Are you more an Osaka fan or more a Hiroshima fan?
Both styles would be improved, in my mind, if they used less than half the brown sauce. The Osaka-style okonomiyaki could also do with about a third of the mayonnaise. Jesus.
Aesthetically, I think Hiroshima wins out for me. I'm a fan of textural contrast and lasagna-style layering. The mixed-together nature of the Osaka style is okay, but too reminiscent of Korean pancakes like bindae-ddeok or the various jeons. Not to disrespect the Korean dishes, though: my point is that, if I'm in Japan, I'm probably not going to look for Korean food.
I've had both varieties in their respective places of origin, and they each have their charms. I'm not sure if I could say that I liked one better than the other--it might depend on my mood. The place we had Osaka-style Okonomiyaki was a much fancier place than the 포장마차-type place where we had the Hiroshima version, but, again, each had its charm.
ReplyDeleteI will say that neither is anything like the various Korean pancakes; if you do go to Osaka, you should definitely try the okonomiyaki there.
I've had the Osaka one in Osaka; it wasn't bad at all, although there was too much mayo. I need to try the Hiroshima one to see whether the experience matches my intuition that separate layers make for a better culinary experience.
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