Hoboken and Jersey City have a variety of options when it comes to Japanese food, but one of the more unique options comes to locals from a food cart on Newark Street. Erotori, which serves up Japanese-style skewered meats also known as yakitori, is the first food cart of its kind to come to New Jersey (and the entire menu is gluten-free). Read on to learn more about Erotori — NJ’s first yakitori cart — located at 51 Newark Street in Hoboken.
All About Erotori
Justin Guerra-Sarreal is the owner and chef at Erotori, which opened up in November of 2022 in Hoboken. To learn the art and craft of yakitori, a Japanese cuisine specialty, he worked at Michelin-recognized New York City restaurant Yakitoriya Torishin for three years. When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, Justin worked at the Starbucks on Newark Street, the same place in which he would end up parking his yakitori cart and starting Erotori. Eventually, he went full-time with the businesses and has been serving up yakitori street food to locals ever since.
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When it first opened, Erotori was only open on Saturdays and Sundays, but has since expanded its hours — the cart is now open on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Fridays, Saturdays, and Saturdays from 12PM-8PM, or until they sell out. The entire menu is gluten-free, and also has vegetarian options.
The food choices at Erotori include several yakitori classics — including grilled chicken thighs, wings, hearts, gizzards, and chicken oysters, as well as pork belly and steak. Vegetarian options include grilled shishito peppers, mushrooms, zucchini, and tomatoes.
For sauces, customers can choose from traditional yakitori Tare (aged sauce made with sake, soy sauce, mirin, and brown sugar), black garlic miso, honey ketchup, and Asahi beer barbecue. Everything made here is grilled over Binchotan charcoal and cooked using infrared rays, which makes for moister, fluffier foods.
Despite the success of the Hoboken food cart, Justin told The Hoboken Girl that “All the time people ask when I will open up my own establishment and ditch the cart, and I always tell them I would rather stick to grilling and serving on the street, as I would like to keep the cuisine as close to traditional as possible.” While we’re sure a storefront would be a success for Erotori, we will continue to enjoy this Newark Street food cart gem.
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Keep up with Justin and his business Erotori on Instagram @yakitorichefjustin. For more food + drink spots, follow @thehobokengirl on Instagram + TikTok.
