Restaurant Toyoken
SaveTori-ten, Oita's fried chicken tempura, was born in this Chinese restaurant, open since 1926.
The chicken is seasoned before it is fried, so it can be eaten plain, with no sauce.
MoreWhat kind of place
Toyoken, a Chinese restaurant, opened in Beppu's Nagarekawa district on April 1, 1926, and moved across town to Ishigaki-higashi in 1995. It has stayed in the same family for four generations.
Tori-ten, the battered fried chicken that is now an Oita specialty, started here in the early Showa years, the late 1920s and 1930s.
It went by another name then, “chicken kamaboko tempura,” made from thin slices of Japanese chicken thigh. This is the restaurant that claims to have served it first.
Sources and evidence (9)
- The main restaurant is at 7-8-22 Ishigaki-higashi, Beppu, and its phone number is 0977-23-3333. That line does not take delivery inquiries.source
- A branch under the same name sits in the basement food court of Tokiha Beppu at 2-9-1 Kitahama, and it keeps its own hours, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. and 5 p.m. to 7 p.m.source
- Delivery comes from a separate shop, Otodoke Toyoken, at 8-1-8 Ishigaki-higashi, phone 0977-85-7308, and it is closed on weekends and holidays.source
- The restaurant claims to be where tori-ten was invented, has been open since 1926, and lists the original tori-ten as its specialty.source
- Despite the shared name, this restaurant is a different company from the Toyoken and Seiyo Goryori Toyoken run by Toyoken Co., Ltd., so nothing written about the Mie or Tokyo restaurants applies here.source
- When the restaurant moved into a new building in 1995, it gained rooms in a range of sizes that families and larger parties can use.source
- Tori-ten first appeared at this restaurant in the early Showa era — the late 1920s and 1930s — as "chicken kamaboko tempura," made from Japanese chicken thigh sliced thin and fried.source
- The main restaurant opened in Beppu's Nagarekawa district on April 1, 1926, and Ishigaki-higashi is where it moved in 1995, so the founding site and the present one are not the same.source
- The "open in Google Maps" link on the official About page points to 33.3009143, 131.4995189.source
With kidsThe part that matters
If your kids balk at anything they have to dip in a sauce, the fried chicken here is seasoned before it goes in the fryer, so it comes to the table ready to eat plain.
Lunch is first come, first served — the only bookable meals are dinner courses for four adults or more — so you put your name in at the front desk and wait your turn.
Waits can run 30 minutes, and on a day like that the desk stops seating anyone after 2:30 p.m., so get there before then and you will still be shown to a table.
The building the restaurant moved into in 1995 has rooms in a range of sizes, so a family can eat in a room of its own.
It closes on the second Tuesday of every month, so check the date before you set out and you will not arrive to find it shut.
By age0-1 / 2-3 / 4-6
- Ages 0-1The 1995 rebuild added rooms of various sizes that families can use, so you sit apart from the main hall and can take your time over a meal with a baby along. The car park holds 60 cars, so you pull in and walk straight in.Reservations cover only the evening courses (start 17:00-20:00) and need four adults or more; junior-high age and over count as adults, so two adults with small children cannot book. For lunch you queue at the reception desk - on busy days the wait is 30 minutes and the desk stops taking names at 14:30. If queuing is too much that day, order takeout in person at the desk (they do not take it by phone). The main shop runs two sittings, 11:00-15:30 and 17:00-22:00, and is closed in between; it also closes on the second Tuesday of each month.
- Ages 2-3The tori-ten is chicken thigh seasoned before it is fried, so it can be eaten plain with no sauce. The meat is cut in thin slices, so a piece off the adult plate needs nothing added. Squeezing kabosu over it, or dipping it in vinegar-soy with mustard, is what the adults add afterwards to taste.From 15:00 to 17:00 on weekends and holidays only the original tori-ten and the yuzu tori-ten are served, à la carte or as a set. Avoid that window on a day you want other dishes too. Lunch cannot be booked, so you queue at the desk - 30-minute waits on busy days, and the desk closes at 14:30. If waiting hungry is hard that day, order takeout in person at the desk. The mustard is hot, so set the child's portion aside before it goes on.
