Abeno

Okonomiyaki is a Japanese savoury pancake popular across western Japan, and especially in Hiroshima and Osaka. Having tried this recently in Hiroshima I was curious as to whether it could be found in London, and found Abeno, a quiet café tucked away in Museum Street. This is owned by a lady from Osaka and her husband, and has been serving the dish in London since 1993 (the original location was in Colindale).

The dining room is simple but pleasant, with steel grills inset in the tables. Here the cooking is done at each table; in Japan it is often done on a central steel plate, with the seating arrayed around the hot-plate. I was curious as to how authentic this might be when I met my Italian waitress, but she had lived in Osaka for three years, and other staff were Japanese. There is a short wine list, as well as beer and sake available. Plantagenet Riesling 2011 was available at £27.75 for a wine that retails at £14, for example, and Marimar Acero 2009 was £30.95 for a wine that actually costs around £25 in a shop, so mark-ups are kind.    

The style of pancake kere is the Kansai style from Osaka, which is different from the Hiroshima style. In the Kansai style, the batter and ingredients are mixed together and then fried, whereas in the Hiroshima style the ingredients are layered and more cabbage is used. On the menu there are other choices, such as soba noodles and gyoza, but I was here for the okonomiyaki. The ingredients are brought to your table and mixed in front of you, then placed on the grill to cook; after a time the pancake is flipped and cooked on the reverse side, and finally is dressed with sauce, Japanese mayonnaise and bonito flakes.

It was all very enjoyable (12/20); I had a slight preference for the style I tried recently in Hiroshima at Ganso Henkutsuya, but that was possibly because I am a fan of cabbage rather than there being a criticism of the Abeno version. The bill, with just water to drink, came to £16 before tip, which is about five times what I paid for the dish in Japan, but there was at least some miso soup and a side dish included here. Okonomiyaki is hard to find in London, though there are a few other venues e.g. in Brixton market and in Clapton. Abeno has a sister restaurant called “Abeno Too” in Great Newport Street, near Leicester Square.