Cartilage and scallion skewers at Yakitori Iyu, a Hongdae yakitori bar

I wanted to eat skewers in a nice atmosphere in Hongdae, and that's how I ended up at Yakitori Iyu. Part of the fun of yakitori is watching the skewers grilled directly over charcoal or open flame, and here, sitting at the bar table lets you watch the grilling happen right in front of you, which made the meal even more enjoyable.

This time I ordered the five-skewer assortment and added scallion and asparagus separately as individual orders. Every skewer had good juiciness and a moist texture with a subtle smoky flavor, so overall it was a really tasty meal.

Of all the different parts, the cartilage skewer with its slight crunch was my favorite. The chewy texture was fun and the meat flavor really came through, so it stuck with me.

What kind of bar is Yakitori Iyu in Hongdae?

It's a great place to visit when you're looking for yakitori or an izakaya in Hongdae. There are plenty of good restaurants and bars nearby, so it also has a nice vibe for a light drink alongside your meal.

True to a yakitori specialty shop, the menu is built around skewers, so it suits people who want to try a little of many different parts.

Where to sit at Yakitori Iyu: the bar table

Personally, the seat I'd recommend most is the bar table.

Part of the fun of yakitori is watching how your ordered skewers get grilled, and sitting at the bar table lets you watch the staff grill the skewers up close.

Watching them lay each skewer on the grill and flip it one by one builds anticipation even before the food arrives. You can immediately feel the smoky aroma rising off the skewers over the charcoal, so you get to properly enjoy the atmosphere unique to a yakitori restaurant.

It's a great spot to visit with a friend, and just as fitting for having a casual drink while working through the skewers one by one.

Five-skewer assortment plus scallion and asparagus skewers

This time I ordered the five-skewer assortment.

Since you can try several parts at once, ordering the assortment is a good way to go if you're not sure which skewers to pick on your first visit.

On top of that, I added the scallion and asparagus, which I'd personally been wanting to try, as individual orders.

Rather than eating only meat skewers the whole time, mixing in vegetable skewers now and then adds variety to the flavors, so it was good to order them together.

How do the skewers taste? Juices and charcoal smoke

The part I was most satisfied with was, as expected, the texture of the meat.

With every bite, the meat wasn't dry at all and felt full of juice. The inside was moist while the outside carried a subtle smoky flavor, letting me properly enjoy the taste unique to yakitori.

That slightly charred aroma you only get from grilled food paired well with the meat, and the seasoning wasn't overly strong, so it was easy to pair with the sauces.

Each part had a slightly different texture, which made it fun to try one by one. Especially with the combination of moist meat and smoky flavor, once you finish one skewer you naturally reach for the next.

The best skewer at Yakitori Iyu: cartilage

Of all the skewers, the one I liked most was the cartilage.

The slight crunch that's unique to cartilage was really good. It's not all soft meat — the crunchy bits in between give the texture a real presence.

I tend to like this kind of chewy yet crunchy texture, so it really suited my taste. With the added smoky flavor, the more you chew, the nuttier it tastes, making it personally the most memorable skewer for me.

Three sauces: cheongyang chili pesto and shichimi

I also liked that there were three types of sauce prepared.

Pairing it with the cheongyang chili pesto (a spicy green chili pesto) cleanly cuts through the meat's richness, while the shichimi (a Japanese seven-spice blend) adds a slightly spicy, fragrant note, so even the same skewer can taste different depending on the sauce.

The skewers themselves were already delicious with their own seasoning and smoky flavor, but switching sauces little by little like this was also fun.

Is the scallion skewer worth adding?

I also added scallion separately, and it was nice to eat one every so often between meat skewers.

Grilled scallion has a completely different appeal from raw scallion. The outside gets slightly charred while the inside softens, bringing out the natural sweetness of the scallion itself.

After eating meat skewers continuously, having scallion alongside changed the feel in my mouth a bit, and the combination worked well. If you want to eat meat and vegetables together, it seems worth adding.