Finally tried Goto, a monjayaki/okonomiyaki/teppanyaki shop.
We always pass this place, but never have tried them because they aren't open for lunch on Saturdays and open late for lunch on Sundays
Let Satoshi do the cooking again...look at that concentration!
Seafood yakisoba
And beef kim chee tenkasu (tempura bits) okonomiyaki
Everything was delicious...chef did a good job
Total for dinner was 3250 yen (tax included)
I was telling him that when we lived in Kansai, the okonomiyaki, yakisoba was always cooked for us
Satoshi said that growing up, they always had to cook it themselves.
I told him, since we've been in Kanto, we've had to cook it ourselves, so I hadn't known that Satoshi could cook these dishes...so he's in charge the next time we eat at places like this...
Checked out Fujison, an okonomiyaki/monja restaurant in our shopping arcade
You can either order with a QR code or with a human...they weren't busy, so we chose to order with the guy working
Seafood okonomiyaki...look at that concentration!
Apparently this restaurant is cook your own...although if you just cannot, you can ask them to cook it for you
I let the chef do his thing...
And yakisoba...chef lost some noods in the "drainage" area of the griddle where you scrape the koge (burnt) bits into when cleaning the griddle...we moved the okonomiyaki to block the drainage area after that...ha!
looks good
almost finished cooking
it took some time to cook but both were delicious!
I'm glad we tried this place since we always wondered about it
2800 yen (tax included) for okonomiyaki, yakisoba and a drink for Satoshi
The last time we saw this cousin was back in 2012.
Before that, was way way back when I was in high school (I think)...
Anyway, his email was to let us know that he and his family were coming to Japan in June.
After emailing a couple of times, we decided to meet yesterday.
Even if we met up in 2012, it was actually our first time to "hang out" with them.
Instead of eating at the shopping mall we met up at, we bought some bento and other items from a supermarket in the complex and had a makeshift picnic near the Osaka Castle.
I think they enjoyed checking out the pre-made food section at the supermarket too.
Then after walking through the castle, we walked around Dotombori and had an early dinner at Honke Ootako.
Takoyaki, yakisoba, okonomiyaki and other nibbles.
I think everyone had a nice time and I hope everyone had enough to eat.
side note: If you just want to eat takoyaki, Honke Ootako has a stand called Ootako around the corner from their shop. (as we left, we saw wait staff running orders of takoyaki from the stand to the shop)
I don't really care too much for takoyaki as the "innards" are always kinda undercooked for my liking, but this shop's takoyaki was delicious with huge pieces of tako (octopus) inside.
It was a blazing day, but I'm glad we got to spend some time reconnecting with them and I hope they enjoyed their visit to Osaka.
Beat the egg with the nagaimo then fold into the cabbage, flour.
Use the dashi to loosen the batter up. (It should kind of be like pancake batter, but a little thicker.)
Heat a little oil in a non-stick pan.
Put half of the batter and cook for about 5 minutes.
Before flipping, place your sliced pork belly onto the okonomiyaki.
Flip carefully and cover.
Let cook for another 3-4 minutes.
Flip over once again and top with your favorite okonomiyaki sauce and toppings (I sometimes top ours with kimchee).
Repeat using the other half of the batter and make another okonomiyaki
Enjoy!
NOTES: When cleaning the nagaimo, I used a peeler. It is really slippery so be careful while peeling off the "skin".
I actually tried this with some dried okara and some flour...but would stick to all flour.
From Imabari, it took us about 40 minutes to get to Inokuchi Port by bus.
Before getting on the bus, Satoshi called a taxi company to meet us at Inokuchi Port, so that they could take us to Sakari Port.
When Satoshi had called, he explained that we wanted to catch the ferry to Okunoshima.
To get to Inokuchi Port, you need to cross the Shimanami Kaido, a roadway that links the small islands in the Setouchi area.
On a sunny day, the view is quite spectacular.
