I could watch Sarah make cocktails all day. Photo: Kazuri Photography.
Yakitori 38 has just launched its new cocktail menu, and there is something on there for every cocktail enthusiast’s palate.
Heady, strong, light, refreshing, citrusy, exotic, classic – all created with care and lots of experimentation to get the flavours and balance just right.
We love coming to Yakitori. The Japanese tapas bar, drawing inspiration from the leisurely pace of the bars in Osaka, offers a relaxed space for friends and families to connect over delectable share plates, Japanese wines and signature cocktails.
This night, we are excited to taste the freshly curated cocktails on offer and see them being made up close and personal.
Mixologists Sarah and Noah have been working hard to develop their new range.
Sarah takes us through each one.
Yakitori’s new cocktails are pretty and diverse. Photo: Kazuri Photography.
The Kirroi Garden is quite gin-forward but also bright and floral-hued with a hint of aniseed. My friend loves it and tells me, “It is like stepping into a Greek garden that has all the old florals as well as all the herbs and earthiness”.
Noah has created the Mandarin Matsuri. Matsuri means ‘festival’, and this cocktail is undoubtedly a celebration of sweet, tangy fruit. Bright, juicy and mandarin-forward, you can’t really taste the alcohol, and there is a hit of thyme at the end. It imbues a freshly picked-from-the-tree mandarin.
Hidden Leaf tastes light and spritzy. It is bursting with lychee, laced with lime leaf and so easy to drink.
The iced matcha latte is my favourite: chilled, creamy, sweet and luscious.
“I wanted it to have an almost ice-cream feel,” Sarah says. She nailed the brief.
Golden Wind is very spirit-forward – a stiff drink based on rye whiskey, highlighted with the honeyed crispness of nashi pear. “We make our own pear oleo with cardamom,” Sarah tells us. “And add a little vinegar to balance it out, with clove bitters bringing it all together.”
Miso Butter Blazer, the bar’s headliner, is a hot cocktail, stiff with cognac and whisky.
“And then we put a teaspoon of miso butter in. It is a really rich, full mouthful. We melt it with the blowtorch and light it on fire.”
We watch, transfixed, as Sarah creates the bar’s headliner with all the theatre and precision of a magician.
Sarah creating the bar’s headliner: Miso Butter Blazer. Photo: Kazuri Photography.
Of course, we need some snacks as we sip.
Yakitori’s lotus chips are just incredible. A must-try! Thinly shaved lotus that is lightly battered in potato starch, fried until crispy, then drizzled with house-made sticky sweet and salty soy sauce and finally topped with parmigiano reggiano. The chip’s delightful crunch and earthy deliciousness shine through the toppings. They reign supreme!
We also tuck into skewers from all portions of the chicken. The wing skewers and chicken thigh skewers with spring onion are traditionally yakitori-grilled over charcoal. The natural flavours from the char and kiss of the flame shine through in these skewers. Every mouthful is delightful.
Chicken heart skewers, glazed sweet and sticky. Photo: Kazuri Photography
Which cocktail has your name on it?
Yakitori 38 is located at Shop 19/21 East Row in the Sydney Building. It is open from 5 pm until late Tuesday to Saturday. Follow Yakitori 38 on Facebook and Instagram, and check out the menus.
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