauce. The perfectly cooked rice reminds me of the really nice sushi rice seasoned nicely with a subtle sweet tang. The shredded pickled ginger I brushed to the side and ate the rest.
Overall, I still love this place but I won’t go here starving like a crazed monster. I love the great and friendly service, the privacy of the tables as every section is blocked off by a wall, and the really tasty food. The atmosphere is intimate yet inviting. I will definitely be back here again!

I have traveled to Japan and I can confirm that fat people do not exist on that island. During my stay, I hypothesized that Japanese people do not get fat because their serving sizes are meant for ants. I’ve conducted my experiment in Japanese restaurants all over San Diego and my results show that Japanese people slim and trim because their dishes are so tiny.
The reviews are true, people!!! Although, Yokohama Yakiyori Koubu has fantastic food, the portions are so small. You better bring the big bucks if you want to get full (or if you wanna bring me). You are charged PER skewer and each one ranges from $ 1.50 to $ 3.99, but daaaaayum, they are grilled to taste just like the yakitori off the streets of Japan in the mouth. The interior, atmosphere, and service also makes me feel like I’m dining in Tokyo. So kawaii ^_​°
The bar is lined up with kawaii sake and soju bottles making it exxxtra tempting for me to get faded and x-​rated with my husband while dining. This is an ideal place to keep things «light» before the «dessert at home» nomsayin? They offer the Koubou Special Service on their menu, which is basically a free shot of milk before your drinks because apparently it’s a hangover cure. Cool idea, right? Well not if you’re lactose because then your night is going to be ruined… and shitty, literally.
We ordered 20 skewers, the deep fried chicken gizzards (best item on the menu), and the special skewer bowl. I asked my waitress if the chicken crackers were good since everyone on Unilocal is going buck over them. She offered me a sample and of course you guys are going psycho over them. They’re, like, the worst possible thing to order. They’re crunchy, deep fried chicken skins served with some kind of mayo/​egg salad dip. Needless to say, it was delish.
The only thing that really pissed me off here is the parking. The parking here on a Friday and Saturday night sucks donkey d. If you experience a hit and run in this parking lot, don’t be mad because I said it and you read it!!! I’ll still be coming back though… except next time I’ll be more drunk and I’ll be ordering more skewers.