Hotel Okura Manila Launches New Yawaragi Grill Menu

Yakitori: Chicken thigh fillet seasoned with sea salt or glazed with a sweet and savory soy sauce.

    Grilling, or "yaki" is a centuries-old culinary technique in Japanes cuisine that brings out the natural flavors of ingredients over heat. Inspired by this, Hotel Okura Manila at Newport World Resorts presents the new Yawaragi Grill Menu, featuring Kushiyaki and Ishiyaki, each offering a distinct experience alongside familiar favorites such as agemono, donburi, and ramen. 

Kushiyaki Grill at Yawaragi

    At the forefront of this new menu, Yawaragi’s Executive Chef Jerrymie Tamayo reimagines the classic Japanese street food to capture the Filipino palate. Alongside him, Yamazato’s Specialty Chef Ikuma Sato offers his perspective, presenting a refined take on ramen – its rich broth and layered flavors complement the charcoal-grilled dishes.

Chef Jerrymie Tamayo and Chef Ikuma Sato

    Kushiyaki features meat and seafood skewered on bamboo and grilled over binchotan charcoal, a traditional Japanese white charcoal prized for its clean, high heat and ability to enhance natural flavors without imparting smoke. Made to order, each skewer arrives hot from the grill, inviting guests to enjoy its warmth and depth of flavor.

Chef Jerrymie Tamayo working the kushiyaki grill.

Chef Jerrymie Tamayo working the kushiyaki grill.

    You can trust the Japanese to take something like charcoal grilling more seriously than others. Each skewer is delicately planned and executed to impart the best flavor and overall experience with every bite. Kushiyaki is often seen in Izakayas across Japan and as a quick and accessible street snack. Nevertheless, that does not mean they make it haphazardly. Each piece of meat, seafood, poultry or vegetable is planned and cut precisely to deliver the perfect bite.

    This is the same attention to detail that is seen in the Yawaragi kitchen. Luckily, they have an open kitchen which allows guests to be fully immersed in the process. I enjoyed watching the chefs work the grill. The skewers were all beautifully made, each one perfectly identical to the next. The flames licked the meat and a thin white smoke rose to kiss the meat and impart its unique flavor.

    Here are some of the skewers that we tried from the Yawaragi Grill menu:

Wagyu Karubi Enoki Maki

    I'm a huge fan of wagyu and of mushrooms. To be honest, anyone who does not like a combination of those two things is really missing out. Thinly sliced karubi beef hugging a bunch of enoki mushrooms is perhaps one of the most popular combinations seen both in Japanese and Korean grill menus. The fat from the beef renders into the mushrooms as the skewers cook, making each bite rich, juicy and full of beefy flavor.

Loaded kushiyaki grill at the height of dinner service

Kurobuta Bara 

    Kurobota pork belly is next, and there are really no bad things to be said about pork belly. Layers of pork fat and meat make the pork belly an ideal cut for grilling. The moisture of the fat and the flavor seeps into the meat, leaving the mouth fully satisfied.
    When it comes to kushiyaki, I typically prefer my skewers glazed with tare sauce over the salted version. Perhaps because I'm used to the sweet sticky Filipino barbecue, I like my butabara done in a similar way. However, I understand that a high quality piece of meat like kurobota pork is best appreciated lightly salted to be able to taste its clean, natural flavor. At Yawaragi, each kushiyaki meal is served with an assortment of condiments so you can choose to add as much salt as you want or dip your meat in your preferred sauce.

Ebi-King Prawn with Miso Uni Sauce

    The Ebi kushiyaki was a big hit in our group. I have tried may different kinds of kushiyaki in my life but this is the first time I have had a king prawn that's grilled and glazed with a miso uni sauce. I thought that the sauce would overpower the prawns, but the chefs added just enough to simply bring out the briny flavors of the ocean out of the sweet prawn meat. It was also very fresh because I did not find myself needing to medicate to fight my allergies.

    Moving on to the stone grill. Ishiyaki highlights cooking over heated volcanic stone, known for its exceptional heat retention and even distribution. Served with sashimi-grade cut of your choice, ishiyaki grilling allows guests to take control and cook to their preference.

A5 Wagyu Sirloin

   All you have to do is look at the marbling on each slice of A5 Wagyu sirloin and you already know that it will melt in your mouth. With a fatty meat like this, I like giving it a good sear to be able to make the most out of the flavor brought forward by the maillard reaction. Each slice is rich and savory, perfect with just a touch of wasabi and a sprinkle of salt. It does not feel greasy at all, and having the grill right in front of me allowed me to consume each piece just as it reached the perfect temperature. All of us wanted an extra bowl of rice for this part of the meal since the flavor of the beef really danced around your mouth and went perfectly with a steaming bowl of soft, fluffy Japanese rice.

Dishes are served with miso soup and Japanese rice, along with a selection of seasonings and sauces including matcha salt, Maldon salt, wasabi, ponzu, peppercorn, and steak sauce.

Okura Hamburger Steak Don

    If you're looking for donburi, the grill menu also features a signature Hamburger Steak Don. The beef was also grilled over binchotan charcoal, but the star of the show would have to be the deep, complex flavors of the demi-glace sauce. I wanted to ask for an extra bowl of the sauce and literally put it in everything!

Shoyu and Bouillon Ramen

    As a general rule, I only have ramen at restaurants that particularly specialize in ramen. I was pleasantly surprised to find out that Chef Ikuma Sato outdid himself with his signature fish bouillon based ramen. I though it was going to taste like a dashi broth but it was so different. The broth almost tasted meaty and packed a lot of flavor even for someone like me who has a deep bias for rich, tonkotsu broth.

    The ramen uses Chinese soba noodles and is topped with a drizzle of sesame oil, a seasoned egg, fermented bamboo shoots, spinach, and Japanese-style simmered pork belly. They did not scrimp on the toppings here and I really enjoyed the ample portion of the soft braised pork.

    Accompanying this hearty meal is a glass of juice or one bottle of Japanese beer with a minimum order of PHP 1,400++. To complete the experience, Chef Jerrymie Tamayo recommends enjoying it with a chilled glass of beer, balancing the charred flavor from the grilled items.

Reservations and Inquiries

For room or dining reservations and more information:
📞 Phone: +63 2 5318 2888
📧 Email: fb@hotelokuramanila.com
🔗 Website: hotelokuramanila.com/offers/koibumi

The Yawaragi Grill Menu is available for lunch on Mondays and Tuesdays, and dinner from Sunday to Thursday.