Nobosemon

Settle in for a generous serving of charcoal-grilled Chiran chicken, or choose a few skewers wrapped in vegetables. At Nobosemon, you can shape your meal around Kyushu dishes and whatever you feel like eating. The signature “Absolutely Essential Special Thigh Grill” comes in half, regular and large portions of about 70g, 120g and 240g respectively. Order a smaller portion to leave room for other dishes, or make the chicken the centrepiece with a large serving; it is easy to choose according to appetite and company. Diners have remarked on the striking dark colour of the grilled thigh meat and its firm texture, and enjoyed it with onion. Some also found it a good match for plain rice, making it a tempting option for a dinner focused on charcoal-grilled chicken.

There is more than chicken on the menu: the selection includes vegetable-wrapped meat skewers, a Hakata speciality. Choose from lettuce, asparagus, cherry tomatoes, okra, spring onion and Chinese cabbage. Diners who tried the okra, spring onion and Chinese cabbage skewers have praised the juicy combination of meat and vegetables. Ordering a few varieties alongside the grilled chicken makes it easy to add vegetables between meat dishes. Kyushu’s drinking snacks are another draw. Regional dishes include Oita ryukyu, amberjack or horse mackerel marinated with Kyushu soy sauce, ground sesame and spring onion; pork belly cartilage finished with kabosu ponzu; and Kumamoto mustard lotus root. One diner singled out the mustard lotus root as a favourite. You might start with one of these dishes and pair it with shochu.

For the final course, the noodle dishes offer distinctly different choices. Nobosemon’s street-stall ramen is made with Chiran chicken bones simmered for 3 hours, giving the broth plenty of flavour while keeping it relatively light. Miyazaki spicy noodles, by contrast, let you choose the heat level, and you can add rice to the remaining soup for a porridge-style finish. A diner praised the satisfying texture of the konjac noodles and the flavour of the soup with egg. Choose the lighter finish or go for the spicy noodles and rice, depending on your appetite. The drinks list includes shochu from varieties such as sweet-potato and barley, as well as Chiran black tea sour, which the restaurant recommends with meat dishes. One guest who sampled several shochu varieties noted the differences in their aromas and flavours. Seating includes counter seats, with table service also available; it is a good setting for sharing a few dishes with friends.

This izakaya is in Nishitanabe-cho, Abeno-ku, Osaka. It opens from 17:30 on weekdays and Saturdays, and is closed on Sundays.