Chicken wings. Who doesn’t love them!
Vegetarians, maybe. And apparently even Japanese people until a couple of decades ago. When you consider that they are now anywhere and everywhere in restaurants in Japan, we’d forgive you for calling us liars if we told you that in the past they would be thrown out as garbage because no one knew how to prepare delicious chicken wings. Can you believe it? What a waste!
Thankfully Amaterasu (Japan’s sun goddess) herself guided Yamachan (who we will introduce to you shortly!) to create what is now simply a staple in any Japanese restaurant, especially in Nagoya, where you’d be hard pushed not to find them. In Japanese, chicken wings are called Tebasaki. Let us introduce you to the best places to try Tebasaki in Nagoya!
Article Contents
Where Can I Find These Delicious Wings of Which You Speak?
Most Izakaya (Japanese bars) in Nagoya serve their own version of Tebasaki with special spices and secret recipes. But there are a couple of restaurants and Izakaya you really cannot miss if you want to try the best and most famous Tebasaki in Nagoya, which we would like to introduce to you in this article.
Sekai No Yamachan
For your first experience of Nagoya-style chicken wings, we recommend Sekai no Yamachan. While Yamachan may not have created Tebasaki, he certainly was instrumental in making them famous and is the face of Tebasaki in Nagoya. You can see his cheeky grin all over the city as he beckons you towards a night of good eating and drinking.
One serving of their famous chicken wings called Maboroshi Tebasaki is served with 5 pieces. The chicken wings are deep-fried without batter and seasoned with a delicious mix of spices, salt, and a LOT of pepper.
The other variation Kurotebasaki which means black chicken wings is 3 pieces and is Worcestershire sauce-flavored which gives it its black color and sweet taste.
Yamachan has devised a special method of eating chicken wings easily and without leaving any meat on the bone. You can find the instructions on the chopstick wrapper (in Japanese) or on their website (in English). Try it!
While chicken wings are their staple dish, Yamachan serves many other local Nagoya dishes such as Ankake Spaghetti, Teppan Spaghetti, and Miso Katsu. You can also order Kishimen or Tenmusu.
Sekai no Yamachan has so many stores in Nagoya it feels like they are around every corner. We suggest you type ‘Sekai no Yamachan’ or simply ‘Yamachan’ in Google Maps to find the store closest to you. They have an English menu as well to help guide you through the wall of Kanji (Chinese characters)!
Here is one of the closer ones from Nagoya station that may be convenient for you during your visit.
Sekai no Yamachan Nagoya Station Eastern Shop (世界の山ちゃん 名古屋駅東店）
Opening Hours: 17:00 – 24:00
Address: 4-16-27 Meieki, Nakamura Ward, Nagoya, Aichi 450-0002
Access: You can walk directly from Nagoya station which will take approximately 5 minutes or alternatively, take the train to Kokusai Center on the red line and it’s a 2-minute walk from there.
Website | Google Maps
Furaibo
Yamachan may be more well-known, but Furaibo is said to be the one that really started it all with what may have been the first shop to sell Tebasaki in Nagoya. Their chicken wings come in servings of 5, seasoned with a sweet and spicy sauce perfect for the whole family. They also have a special method of eating chicken wings without leaving any meat on the bone. You will find the explanation at your table.
Furaibo is still very popular so don’t be surprised if there’s a bit of a wait before you get your table, but it’ll be well worth it!
You can find multiple locations around Nagoya Station, one in the Esca Underground Shopping Street and one each on either side of the station. Other shops are located in Sakae District, the downtown area of Nagoya.
Furaibo Meieki Century Toyota Building Shop （風来坊 名駅センチュリー豊田ビル店）
Opening Hours: 15:30 – 22:30. Closed Sundays
Address: Century Toyota Building B1F 4-9-8 Meieki, Nakamura Ward, Nagoya Aichi 450-0002
Access: Approximately a 5-minute walk from Nagoya Station
Website (Japanese only) | Google Maps
Maka Maka Honten
Located in Sakae District, Maka Make Honten serves two kinds of chicken wings: Kin no Tebasaki (top of the picture, Golden Chicken Wings) and Gin no Tebasaki (bottom of the picture, Silver Chicken Wings). They are made from Nagoya Cochin, a special kind of chicken breed from Nagoya. The meat of Nagoya Cochin Chicken is said to be rich in Umami and to have a special texture. It is one of only three nationally protected chicken breeds.
Kin no Tebasaki are seasoned with a special soy sauce blend topped with cayenne and black pepper and the golden color comes from white sesame.
