Robatayaki I CHI BAN 一番炉端燒

The number of Japanese eateries dotted along Hennessy Road can – like much else in Causeway Bay – get a little overwhelming if you don’t really know what you’re looking for. So, safest bet seems to head where the locals go, in this case the locals being Japanese businessmen, expats and tourists who flock to Robatayaki I CHI BAN early in the evening to nab a place. Robatayaki I CHI BAN is small and intimate, but it’s casually classy, with some cool and quirky decoration. Sure, elbow room can be fairly limited around the bar, but that’s part of the fun with this style of dining, picking at plates of grilled-in-front-of-you seafood, salty edamame beans or succulent sushi while enjoying a replenishing drink and good catch up with friends.