Sometaro

Okonomiyaki is a Japanese dish that I seldom see in the US. I first learned about it when I spent a summer in Japan working at Hitachi Chemical. A family I had met invited me over to their house. They had a special Okonomiyaki-making griddle on which they made these large, pancake-like patties.

The base of an okonomiyaki is flour, eggs, grated yam, and shredded cabbage. The ingredients are mixed together and then cooked on a flat griddle. Oftentimes, the flattened pancake is topped with a savoury and sweet brown sauce (okonomiyaki sauce), and mayonnaise. You can order ones with meat, veggies, seafood, or various other combinations.

We went to a delicious okonomiyaki restaurant titled "Sometaro" with my Japanese friend and her family while in Asakusa, a popular tourist area.

We started with a refreshing salad made from a certain type of green that you never see in the US. It's got a pungent, peppery taste, sort of like arugula. This salad was just a simple mixture of the local greens, bonito flakes, and a light dressing. It was delicious.

The waitress then brought over several okonomiyakis. You can see the striped mayonnaise in the picture. It was very tasty.

Finally, we enjoyed some really good oven-steamed wild mushrooms. It seems like they take fresh mushrooms and butter and wrap the whole thing in foil. Then, they"bake" the wrapped mushrooms in the oven. Very fragrant, flavorful, and a perfect way to end the meal.