Fugetsu

Okonomiyaki is an Osakan specialty, and I do believe we would be committing some sort of crime if we were to leave without sampling it at least once.

A tip from TB's hamakong (Yoko) led us to try the okonomiyaki at Fugetsu, a chain with multiple locations in Osaka. We easily found the Dotombori-dori location, as we knew what the store looked like from the website photo. You might want to look it up online as well, as the signage is in Japanese characters, and you might find it difficult to pick out the small name "Fugetsu."

The restaurant was very brightly lit and jam packed with youthful patrons, all smoking, of course. Seating was in booths, and each table had a large grill embedded in the center (not coincidentally, all the menu covers were deformed -- melted. We were very wary of that grill while there, and decided this concept wouldn't fly at home due to liability issues!)

The menu was in Japanese with some English translations thrown in, but it was easy enough to make our selection: okonomiyaki, please! The vegetarian version for me, and pork for Steve. You can choose to have it with or without noodles, and we both opted for the "full experience."

Our waitress came out with bowls filled with cabbage, vegetables (and perhaps a few other mysterious spices and things), and mixed it all up with an egg right there at the table. Then she rubbed the grill with a slab of bacon (so much for the "vegetarian" version!) and shaped two large pancakes on our grill. I say "pancake" without a high level of accuracy...it was much thicker, and really didn't look much like a pancake, but I don't have a better word for it.

Then we waited and waited, speculating that perhaps the okonomiyaki was burning and needed to be flipped. We knew from watching the other tables that this was not our job. So we waited. Finally it was turned, and it was perfectly browned, not burned at all. More waiting. Then the waitress brought a bowl of noodles, put them on the okonomiyaki, and they were fried right into our "pancake" -- a mouthwatering production. We were hungry.

The final touch was a topping of two sauces. One was a mayo-like dressing the other a sweet brown sauce, like worchestershire but thicker.
Finally, time to eat.

Now here I must take a moment to thank my friend Anthony for first telling me about okonomiyaki, Yoko for recommending we eat it at Fugetsu, and the Japanese people in general (and Osakans specifically) for creating this taste extravaganza. Yes, yes, yes, okonomiyaki is all that and more, and I hope to have it for breakfast, lunch, and dinner while I am here!