had an incredible experience and some of the best yakitori I’ve had in la from photographer/writer and yakitori enthusiast dylan james ho of tori! tory! toré!
Dylan has eaten at hundreds of yakitoriyas throughout Japan and is completely self taught and has been honing his technique for the past three years.
tori! tory! toré! (an ode to one of dylan’s favorite r&b groups, Toni! Tony! Toné) is a private yakitori dining experience at your own home. the host provides the drinks, outdoor space and seating and dylan and his team provides the rest.
there’s an 8 person minimum and 15 person max, it’s 200pp with the option to add A5 wagyu, uni, or amish chicken from pennsylvania. we added the amish chicken for an extra 20pp
special thanks to @hppzz and kim for the hospitality and hosting this event.
kyuri キュウリ
nice refreshing starter
soup 鳥スープ
intense chicken-y broth from all the chicken carcasses with chicken wontons and tokyo negi. highlight.
sasami (tenders)
loved the use of nori here. the tender was cooked with some of dylan’s excellent tare.
shiitake 椎茸
umami on a stick, I think this was cooked with schmaltz.
hatsu (hearts) ハツ
three different hearts all in one stick. special heart with all the ventricles and arteries at the bottom. skewer of the night?
teba x3 (wings/flats/drum)
fish sauce caramel drums. not too salty and perfect balance of sweet, salt and heat. > pok pok fish sauce wings. highlight.
that skin tent 
okra オクラ
high heat = no slime
kashira (pork jowls) かしら
another skewer of the night. jowl can be way too rich but dylan’s didn’t taste overly fatty, negi was a nice complement.
mune shiso (breast shiso)
Dylan tried this out on us for the first time and damn another winner. that amish breast was perfectly cooked and was just elevated by the shiso and that slice of japanese processed cheese. skewer of the night.
tofu 有馬豆腐
Dylan’s play on mapo tofu with meiji tofu and ground chicken. highlight.
uzura (quail eggs) うずら
I think these were cooked for exactly 2 minutes and 20 seconds and then smoked with some rice straw. delicious.
kashiwa (thigh) かしわ
wow, okay this is the skewer of the night. this was made out of skin, thigh, oysters, and inner thigh with a bit of yuzu kosho and had so many incredible textures and flavors, crisp, smoke, snap, fatty, soft… highlight.
zucchini ズッキーニ
more umami, loved the grated pecorino on top.
tsukune (chx meatball) ハノイのつくね
possibly the best tsukune I’ve ever had. texture was incredibly soft with bits of texture and that egg yolk sauce is drinkable. highlight.
the chicken and egg
yamaimo (mtn. yam)
great crunch and flavor from some miso
momo (thigh steak)
chicken steaks with some vietnamese scallion oil. delicious. highlight.
bonus rounds
wings with curry salt
fish sauce caramel wing tips
just the tip
delicious homemade tofu pudding with ginger syrup courtesy of @hppzz
fin
are 
Skewers were outstanding! Dylan is is a wizard with the konro and a wealth of knowledge when it comes to yakitori and Japan. His sous was none other than Marc Johnson, original CDC of Majordomo! Enjoyed the entire menu, along with extra foie lobes on toast with some homemade fig jam. Anyone thinking of hiring a private chef for an incredible evening at home, look no further than Tori! Tory! Tore!
But overall it was such a great experience: great food, great chefs, great company!