Gin no Tebasaki, on the other hand, is seasoned with a salty sauce with a hint of garlic. It is topped with black sesame which is supposed to represent the silver color.
Maka Maka is not only specialized in chicken wings but serves other local Nagoya specialties such as Hitsumabushi, Miso Katsu, and Dote Ni. They also serve a Nagoya Style Keichan Yaki, a mix of Nagoya Cochin (a specially bred chicken with a great texture and rich Umami flavor) and Hatcho Miso, the special dark red Miso from Aichi.
Maka Maka Honten (まかまか本店)
Opening Hours: 17:00 – 24:00
Address: GK Building 2F 3-11-13 Sakae, Naka Ward, Nagoya, Aichi 460-0008
Access: About a 10-minute walk from either Fushimi, Sakae or Yabacho station
Website (Japanese only) | Google Maps
Torikai
Torikai also serves Nagoya Cochin Chicken dishes at many locations around Nagoya. Their most famous dish is Oyakodon (chicken and egg on rice) but they also serve delicious Tebasaki, which are made from Nagoya Cochin, and seasoned with only the best salt and sauce before being fried to perfection. You can also order a Tabekurabe set which will let you compare the Nagoya Cochin chicken wings to normal chicken wings.
The chicken wings at Torikai are so special that they have won the Karaage Grand Prix in the category chicken wings for 3 years in a row.
Torikai Nagoya Station West Shop (鳥開 名駅西口店）
Opening Hours: 17:00 – 22:00. Closed Sundays.
Address: 1-7-15 Noritake, Nakamura Ward, Nagoya, Aichi 453-0014
Access: A 4-minute walk from the west exit of Nagoya Station.
Website (Japanese only) | Google Maps
Torigin
At Torigin, you are served only the best and freshest kind of Nagoya Cochin. Slaughtered the same day – that’s as fresh as fresh gets! They serve their Tebasaki in sets of 2. Specialized in Nagoya Cochin, you can enjoy many other dishes made with Nagoya Cochin such as Nagoya Cochin Nabe, Nagoya Cochin Skewers and even Nagoya Cochin Sashimi, which is raw chicken meat. This may sound like a recipe for salmonella, but it’s not! The meat is so fresh that there is little cause for concern there and we’ll leave it up to you whether you challenge yourself with that one.
The atmosphere at Torigin is also spectacular. A traditional Japanese building with a Japanese garden you can overlook while eating in one of the private rooms.
Torigin is a short walk from Sakae or Hisayaodori Station in the downtown Sakae district.
Torigin (鳥銀)
Opening Hours: 17:00 – 23:30 Mon-Thurs, Sun and National Holidays. 17:00 – 24:30 Fri-Sat and the day before a National Holiday.
Address: Miyagi Building 3-14-14-22 Nishiki, Naka Ward, Nagoya, Aichi 460-0003
Access: A 2-minute walk from Sakae station.
Website (Japanese only) | Google Maps
Misen
For a different kind of Tebasaki, visit Misen. This restaurant serving Chinese and Taiwanese dishes has a delicious variation of Tebasaki that is cooked in a spicy sauce. The meat is so tender it almost falls off the bone and the spiciness has a real kick to it. With a glass of beer (or Oolong Tea if you prefer), you won’t be able to stop eating these chicken wings.
Their specialty, by the way, is not Tebasaki, but rather Taiwan Ramen, another true Nagoya staple that we would highly recommend, especially if you like it spicy!
The main shop of Misen is located at Imaike Station but there are convenient restaurants close to Nagoya Station, and one in Yaba between Osu and Sakae.
Misen Imaike Main Shop (味仙 今池本店 )
Opening Hours: 11:00 – 21:00 (until Feb 13th, 2022)
Address: 1-12-10 Imaike, Chikusa Ward, Nagoya, Aichi 464-0850
Access: A 2-minute walk from Imaike station on the yellow line.
Website (Japanese only) | Google Maps
Tebasaki as a Souvenir
You may be shocked to find out that you can buy vacuum-sealed chicken wings at gift shops in Nagoya. They keep for a surprisingly long time (even up to a couple of months), and all you have to do after you have brought them home is fry them and enjoy your own delicious chicken wings from Nagoya.
But be careful! Unfortunately, you cannot take raw meat to most countries, so if you want to take them back with you abroad, you should first check the regulations in your country. Imagine being held at customs over chicken wings!
If you want to go with a safer option to take home, alternatively you could buy chicken wing-flavored snacks as a souvenir from the vast number of souvenir shops in Nagoya.
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