- Ages 4-6This is the restaurant where tori-ten was born, and here you eat that dish. It opened in 1926, and the dish first appeared here in the early Showa years under the name 'chicken kamaboko tempura'. Plain, with kabosu squeezed over, or dipped in vinegar-soy - they choose for themselves how to flavour it.Lunch (11:00-15:30, last order 15:00) cannot be booked, so you queue at the desk. On busy days the wait is 30 minutes and the desk stops at 14:30, so arrive before 14:00 if you are coming for lunch. To book an evening course (6,600 / 8,800 / 11,000 yen per person, tax included) you need four adults or more, and you tell them by phone or in person two days ahead for the 6,600 and 8,800 courses, seven days ahead for the 11,000 one. The phone is answered most easily 16:00-17:00 and 21:00-22:00. Parking holds 60 cars; by bus, take Kamenoi bus route 24 (for Kannawa / APU) from Beppu Station or Kitahama, get off at Funakoji and walk five minutes.
By weatherRain, heat, cold
- Rainy dayYou eat indoors, in the large and small rooms created when the restaurant moved into its new building in 1995, and families can use them. There is parking for 60 cars, so you can drive right up.
- Hot dayNot checked yet
- Cold dayNot checked yet
Time needed1 h
How was it with your kids?
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Family checks✓ easy for your family
- ElevatorElevator：none
- Stroller OKStroller friendly：not checked
- RentalStroller rental：not checked
- NursingNursing space：none
- ChangingDiaper changing table：none
- Family WCFamily restroom：none
- Own foodOutside food allowed：not checked
- EnglishEnglish support：not checked
Tap a mark for details
* Other not checked (9)
Diaper disposal bin, Kids' toilet seat & step stool, Baby food policy, Non-smoking, Official family-friendly certification, Best-fit ages (guide), Quietness (guide), Serving speed (guide), Lost-child support
Green = we confirmed it. Gray = not checked yet. Gray with a line through = the place does not have it.
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Where it is
Before you go
- Reservations are for dinner only, with meals starting anywhere between 5 p.m. and 8 p.m.source
- The only bookable meals are the set courses at 6,600, 8,800 and 11,000 yen per person, tax included.source
- Reservations start at four adults, and anyone of middle-school age or older counts toward that number.source
- You cannot book a la carte dishes, book a table without a course, or book on the day, so a lunch visit means waiting your turn at the front desk.source
- Call or come in at least two days ahead for the 6,600 and 8,800 yen courses, and seven days ahead for the 11,000 yen one.source
More notes (6)
- Calls get through most easily between 4 and 5 p.m. and between 9 and 10 p.m.; during the day the phone often goes unanswered.source
- Takeout is ordered in person at the front desk, not over the phone.source
- Assistance dogs are not admitted.source
- A family that arrived at 10:45 for the 11 a.m. opening was the eleventh group in line.source
- One diner arriving just before 6 p.m. found the sign-in sheet already on its second page and waited 50 minutes for a table.source
- The room is always lively, and the local family guide tells readers to come early.source
Basics
- Fee: The menu pages are photographs, so no single-dish prices are given. The only figures stated are the three dinner courses, at 6,600, 8,800 and 11,000 yen per person including tax, which are also the only thing that can be reserved.source2
- Hours: 11:00-15:30 (last order 15:00) and 17:00-22:00 (last order 21:00); it shuts between the two. Closed the second Tuesday of every month. On Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays, only the honke tori-ten and honke yuzu tori-ten are served between 3 and 5 p.m. When the shop is busy the last order moves earlier: with a 30-minute wait, the desk stops taking people at 2:30 p.m.source
- Time to allow: 1 h
- Booking: Lunch cannot be booked at all - single dishes, table-only and same-day reservations are not accepted, so you queue. Reservations exist only for dinner: a course at 6,600, 8,800 or 11,000 yen per person, for four adults or more, starting between 5 and 8 p.m. Junior high age and up count as adults. Book by phone or in person, two days ahead for the 6,600 and 8,800 courses and seven days ahead for the 11,000 one. The phone is easiest to get through on between 4 and 5 p.m. or between 9 and 10 p.m.source
Basics in detail (9)
Hours and closures
- The main restaurant closes on the second Tuesday of every month, so if you are in Beppu on a second Tuesday, plan the meal for another day.source
- The main restaurant opens twice a day, 11 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. with last orders at 3, and 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. with last orders at 9. It closes in between, from 3:30 to 5.source
- Between 3 p.m. and 5 p.m. on weekends and holidays the kitchen serves only the original tori-ten and the yuzu tori-ten, on their own or as a set, so come outside those hours if you want anything else.source
- When it gets busy, last orders move earlier: on a day with a 30-minute wait, the front desk stops seating anyone after 2:30 p.m.source
Getting there
- The main restaurant has parking for 60 cars and room for large buses, so driving here is easy.source
- From Beppu Station or Kitahama, take Kamenoi Bus route 24 toward Kannawa or APU, get off at Funakoji, and walk five minutes.source
- On Oita Kotsu route 50 toward APU, get off at Minamisuka-iriguchi and walk eight minutes.source
- An attendant directs cars in the parking lot, and there are no accessible parking spaces.source
Fees
- The tori-ten set is 1,580 yen including tax and the yuzu tori-ten set 1,600 yen.source
Once you've decided
evidence & sources (14)
- barifuri-oita.com: Diaper changing table, Nursing space, Family restroom
- ameblo.jp: Child entry policy, Tatami seating, Crowding (guide)
- Official: Kids' menu, Kids' tableware, Allergy support
- beppu-tourism.com: Private room
- travelingnavi.com: High chair
- Official: Indoor / outdoor
The founder had cooked for the Emperor, and opened this place in Beppu in 1926; the family is now in its fourth generation. Tori-ten began here as a menu item: thigh meat sliced thin, seasoned with soy sauce, garlic and sesame oil, then fried. Squeeze kabosu over it, or dip it in vinegared soy sauce with mustard. Lunch cannot be booked, and on busy days the desk stops taking people earlier, so come early. Private rooms, large and small, date from the 1995 move.
