Day 3: What is Okonomiyaki you ask?
For dinner tonight we had made reservations at a restaurant MANMARU NO TSUKI fairly close to us given they advertise OKONOMIYAKI as one of their feature dishes. The chances are you won't know this Japanese dish that is quite popular in Japan. We think it is comfort food. We first encountered okonomiyaki while visiting my daughter Renée when she was teaching English in Kōchi, Japan around 2002. There was an older lady on a side street making it in a tiny restaurant (6 seats maybe). We had not heard of it, but became intrigued by watching her make it for other customers. It was delicious. There are a few Japanese places in Vancouver that make the dish.
We have a reservation for 7 pm and we are at the counter watching the chef and prep chef work at a frenetic pace. The grill is constantly in use and the chef does a great job of cleaning it regularly. At times there were up to ten okonomiyaki on the grill! Very impressive. There are three other couples at the grill with us. Two couples are Japanese and the other couple are Caucasian.
Total cost of meal was 3,300Yen for one Okonomiyaki, one Caesar Salad, one Beer and one Plum Wine soda. We both love Japanese plum wine as long as it is not too sweet.
Our description of an okonomiyaki: Japanese style savoury pancake that is very thick, includes shredded cabbage, onion, bonito (dried tuna) flakes, some kind of protein (thinly sliced beef or pork, or seafood), that is then topped with a umami flavoured okonimiyaki sauce, mayonnaise and sprinkled with dried seaweed flakes on top. To eat it, you use a small spatula to cut off pieces that way it continues to cook and stay warm. Lana once saw an article that described this dish as it starts out as a liquid (pancake batter with egg), then becomes a solid (as it initially cooks), then becomes a liquid again (the vegetables cook down and become soft if you wait long enough).
Lana's videos:
Okonomiyaki Video #1
Okonomiyaki Video #2
We have a reservation for 7 pm and we are at the counter watching the chef and prep chef work at a frenetic pace. The grill is constantly in use and the chef does a great job of cleaning it regularly. At times there were up to ten okonomiyaki on the grill! Very impressive. There are three other couples at the grill with us. Two couples are Japanese and the other couple are Caucasian.
Total cost of meal was 3,300Yen for one Okonomiyaki, one Caesar Salad, one Beer and one Plum Wine soda. We both love Japanese plum wine as long as it is not too sweet.
Our description of an okonomiyaki: Japanese style savoury pancake that is very thick, includes shredded cabbage, onion, bonito (dried tuna) flakes, some kind of protein (thinly sliced beef or pork, or seafood), that is then topped with a umami flavoured okonimiyaki sauce, mayonnaise and sprinkled with dried seaweed flakes on top. To eat it, you use a small spatula to cut off pieces that way it continues to cook and stay warm. Lana once saw an article that described this dish as it starts out as a liquid (pancake batter with egg), then becomes a solid (as it initially cooks), then becomes a liquid again (the vegetables cook down and become soft if you wait long enough).
Lana's videos:
Okonomiyaki Video #1
Okonomiyaki Video #2
BTW, the method used by this restaurant to make okonomiyaki will be different than the more casual approaches to making this dish. Two dishes of batter ready for the grill. Vegetables already mixed in. The small brown pieces are cooked tempura batter bits for crunch.
Batter poured on the grill.
Now for the toppings!! The one on the bottom left had thin slices of pork and you can also see the bonito flakes on top--thin translucent light brown pieces.
Covered with a dome to ensure even cooking all the way through.
Almost done!!
Okonomiyaki sauce already on top--now the finishing touch of mayonnaise.
Last garnishes--dried seaweed and some special seasoning. This is our order of okonomiyaki and it arrived on a hot plate with the little spatula for cutting. Some okonomiyaki are on regular dinner plates. We opted to get just one of share--but most people get one for their own. After the filling bowls of ramen for lunch--Lana wasn't very hungry even at dinner.
Japanese style Caesar Salad with egg. Wow, very delicious yet nothing like what we would see as a Caesar Salad. You mix the egg in the other ingredients before eating.
A fun and full day in Kyoto. Back to our apartment and Lana is pretty quick to bed. Despite my exhaustion, I do some more updating of the blog before bed. Looking forward to our last full day in Kyoto tomorrow!
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