Japanese Pancakes – Who Knew?
I just had the opportunity to try Okonomiyaki for the first time while here in Osaka. I felt I should share this experience, because quite frankly, it was amazing. It is described as a Japanese pancake or a Japanese pizza – either way, it’s delicious. When I got back to my hostel I immediately started searching for recipes as it seemed pretty easy to do and didn’t require any special equipment or skills.
Okonomiyaki – Japanese Pancake (photo from closetcooking.com)
The best part, for me I think, is that you can put whatever you want in your Okonomiyaki. The name itself translates to “as you like” or “what you want”. Pure awesome. The recipe I found seems quite simple to make and requires very few ingredients. In the restaurant it’s prepared right in front of you on a griddle built in to your table and you can cook it yourself or have one of the servers do it for you. A fantastic experience all around.
Japanese pancakes would make the perfect meal to get rid of just about any leftovers in your fridge. You could also choose to go all out and load it with your favourite seafoods. If you’ve never had this experience and don’t want to wait, try it yourself. I can not take any sort of credit for this recipe and haven’t yet tried it myself, but if you do, please let me know how you make out. Enjoy!
I’ve just learned that Tokyo has a different style of Okonomiyaki. I will be trying it soon and will keep you posted!
I'm an extremely outgoing bartending carpenter with a passion for travel, photography, food and wine. You will often find me wandering aimlessly through crowded city streets snapping pictures and trying new and interesting street food. 
Andrew v. World 
Looks good
Next? Takoyaki!
Sounds great! Can I get some in Tokyo?
I would be surprised if you couldn’t. As much as Tokyo people dislike Osaka, even they accept that Osaka has the best food in Japan – I just haven’t been in Tokyo for 12 years, so I don’t know where you can get Takoyaki… I’m sure Google or a tourist information center will be able to help!
On my way back now, I will certainly be looking into it. I would also like to find a relatively inexpensive restaurant that serves Fugu. I think I’ve found a few worth trying in Shinjuku. Any experience with the River Pig?
Never heard of River Pig and never had fugu – I wanted to try it, but I was told that it’s basically without a taste of it’s own. People don’t seem to be eager to eat fugu, I wonder how many serving are really sold per day / year…
If I’m not mistaken Fugu means River Pig, literally. I’m not sure how popular it is, I’ve heard it has a season. The few restaurants I’ve found online suggest reservations though, so that might say something. I’m also not looking to spend next months rent on it either! I’ll let you know how the Takoyaki hunt goes.
Oh, I never thought about the meaning of of the term fugu… It sure isn’t as popular as the omnipresent pork here.
Here in Osaka you can get Takoyaki everywhere – supermarkets, street vendors, specialized restaurants to make them yourself right at the table. I’m sure you’ll find some in Tokyo, too!