I hope you can view this video I shot as we crossed one of the bridges on the Shimanami Kaido
We arrived at Inokuchi Port a little before 9:00 and the taxi was waiting for us.
In fact, as we got off the bus, the taxi driver said, "jump in, we can make the 9:05 ferry"
Sakari Port was 2 kilometers away from Inokuchi Port, so off we sped.
As he drove on the winding coastal road, he radioed the ferry that we wanted to get on the 9:05 ferry.
So, they waited for us! (so nice! thank you!)
We jumped on the ferry and 15 minutes later were at Okunoshima, also known as Rabbit Island.
Okunoshima is part of Hiroshima prefecture and is a tiny island about 3 kilometers around.
During the war, this island had a factory making and testing mustard gas and tear gas.
Apparently, rabbits were used to test the gases and effects.
After the war, when the factory was destroyed, they also killed the rabbits that were on the island.
Then when they decided to turn the island into a park, they released a new set of rabbits into the wild.
Now you can camp and there is also a tiny hotel.
Dogs & cats are prohibited as well as hunting.
Our only regret was not bringing veggies for the rabbits.
They don't sell any food for the rabbits on the island...bummer!
Fortunately, rabbits have bad eye sight, so we picked up some rabbit food that someone had left on the ground, and fed them with it.
This little guy stole my heart!
After walking all the way around the island, we caught the ferry to Tadanoumi.
Since we had about an hour wait for the train, we went to look for lunch.
Choices were quite slim.
Luckily, we were able to have some Hiroshima-style okonomiyaki at Eshimaya.
I enjoyed the shiso and thin noodles in the okonomiyaki.
From Tadanoumi, it was about 30 minutes to Takehara.
After putting our bags down at the hotel, we explored the area.
There are so many preserved homes here.
Like stepping back in time.
It was fun exploring all the tiny alleyways.
Dinner was at our hotel, everything was so tasty.
Dessert was from the cute patisserie nearby, Fraicheur.
I had their cassis chocolat...super rich! but I enjoyed the dark chocolate paired with cassis.
Satoshi had their pumpkin mont blanc...he felt there was too much going on in his dessert with the matcha cake crossing out the pumpkin cream...bummer!
We also went omiyage shopping at the supermarket nearby...furikake, snacks, citrus tea and instant curry.
It was a long day, but the weather was super nice (hot!) and we got to see and do quite a bit.
We were invited by Satoshi's co-worker, Y, to join he and his wife at Ninna-ji to see late blooming sakura (cherry blossoms).
Unfortunately, Sunday was forecast for rain (again)...
It had been over 10 years since the last time we visited Ninna-ji, so it would be a nice chance to re-connect with it.
Luckily, the rain had cleared up by the time we headed out and it was actually...sunny and hot!
Before going to Ninna-ji though, we stopped at Matsuo Taisha near Arashiyama.
The yamabuki (Japanese rose) was in full bloom...the yellow was so pretty!
Our next stop, Otagi Nembutsuji...a peaceful oasis with 1200 rakan (stone statues representing the disciples of Buddha), made by many people from various areas of Japan, during the reconstruction of the temple between 1981 and 1991, some are humorous, it was nice to look at each face.
Down the hill from Otagi Nembutsuji, is Adashino Nembutsuji. I thought I had written about this spot, but it was probably pre-blog.
Adashino is the name of the area and is also the area where the dead were buried in ancient times.
The temple was founded by Kukai (Kobo Daishi), and it is here that the dead were buried in the 9th century.
Apparently, only higher class people received gravestones back then. Throughout the property there are about 8000 gravestones.
Every August 23 and 24 at twilight, they light more than 1000 candles as offering to the gravestones and the ceremony is called "Sento-kuyo".
Another peaceful area.
From Arashiyama, we then made our way to Ninna-ji.
The grounds were lit and there was also a 4 piece string ensemble playing some melodies.
There were some trees here and there with blooms.
Unfortunately though, most of the sakura had already bloomed and the tree's leaves were coming in.
