Birthday dinner a day late @torishin_ny - a place I fell in love with when they were in a smaller space on the Upper East Side. Chef @ats223 has taught me more about chicken than I ever thought I would know. He also taught me to love tare (たれ sauce) with my yakitori to the point I am almost always disappointed with shio (塩 salt). Here he has served me the rarest of parts, in NYC anyway, kanzou (肝臓 kidney), which has the flavor of liver with the texture of the aorta. Barely visible is sansho (山椒 Japanese pepper), which comes from a similar plant as Chinese Sichuan pepper, but with less heat and the same numbing qualities. A perfect match with kidney yakitori prepared wiry Kono-san's tare. In the glass? Kiroku sweet potato shochu from Kuroki Honten in Miyazaki Prefecture. The fermentation is made in 2 story oak tanks and you can still taste a bit of the wood. That oakiness also compliments the sansho pepper. #eatingnyc #eatingjapan #eater #drinkingjapan #japaneats #japandrinks #yakitori #torishin #michelin #kidney #sansho #山椒 #焼き鳥 #たれ #肝臓 #焼酎 #芋焼酎 #きろく#宮崎焼酎 #shochu (at Tori Shin)