After visiting Nara, we headed back to Osaka for the evening. We decided to go to the Dotonbori area again since it is always so lively at night. We walked around the Shinsaibashi shopping street first to check out some boutiques.
As dinner neared, we headed towards the Dotonbori area and noticed a huge line forming outside this fairly undecorated restaurant called Mizuno. We quickly got in line while Googling what this restaurant was all about. Turns out this restaurant was featured on the 2016 Michelin Guide and is famous for their okonomiyaki. The restaurant has been running for 3 generations and over 60 years.
The wait ended up being over an hour long. They give you a menu and take your order while you are waiting so there are no miscommunication issues with the chef. There are only around 8 seats at the bar, but some more seats upstairs. The bar is where you can see the action so luckily we got sat here. They prepare the okonomiyaki right in front of you, so it’s pretty fun.
Okonomiyaki is popular in the Kansai region and Hiroshima. On this trip, we end up getting the chance to try both! Osaka-style okonomiyaki is probably what you are more used to if you’ve had it in North America. The batter is made of flour, a grated type of yam, water or dashi, eggs, and shredded cabbage. You can then add ingredients such as octopus, squid, pork belly, shrimp, or vegetables. It’s said that Osaka is where the okonomiyaki originated so it’s a must try here! The difference is that in Osaka, the okonomiyaki is prepared similar to a pancake and the ingredients are all mixed together. This is quite different from Hiroshima style, where the ingredients are layered. As you can see, at Mizuno, you can choose to have soba noodles.
The okonomiyaki is not cheap here with most of them over 1,000 yen each. However, I think the high price is partly for the experience and show you get since you sit right in front of the teppan grill. We ended up getting two to share, which was a good amount since they are mostly carbs. We got one Mizuno-yaki with pork and one Modan-yaki. The Mizuno-yaki is what you would normally find but the flavours were way better. I have to say, this was probably the best okonomiyaki I’ve had. The okonomiyaki are dusted with seaweed powder and topped with mayo and a savoury sweet sauce. The Modan-yaki was also really good because it had crispy noodles. What I liked at the rsetaurant was that they give you a little metal spatula so you can serve yourself from the grill as you eat. The chef was kind to make sure our food did not get overcooked though when we ate too slow.
Overall, I thought the food was really good. Is it worth the 1 hour wait? Probably not if you are only visiting for a short period of time. But if you see the line pretty short, I would probably wait 30 minutes for this.
Mizuno
Address: 1-4-15 Dotombori, Chuo-ku, Osaka 542-0071, Osaka Prefecture
Every Day is a Food Day 