Mid-Autumn Festival is all about barbecue time in Taipei — 8 popular Japanese-style yakiniku restaurants

Travel Center / Comprehensive Report

What to do during the Mid-Autumn Festival? Of course, it’s barbecue time — every year during the festival, Taiwan becomes a land of “barbecue aroma everywhere,” making grilling an iconic part of the celebration. But if preparing ingredients feels like too much hassle, yet you still crave grilled meat and hearty bites, Japanese yakiniku restaurants are a great alternative. Many even serve Australian wagyu, offering melt-in-your-mouth textures that are sure to satisfy your cravings.

Yoke Yakiniku

▲ The premium beef used at Yoke is all Australian wagyu, grade 9A+ (Photo by Huang Shih-yuan)

Located near Dongmen Station on the Taipei Metro, close to Jinshan South Road, Yoke Premium Yakiniku only serves Australian wagyu beef of grade 9A+ (sushi-grade), delivered fresh via refrigeration. They also use only Iberico pork, and even offer king crabs priced over NT$10,000. General Manager Chiu Huang-hsiang said that when planning to open the yakiniku restaurant, he decided from the start to “offer only the best meat.”

The Australian wagyu at Yoke is aged for 30 days in their aging room after arrival, plus another 30 days from the typical shipping duration, meaning customers enjoy wagyu that has been aged for at least 60 days. To handle these premium cuts, Yoke has hired highly skilled chefs with years of experience. He mentioned that they once interviewed a chef from Tainan, but the skills weren’t up to par — after all, the handling techniques for Taiwanese yellow cattle and wagyu are different.

Address: 3F, No. 2, Section 2, Jinshan South Road, Xinyi District, Taipei City
Phone: 02-2393-7168
Business Hours: 11:30–24:00

Goemon Yakiniku


▲ Australian wagyu, grade 9+, melts in your mouth (Photo by Huang Shih-yuan)

Fans of skewers have likely heard of the popular “Yuling Shou” skewer shop. After establishing a solid presence in the skewer market, owner Tseng Wei-jen expanded into the yakiniku scene, opening “Goemon Yakiniku” near the intersection of Civic Boulevard and Fuxing South Road. Most of the meat served here is Australian wagyu, grade 9+, aiming to provide high-quality yet affordable yakiniku that offers great value.

Goemon Yakiniku offers premium beef at reasonable prices, focusing mainly on Australian wagyu (grade 9+) supplemented with American beef (Prime). Prices per serving range from around NT$200 to NT$600, but what’s special is the ribeye steak, which is the most expensive at NT$2,680 per piece. For American beef, a sirloin steak is NT$680 per piece. JJ (the representative) noted that currently popular cuts include boneless short ribs, deckle, thick-cut diaphragm, thin-cut diaphragm, scallion diaphragm, and thick-cut beef tongue.

Address: No. 12-2, Section 4, Civic Boulevard, Da’an District, Taipei City
Phone: 02-27119500
Business Hours: 18:00–1:00 (next day)

Burn Moe

▲ Tender yet chewy beef diaphragm (Photo by Huang Shih-yuan)

The original Burn Moe location is tucked away in a lane beside PTS, with just a small red sign at the entrance — not very noticeable. But it has a good reputation in the yakiniku community, and now has second and third branches as well. Burn Moe focuses on beef, and diagrams of various beef cuts are displayed on the walls. Shop manager Chen says the restaurant's signature items are the diaphragm and flank cuts, known for their tender texture. He explained that the diaphragm has a stronger beef flavor with a unique aroma, while the flank has the most fat, so it should be grilled a bit longer.

Burn MOE Charcoal Grill (Branch 1)
Address: No. 24, Lane 116, Guangfu South Road, Da’an District, Taipei City
Phone: 02-27311750
Business Hours: 17:00–23:00

Burn MOE Charcoal Grill (Branch 2)
Address: No. 25, Lane 270, Section 1, Dunhua South Road, Taipei City
Phone: 02-87725129
Business Hours: 17:00–22:30

Burn MOE Charcoal Grill (Branch 3)
Address: No. 33, Lane 240, Guangfu South Road, Da’an District, Taipei City
Phone: 02-27729277
Business hours: 17:00～23:00

Laoganbei

▲At Laoganbei, you can enjoy various ways to eat Australian wagyu. (Photo / from Laoganbei’s Facebook)

Laoganbei uses Australian wagyu purchased whole and stored via refrigeration, so at Laoganbei you can enjoy thinly sliced, thick cut, corner cut, and steak versions—experiencing all kinds of ways to enjoy Australian wagyu.