Still, it was nice to view some sakura.
Dinner was at Jumbo.
And if you look at the picture carefully, you'll notice that the okonomiyaki is "overflowing" on the griddle.
This place has been in business for over 20 years and is popular with families and college students.
When we got there the line was out the door!
And the prices were so cheap!
For 2 okonomiyaki, yakisoba and 3 large bottles of beer, it was only 3780 yen (tax included).
The scary part was watching the staff put mayo and sauce on the okonomiyaki, they don't skimp, I swear the guy put half a bottle of mayo and sauce on...eep!
With all the broadcasts of the recent Kumamoto earthquake, getting out and about was a nice change of pace.
Kyo Chabana is a chain of okonomiyaki and teppanyaki restaurants in the Kyoto and Osaka areas.
I've wanted to try them since I saw a segment on a television show. Their most popular item is an okonomiyaki topped with fresh tomato.
We got a chance to try them at the Hankyu Department restaurant floor. This department store just went through a major renovation and after 3 years, is finally open.
Needless to say, there are tons of people all wanting to check the store out.
In front of most of the restaurants on this floor, there are "fast pass" machines which you can load onto your phone and I think they e-mail you when your table is ready.
We got there before the dinner rush, so were seated quite quickly.
The okonomiyaki comes to your table, then an okonomiyaki sauce topped with mozzarella cheese, fresh tomatoes and chiffonade shiso (perilla) is poured over. The heat from the grill pan, melts the cheese and it is oozy gooey goodness.
The flavor kinda reminded me of western barbecue sauce.
Another item we tried was their avocado yakisoba.
Instead of yakisoba noodles, which I think are egg based, they use soba noodles (buckwheat). The sauce is a combination of yamaimo (chinese yam), shoyu and some wasabi. Then it is topped with avocado & shrimp.
Both items were different and really delicious.
Our only gripe was the serving size, really small. The okonomiyaki was only about a 4-inch round, which isn't very much.
For those 2 items, a glass of wine and a beer, we paid 3560 yen.
We tried it and liked it but dunno that we would go back.
Kyo Chabana
Hankyu Department Store 12F
Phone: 06.6313.1505
Both the highs and the lows have dropped into the single digits here, but no sign of flurries.
(The other day the wind was so icy I had major "dry-eye".)
At the market yesterday, I didn't really know what to shop for.
I remembered I had some okonomiyaki mix that needed to be used so I decided to make okonomiyaki.
I wanted to try making Hiroshima style which is crepe-like.
You should know that people of Osaka mix their shredded cabbage into their batter, then while cooking add their toppings.
Osaka style okonomiyaki can sometimes be kind of thick and filling, while Hiroshima style tends to be lighter since it has lots of shredded cabbage and the thin crepe on the bottom.
The mix that I have already has the nagaimo (chinese yam) and other things like konbu in it, so all I do is add an egg and a 1/2 cup of water (which are the directions on the package).
The first couple Hiroshima style I made were a bit thick.
After you put down your crepe, top it with lots of shredded cabbage.
Besides shredded cabbage, I also put some kim chee and slices of pork belly.
I covered the pan to let the cabbage and other goodies steam down.
I also drizzled a little more batter on and then flipped it over to cook the pork.
A person who grew up in Hiroshima, once told me that you should never press down on the flipped okonomiyaki, all the juices will be lost and your okonomiyaki will be very hard and dry.
I usually use Otafuku sauce for okonomiyaki, but had this sauce by Carp in my fridge, which most Hiroshima residents swear by.
I also put lots of katsuo bushi (bonito flakes) and some aonori (green laver) on top.
NOTES: I should have shredded my cabbage thinner, so it would have cooked quicker. Still this was delicious.
We usually eat okonomiyaki at home, so it had been awhile since we'd eaten it at a restaurant.
We ordered the negi goma shoyu yakisoba, fried noodles coated with a sesame oil shoyu sauce then topped with lots of green onions....850 yen (about US$8.50)
This was good. There was also some squid and pork in there also.
