Hip Hongkong Yakitori Joint Yardbird Will Host Another Pop-Up Dinner Here In March

For those of you who have been waiting with quivering stomachs for popular Hongkong yakitori joint Yardbird to come to Singapore, well, now we are one small step closer to it.

The contemporary grilled chicken and izakaya outfit is so hip, uber cool singer-rapper-producer Pharrell is a regular customer at its chic Hongkong branch.

The restaurant’s co-owner, Lindsay Jang, told us last year that she’ll be opening a permanent outlet in Singapore, but that she and her team were in the midst of looking for a permanent location.

Yardbird recently shifted to a new and bigger home in Sheung Wan, Hongkong.

And now, the Yardbird folks are back again at Burnt Ends, with an upcoming pop-up dinner on March 12.

Burnt Ends and Meat Smith are co-owned by hotelier-restaurateur Loh Lik Peng and Taiwanese chef André Chiang, who will be shuttering his two-Michelin-starred Restaurant André after its last service on February 14.

We can’t help but wonder: will Yardbird Singapore be taking over Restaurant André’s space? After all, Yardbird has partnered with André’s other restaurants, and Restaurant André’s quaint location in Bukit Pasoh is somewhat reminiscent of Yardbird’s stylish digs in the hipster neighbourhood of Sheung Wan in Hongkong.

But alas, Lindsay says they are not opening there, and that they are “still looking for a permanent space”. (Can hurry up, or not?). Moreover, chef and co-owner Matt Abergel is concerned about the chicken source in Singapore. "They're not as tasty and juicy as the ones we get in Hongkong, from the New Territories. Those are freshly slaughtered at the market just 30 seconds away from my restaurant [in HK]."

That being said, will there be a plot twist? We can only speculate for now. In the meantime, keep calm and eat chicken at the eatery’s next pop-up gig here this March.

No ticket details at press time. Look out for updates at www.facebook.com/yardbirdrestaurant

PHOTOS: Yardbird/ Facebook