Laoganbei Yanji Branch
Address: 1F, No. 44, Lane 280, Guangfu South Road, Da’an District, Taipei City
Phone: 02-27517388
Business hours: 17:00～23:00

Laoganbei Xinyi Branch
Address: 8F, No. 9, Songshou Road, Xinyi District, Taipei City
Phone: 02-27253311
Business hours: 11:30～14:30；17:00～00:00

▲▲Dawan Yakitori aspires to be the “big name” in the yakitori scene. (Photo / from Dawan Yakitori’s Facebook)

Dawan Yakitori

Dawan Yakitori Specialty Store was established in January 2007. The name “Dawan,” which means “big shot” in Beijing dialect, reflects the restaurant’s aspiration to become a leading name in the yakitori world. The restaurant has about 34 seats arranged in an L-shaped counter, ensuring attentive service. Dawan customizes seasoning methods based on different cuts and characteristics of the meat, using fresh fruits and vegetables to ensure the food’s natural flavor and quality.

Dawan Yakitori Specialty Store
Address: No. 22, Lane 177, Section 1, Dunhua South Road, Da’an District, Taipei City
Phone: 02-27110179
Business hours:
Monday to Thursday: 18:00～0:00
Friday and Saturday: 18:00～2:00 AM (next day)

Hutong Yakitori

▲Hutong Yakitori has quite a few branches. (Photo / taken by Wu Bingsong)

The popular Japanese-style yakitori spot Hutong in Taipei is committed to premium ingredients and excellent cooking, and has been recognized for three consecutive years by The Miele Guide’s Asia edition, being selected as one of the top 500 quality restaurants in Asia. Hutong now has 9 branches across Taiwan, and many in Taipei, but to differentiate them, they use homophonic yet differently spelled names such as Hutong and Hutong.

Hutong Yakitori Branch 1
Store address: No. 17, Lane 161, Section 1, Dunhua South Road, Da’an District, Taipei City
Contact number: 02-27761575
Business hours: 18:00～00:30 (next day)

Guyue Tong Yakitori No. 2
Address: No. 139, Section 4, Civic Boulevard, Songshan District, Taipei City
Phone: 02-25700373
Business Hours: 18:30 – 1:30 AM

Hutong Tong Yakitori No. 3
Address: No. 18, Lane 70, Alley 12, Section 3, Bade Road, Songshan District, Taipei City
Phone: 02-25773738
Business Hours: 18:00 – 12:30 AM

Hutong Tong Yakitori No. 4
Address: No. 12, Lane 91, Section 4, Ren’ai Road, Da’an District, Taipei City
Phone: 02-27772549
Business Hours: 18:00 – 12:30 AM

Hutong Tong Yakitori No. 5
Address: 2nd Floor, No. 22, Songshou Road, Xinyi District, Taipei City (Neo19)
Phone: 02-27238838
Business Hours: Lunch: 12:00 – 14:30
Dinner: 18:00 – 23:30

Ichigyo Yakitori Specialty Shop
In Japanese, "ya" means shop, and an "Ichigyo ya" in the context of yakitori shops means a shop that buys a whole cow. This ensures access to rare cuts not typically available elsewhere. At Ichigyo, all beef comes from Australian EMS Grade 9+ Wagyu, which is richly marbled and evenly distributed.

Address: No. 8, Alley 8, Lane 216, Section 4, Zhongxiao East Road, Taipei City
Phone: 02-87737872
Business Hours: 11:30 – 14:00; 17:00 – 23:00

Wengye Yakitori


▲ Wengye Yakitori ingredients. (Photo / Provided by Wengye Yakitori)

Specializing in letting customers simply enjoy meat and conversation, Wengye Yakitori offers full-service grilling by staff. During the Mid-Autumn Festival promotion from September 21 to September 28, they have added an evening Happy Hour with buy-one-get-one-free drinks and extended hours until 1:00 AM the next day (last entry at 11:30 PM).

In addition to offering A9+ Australian Wagyu, Wengye Yakitori also serves other premium ingredients. One popular item is “Ichipyo Uni and Scallop,” which features Hokkaido scallops and sea urchin sandwiched with fresh romaine lettuce, seasoned with a special soy-based sauce and mashed shiso, delivering a burst of ocean flavors in every bite.

Da’an Branch
Address: No. 2, Alley 10, Lane 16, Section 1, Da’an Road, Taipei City
Phone: 02-27751755
Business Hours: 17:30 – 12:00 AM

Yanji Branch
Address: No. 45, Lane 260, Guangfu South Road, Taipei City
Phone: 02-27751765
Business Hours: 17:30–0:00