We also ordered the fugetsu yaki, an okonomiyaki with pork, beef, shrimp, and squid....1130 yen (about US$11.30)
I should have taken a video of how they made the okonomiyaki.
Before they flipped it over (the first time) they put katsuo bushi (bonito shavings) on top, which sort of surprised me because I'm used to seeing the katsuo bushi dancing on the finished dish.
Having it under the sauce was delicious and their okonomiyaki has lots of cabbage.
Though the amount of mayo they put on top was a bit too much for our liking, we still enjoyed this.
With 2 glasses of umeshu (apricot liqueur)...our total was 2820 yen (about US$28.20).
In the States, you probably know about B movies, but there is something called B-kyu gurume (B class gourmet) here in Japan.
This form of food is not "frou-frou", but found in shitamachi (working class areas).
It is down to earth, cheap and delicious.
These foods usually don't use the best parts of the animal, which is probably why they can sell things cheap.
Anyway...Satoshi has been wanting to check out a monument...of a comic character, so we headed to Kobe.
Tetsujin Niju-hachi go (Super Giant 28) was created by Yokoyama Mitsuteru, who was born near Kobe.
Satoshi grew up with this cartoon on television.
An NPO group came up with the idea for this monument as a way to "cheer up" their area which was decimated in the 1995 Kobe earthquake.
The project was started in 2006 and the monument was finished in 2009.
It is 18 meters tall (59 feet high).
Unfortunately, Mr. Yokoyama died in 2004 and was never able to see the finished product.
The monument is located in a park near the JR Shin Nagata station.
From the park, there are many shopping arcades, unfortunately, there were only a handful open because most shops have the day off on Wednesday.
Still, I got to show Satoshi some of the b-kyu gurume that Nagata has to offer.
First off, we shared an okonomiyaki topped with suji-kon from Iroha.
Suji-kon is beef tendon cooked with konnyaku (devil's tongue jelly) in a sweet and salty sauce.
Suji-kon is also called bokkake.
We loved this okonomiyaki, it had lots of cabbage and the sauce was nicely balanced (not too sweet or salty)...330 yen (about US$3.30)
I have tried something before with bokkake and blogged about it here.
A couple blocks away from Iroha was Chizuruya, a butcher/croquette shop.
Just the smell of the oil frying up croquette drew us to them.
Not to mention the line waiting for the croquettes.
We tried a potato croquette 60 yen (about US$.60) and menchikatsu (minced beef (hamburger) cutlet) 70 yen (about US$.70).
We ordered ours to eat right away, so they came wrapped in brown paper and were piping hot.
Nagata is also known for being an area which makes shoes, so we went to check out a building called Shoes Plaza, unfortunately this place had the day off too.
If you go to check them out (when they are open), they have many shoe shops inside and in front you'll see these huge red high heels.
Across the street from the Shoes Plaza there is a tiny okonomiyaki shop called Fuji.
There was a dish that I wanted Satoshi to try called sobameshi, luckily they had it on their menu.
Soba is yakisoba (fried noodle), meshi is rice.
This dish is like fried rice but with the addition of fried noodles.
They are cooked with cabbage, green onion and the noodle is chopped up as it is cooked.
At the end, it is topped with some of the sweet and salty sauce.
You can find many variations of this dish in Nagata, but I think the best is with bokkake in it.
Satoshi and I shared the sobameshi and suji sobameshi...total 1400 yen (about US$14).
I loved how the noodle got crispy from staying on the griddle while you ate.
Both dishes came with a serving of miso soup & pickles.
Very filling but with all that walking, surely hit the spot.
Despite most of the shops being closed, it was a nice sunny day, a bit chilly, but lots of delicious foods to try.
And beef kim chee tenkasu (tempura bits) okonomiyaki 
Everything was delicious...chef did a good job
.JPG)
.JPG)
.JPG)
.JPG)
.JPG)
.JPG)
.JPG)
.JPG)