| Stroller friendly | Not checked yet | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Diaper changing table | No | The restrooms have no baby changing bed. There is no changing platform or universal changing table either. | Web-checked | checked Sep ’26 | barifuri-oita.com |
| Nursing space | No | There is no nursing room, and nothing is stated about hot water for formula. | Web-checked | checked Sep ’26 | barifuri-oita.com |
| Family restroom | No | There is no baby seat either. The restroom doorway and the stall doors are both 53 cm wide, with a 5 cm step on the way. | Web-checked | checked Sep ’26 | barifuri-oita.com |
| Diaper disposal bin | Not checked yet | ||||
| Kids' toilet seat & step stool | Not checked yet | ||||
| Elevator | No | The seats upstairs are reached by stairs. | Web-checked | checked Sep ’26 | barifuri-oita.com |
| Indoor / outdoor | Indoor | The dining rooms are indoors, but at busy times you wait for a table before you get in. | Web-checked | checked Aug ’26 | toyoken-beppu.co.jp |
| Outside food allowed | Not checked yet | ||||
| English support | Not checked yet | ||||
| Child entry policy | Yes | Web-checked | checked Sep ’26 | ameblo.jp | |
| High chair | Yes | They are brought out at the tatami seats with the round table too. How many there are is not stated. | Web-checked | checked Sep ’26 | travelingnavi.com |
| Tatami seating | Yes | Just inside the entrance, on the right. A family with two children was shown straight to it when the doors opened. | Web-checked | checked Sep ’26 | ameblo.jp |
| Kids' menu | Yes | The children's set costs 850 yen including tax, with a choice of tenshin-han omelet rice or fried rice, plus tori-ten, a salad and a drink. Only children of elementary school age and under can order it. | Web-checked | checked Sep ’26 | toyoken-beppu.co.jp |
| Kids' tableware | Yes | The children's set arrives on a divided children's plate with a matching illustrated cup. | Web-checked | checked Sep ’26 | toyoken-beppu.co.jp |
| Baby food policy | Not checked yet | ||||
| Non-smoking | Not checked yet | ||||
| Allergy support | Yes | For the children's set, tell the staff and they will work around allergies as far as they can. Nothing is stated for the adult dishes. | Web-checked | checked Sep ’26 | toyoken-beppu.co.jp |
| Private room | Yes | Web-checked | checked Sep ’26 | beppu-tourism.com | |
| Official family-friendly certificationExtra info — guide only | Not checked yet | ||||
| Best-fit ages (guide)Extra info — guide only | Not checked yet | ||||
| Crowding (guide)Extra info — guide only | Yes | People line up before it opens. A family arriving at 10:45 for the 11 a.m. opening was the eleventh group in the queue. | Web-checked | checked Sep ’26 | ameblo.jp |
| Quietness (guide)Extra info — guide only | Not checked yet | ||||
| Serving speed (guide)Extra info — guide only | Not checked yet | ||||
| Lost-child supportExtra info — guide only | Not checked yet | ||||
| Stroller access notesExtra info — guide only | Yes | Inside the grounds the paths have no steps: the main one is 139 cm wide and the narrowest 56 cm. The path outside the building is a fairly steep slope. | Web-checked | checked Sep ’26 | barifuri-oita.com |
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