Japanese budget yakitori chain Torikizoku is preparing a major push into mainland China, with founder and Chief Executive Officer Tadashi Okura saying the company intends to establish about 100 restaurants in Shanghai. The Osaka-based operator, which has built its domestic following on a single-price menu of skewered chicken and side dishes, disclosed the goal as it opened a second location in Hong Kong. Management is betting that the chain’s low-cost formula, honed during Japan’s decades of weak inflation, will resonate with increasingly price-conscious Chinese diners. No schedule for the Shanghai rollout was given, but the plan would mark Torikizoku’s most ambitious overseas expansion to date. The move comes as Japanese food-service companies search for growth outside a saturated home market and grapple with higher input costs. Industry peers are testing new formats or acquiring rival brands, while chains such as noodle and sushi operators step up their own presence abroad. Torikizoku’s Shanghai strategy underscores the broader shift toward low-price concepts aimed at consumers trading down in a slowing global economy.