Dotonbori, okonomiyaki and a hotcake sandwich - Osaka, Japan

Cakes at Takashimaya, Namba, Osaka

For a country that exhibits remarkable restraint when it comes to snacks and junkfood, Japanese depaato (department store) food halls are a haven for dessert lovers. It's all about quality of course - each slice of cake as meticulously crafted as an exquisite work of art.

We spent hours roaming these basement levels. The pastry chefs wear pristine white uniforms and there are plenty of glassed booths dotted throughout the floor that give passing customers a live view of the cooking or decorating action.


Gramercy New York cakes



Adjacent, or beneath the cake level is the area devoted to fresh food - fruit, vegetables, teas and seafood. And don't forget the pickles. Pickles are an intrinsic aspect to every Japanese meal.


Pickled vegetables


Double-stemmed rockmelon 15,750yen (about AU$197)

I love that fruit is viewed with such reverence, and is valued and appreciated just as much as artisan hand-made chocolates. The obsession with perfection within nature is a particularly Japanese quirk, leading to handsome prices for double-stemmed rockmelons or gargantuan-sized strawberries and pomelos.


St Valentines Day fruit gift box


Torafugu tekki - said to be the most poisonous fugu puffer fish


Seaweed


Mebaru rockfish


Nakau

On our second day in Osaka, we ended up at Nakau for a late lunch - a fast food style chain that specialises in gyudon, or beef on rice or udon noodles.


Beef udon set 590yen


Beef gyudon set 490yen
Beef, onion and shiitake mushrooms with special sauce on rice
with haikara udon


Beef gyudon

There isn't a lot of beef, but the thin slices have a lovely ribbon of fat, stir-fried on the grill with lengths of onion. It's fast and filling, and a whole lot healthier than most of the fast food options we have available here in Australia.


Driving gloves at the 100yen shop

We found ourselves stalking 100yen shops (oh so many things and oh so cheap).


"I'm hungry" card at a 100yen shop


Kids dinner trays in a car, train and space shuttle
spotted in a kitchenware store at Doguya Suji

Doguya Suji is perfect for anyone who loves kitchen porn. This covered alley beholds commercial takoyaki grills, massive steamers, cake decorating equipment, turning slicers, crockery, massive lanterns and plastic food replicas that will keep you amused for hours.


Giant crab on Dotonbori

Along with every our tourist in town, we end up at Dotonbori by night, a long stretch of neon, food stalls, souvenir shops and restaurants adorned with supersized paper lantern puffer fish or mechanical giant crabs.


Dotonbori


Angry or determined chef?


Ramen house


Another giant crab that moves


The Glico running man


Food-themed keyrings galore at a souvenir shop in Dotonbori


Sushi keyrings


Egg, pizza and hot dog keyrings


Final Fantasy XIII Elixir


Puffer fish

Dinner in Osaka? It has to involve okonomiyaki. We troop down a set of stairs to Domusu, a basement eatery that's all booth seating around hot plates.


Booths


Domusu menu


Cooking okonomiyaki

Okonomiyaki is often called Japanese pizza - it's a pancake made with cabbage, batter and an assortment of toppings like bacon, egg, shallots and seafood.


Okonomiyaki with prawns

Once you've made your selection, the chefs cook them on their central grill, a process that involves an element of patience and dexterity.


Okonomiyaki topped with bonito flakes


Lemon and lime chu hai 350yen

By the time we're halfway through our chu hai, an alcoholic drink that's sweet and carbonated, our okonomiyaki is ready for dispensing to our pre-warmed grill.


Okonomiyaki with mochi and bacon 960yen
Okonomiyaki with bacon and kimchee 940yen
Onokomiyaki with bacon, kimchee, egg and leeks 1100yen


Metal spatulas for cutting the okonomiyaki

A metal spatula is all each person needs to carve out their own wedge of okonomiyaki.






Condiments

Condiments of sancho pepper, ground seaweed and bonito flakes are added as you please. Squiggles of okonomiyaki sauce, a sweet fruity sauce that's quite similar to Worcestershire, and mayonnaise complete your garnishes.


Okonomiyaki dressed and ready for eating

The surface is crisp, the cabbage is yielding, and the spices, filling and mayonnaise meld into one hot mouthful. I loved the squares of mochi in mine - chewy, starchy and glutinous - and whole rashers of bacon pair perfectly with the cabbage.


Dessert party

And in what will become an almost nightly tradition, we hold a "dessert party" back at the hotel room - a feast of random treats picked up at our local convenience store, most of them surprisingly good.


Chocolate eclair, hotcake sandwich and cheesecake

The chocolate eclair isn't as soggy as you'd think, the choux pastry still holding its form beneath the shell of chocolate. Cheesecake is fluffy and light, but it's the package of hotcakes that get the best reception. The hotcakes are soft and airy and a generous layer cream makes for happy bellies and sweet dreams.


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Nakau outlets selling gyudon are found all over Japan

Domusu Okonomiyaki
Dotonbori, Osaka, Japan
(sorry no address details in English but you can try to get someone to translate the Japanese below - it's located in the basement down a set of stairs off the street)

お好み焼き ねぎ焼き [ どむす 道頓堀本店 ]
〒542-0071大阪府大阪市中央区道頓堀1-5-9 久幸ビルB1F
電話：06-6212-7399
営業時間：平日11時30分～22時30分/土日祝11時～22時30分


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