You’d Batter Believe it! Nagoya’s Okonomiyaki and Monjayaki Restaurants

Aug 31, 2021

You’d Batter Believe it! Nagoya’s Okonomiyaki and Monjayaki Restaurants

Sometimes called Japanese pizza, alternatively Japanese pancakes, Okonomiyaki is a staple Japanese dish from the Kansai region – typically Osaka and Hiroshima – but has grown in such popularity that you can get it pretty much all over the country.

A mix of batter (hence the pancake comparison), flavored with bonito flakes, and cabbage, it is usually mixed with a variety of savory ingredients such as octopus, pork, kimchi, shrimp, or yam – as well as noodles if it is done Hiroshima-style – and often topped with Worcestershire sauce, mayonnaise and dried bonito. In restaurants, this can either be prepared in the kitchen for you or, often, the ingredients are brought to your table, and you cook the thick ‘pancake’ yourself on your teppan hotplate.

As always, however, when Kansai excels, the Kanto region – including Tokyo – feels it must compete, which is where monjayaki comes in. Very similar in ingredients, monjayaki differs in how it is always cooked at your table. The batter has an addition of ‘dashi’ broth, giving it a much looser consistency akin to melted cheese, and you slowly eat using tiny spatulas. As long as you can get over the fact that it looks more akin to ‘pavement pizza,’ that is. And you really should, because it is absolutely delicious.

Being in Nagoya, which means that we always have one foot in each of the Kanto and Kansai camps, we are fortunate that we can get both great okonomiyaki and monjayaki. Here are a couple of suggestions:

Okonomiyaki

Jaken

Opposite the Nagoya International Center, Jaken specializes in Hiroshima-style okonomiyaki, with ingredients delivered directly from Hiroshima, which is particularly important for the kujo green onions, which are extremely important when making Hiroshimayaki.

Jaken always has a lively, fun-packed atmosphere. This is especially true when the Hiroshima Carps baseball team is in town, a popular meeting spot for fans.

Where: 3 Chome-3-4 Meieki, Nakamura Ward, Nagoya (map)
Website: hiroshimayaki-jaken.com

Kinta

Like all good restaurants, Kinta in Midori Ward has a well-defined commitment to its okonomiyaki, particularly when it comes to the basics. With a variety of techniques for preparing cabbage depending on the weather, using sweet Kujo onions from Kyoto, Japanese wheat, and top quality cheese from one of the leading dairy farms in the Tokachi region of Hokkaido. They even have their own brand of homemade sauce.

But while this attention to detail in the basics is important, Kinta then knocks it out of the park with their variety of toppings, including mochi and cheese, the golden trio of pork, shrimp, and squid; and the gargantuan Mega Prime Pork Ball (above)!

Where: 2 Chome-1503-2 Norikura, Midori Ward, Nagoya (map)
Website: kinta.co.jp

Monjayaki

Yashiro Nayabashiten

In the Nayabashi area – just down from Midtown BBQ – Yashiro is my personal recommendation, and I have been there loads of times. The restaurant itself has a very traditional atmosphere from the outside, but inside it is dark and cozy, the perfect venue for a date, sharing a monja.

Perhaps what makes Yashiro so special is in how its batter is prepared overnight, letting it breathe and cultivate, giving it a rich texture. There is a wide variety on the menu, but perhaps my favorite is the Nagoya-inspired miso monjayaki.

Where: 5 Chome-24-12 Meieki, Nakamura Ward, Nagoya (map)
Website: yashironayabashiten.gorp.jp   gurunavi.com (English)

Jinguchaya Teppanyaki Monjyayaki

If you are worried about your ability to make the monjayaki by yourself, Jinguchaya near Kamimaezu Station is the place for you, as the waiting staff will come to your hotplate table and do all the work.

As well as including the freshest finely chopped ingredients, they will also recommend sake pairings for your dish. If you want something extra to eat on the side, the basashi – raw horse meat – from Kumamoto is something you’ll never regret.

Where: 2 Chome-1-11 Kamimaezu, Naka Ward, Nagoya (map)
Website: jinguuchaya.com

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Image: By su-lin via flickr.com [CC BY-NC-ND] – modified
Image: By Dick Thomas Johnson via flickr.com [CC BY-NC-ND] – modified
Image via https://kinta.co.jp/menulist/
Image via https://jinguuchaya.com/