Okonomiyaki

Despite the diversity of the Japanese culinary scene, I've made it explicit that I want to eat traditional Japanese snacks and meals that are less accessible to me when I'm back home in the States. After all, why eat pasta and meatballs in a country best known for sushi, azuki, and matcha? One such dish that is very "Japanese" is okonomiyaki, which I tried at a quaint little restaurant nestled inside the downtown area of Hiroshima.

The restaurant wasn't too big, and most of the restaurant space was taken up by the large kitchen area of which the sprawling grill top was the focus of attention. A handful of young, hip chefs manned the steaming hot grill and busily filled orders rolling in.


After trying it, I think of okonomiyaki as a cross between American omelette and Chinese scallion pancake. There are different versions of okonomiyaki, but it is mainly comprised of two pancakes that are first filled with various meats, vegetables, and egg and then pan-fried on each side on a grill top. It is eaten with various condiments like seaweed shavings or bonito flakes and then covered with bulldog sauce, a thick dark liquid that reminded me of barbeque sauce.



The okonomiyaki was very tasty. However, I think I would have enjoyed it even more had I eaten it on an empty stomach. I had been eating small snacks throughout the day and was pretty filled by dinner. I was absolutely stuffed after I ate the okonomiyaki, and that was even when Sarah and I shared one. The picture shown is half of one serving.

As I was eating the okonomiyaki, I couldn't help but think that it would be perfect chow after a long night of drinking. The huge portions in addition to the dish's savory, slightly greasy character would settle any drunk man's stomach. The way I'm talking here doesn't exactly make it out to seem like this stuff all that classy. It isn't. It is, however, some common, traditional Japanese food that truly enjoyed trying.