It seems that for foreigners in Japan, okonomiyaki is one of those food blessings which makes you grateful you took a risk and jumped in chopsticks first. On hearing the description it doesn't sound particularly appetizing; a pancake-like substance with a filling of cabbage and vegetables, topped with mayonnaise and an okonomiyaki sauce. It’s not particularly pretty, it certainly isn’t fancy, and it can rarely be considered a fine dining experience. But unlike natto or other unique Japanese specialties, you’re guaranteed to find yourself wanting to gorge yourself endlessly.
If you’ve been in Japan a while you will have been told countless times about the “two types” of okonomiyaki; the Osaka style and the Hiroshima style (which is thicker and contains fried soba noodles.) But what if I told you there is a place which takes these two simple variations, tosses banality out of the window, adds a pinch of imagination and voila, creates something even more addictive and mouth-wateringly delectable?
On a busy main road a cute, sparkling haven of fairy lights rests, relatively unseen and unknown. Once you walk up the step past the dangling stars and seasonal decorations, you open the door to a wooden, secluded wonderland with an astoundingly varied and unusual menu.
In this cook-it-yourself style okonomiyaki restaurant the choices are mind-blowing and endless. Pizza okonomiyaki, curry okonomiyaki, cheese burger okonomiyaki. It’s like getting your usual favorite dish and doubling it’s appeal by inserting it into a cabbage-y, pancake-y, sauce-y bite of perfection.
Each of these unconventional flavors can be ordered as a monja dish as well. We tried the cheeseburger okonomiyaki, pizza okonomiyaki, curry, tuna and cheese monja, kimchi and tofu monja, and the traditional hiroshima style okonomiyaki. Not a single dish disappointed us.
If you’re being dragged along by okonomiyaki-loving friends then there are other dishes on the menu to choose from such as salads, pastas and yakisoba.
As well as this, the drinks list is phenomenal. They serve a range of fresh juices, thick fruit and yogurt smoothies and an array of coffees, teas and cocoas.
If you’re a first timer at this kind of DIY-dinner restaurant, the friendly waitress is always on hand and will expertly guide you through the cooking process. Even if you don’t speak Japanese, she can well recognize your look of pure fear and apprehension as you stare dismally at the hot plate, wondering what goes where, whilst praying to god you don’t burn off a finger or two in the process.
Despite it’s prime location between Takasaki station and the expressway, the restaurant is always relatively uncrowded. So whether you’re going there with friends to taste test the variety of flavors, or select it as an inspired choice for an intimate date, be sure to venture out. Taking food risks is half the fun of being in Japan, the other half being when it pays off.
