Roasted chicken thigh worth the wait at Japanese mountain resort

Lines outside of restaurants are as common in Japan as cherry blossoms and always beg the question, what is going on in there?

Passing a gathering line outside Wakadori, a small izakaya-style restaurant in Karuizawa, a mountain resort town a 2 ½-hour drive west of Tokyo, I was intrigued enough to find out. With my name on the waitlist, I parked on the lone wooden bench and scanned the reviews online from my smartphone. “The chicken thigh ... juicy, fragrant. And the rice with bonito soup + plum ... absolutely divine. Wholesome,” said one from August 2023.

“Chicken is the main course and you should absolutely try their specialty: mushiri,” read another from a year earlier. Anticipation played its part in winding up the dining experience — from the 20-minute wait outside, underneath a whisper of awning, while an approaching storm rumbled and threatened overhead, to watching the cook do his thing from a counter seat facing the kitchen.

Without having to read the reviews, it’s clear Wakadori is a family business, and judging on appearances, it’s a three-generation operation, at least, from the young man working the counter and taking orders to the school-age girl delivering those orders to the older gentleman cooking the chicken. He worked at a darkened grill encased, cavelike, beneath a metal hood.

Small, covered pots swirled steam like brewing potions over blue gas flames. A long, covered pan minded carefully by the cook served to steam and roast the chicken.

Above him, on the steel kitchen hood, were displayed two pieces of elementary school art, with stick figure bodies and one-dimensional oversized heads and curls that say, “Mom.”

Wakadori, a modestly-sized izakaya in Karuizawa, Japan, roasts a tasty chicken thigh. (Joseph Ditzler/Stars and Stripes)

On the grill beneath them, next to the bubbling potions, the chicken slowly roasted until the seasoned skin turned thin and crispy, the interior white and moist. I resisted the urge to swallow my 8-ounce bottle of Coke — transplanted to a short glass with a ration of ice cubes — until the chicken arrived, which it did after roasting to perfection as my appetite heightened.

I dug in, pulling the thigh apart with my fork, peeling away the skin and shredding the meat to bite-size chunks. A small pot at each seat holds a rustic kind of delicious, chunky sauce, with hints of smoke, an earthy aroma and just the right amount of sweetness.

The verdict: This is good chicken, moist and easily shredded, and it disappears before it cools. Wakadori serves up more than its signature mushiri. The menu board outside beckons hungry passersby with karaage, yakitori, tebasaki (chicken wings) and bento versions of all three, along with katsu don, a breaded pork fillet over rice and a few other options. The atmosphere is right, too. The close space where diners squeeze into their tables or into their counter seats suggests intimacy. A charming family choreography on a kitchen stage begs contemplation on a life committed to roasting perfect chicken.

Wakadori

Location: 3-4 Karuizawa, Karuizawa-machi, Kitasaku-gun, Nagano, Japan

Directions: From the Karuizawa Station, exit on the north side and follow the main street about 500 yards. Look for the Wakadori entrance and sign board on the right.

Hours: Open daily except Tuesdays, 5 p.m. to 9 p.m.; closed two Wednesdays a month.

Prices: Cash only. Menu items range from 500 yen, or about $3.14, to 1,500 yen. Mushiri is 1,250 yen per thigh.

Dress: Casual.

Information: Online: wakadori-karuizawa.jp