I have no memory of how I found out about this restaurant. It is located in a back alley that is not a common passageway, further down the road. Despite visiting three times in the past, I have always been met with a full parking lot (only one spot), and the restaurant being fully packed. I heard it opens at 11:30 am, but when I arrived at 11:15 am, it was already open. The interior of the restaurant consists only of a counter, and it is a small place that can accommodate only 7-8 people. The menu offers only "Hiroshima-style okonomiyaki" with choices of pork, squid tempura, soba, or udon. I ordered soba with squid, and it was cooked right in front of me. They don't use any oil, nor do they boil the Chinese noodles. They spread out wheat flour, chop cabbage roughly, add seasoning like shrimp, and place the boiled Chinese noodles on top of the cabbage. Then, they carefully arrange thinly sliced squid on top, drizzle lightly beaten wheat flour, flip it over, cook the other side, and press it with a heavy spatula to ensure it is fully cooked. Once the egg is cracked and cooked, it is ready. They serve it with Okonomi sauce and sprinkle seaweed on top. This cooking method reminded me of a small local restaurant in Kure City, Hiroshima, where I had the same style of okonomiyaki. The time-consuming process is why they opt for boiling the noodles for tourists, as I was told. The freshly cooked okonomiyaki had a refreshing and light taste due to the absence of oil, and it was delicious. The simple and unadorned style seemed rather advanced. The cleanliness around the teppan grill was also impressive, with no burnt bits in sight. This made me realize how rough the typical Hiroshima-style okonomiyaki restaurants can be in their procedures. The restaurant has been in business for 43 years, started by a resident of Hiroshima who moved to Tokyo due to her husband's job transfer. The restaurant plays Johnny Cash's country music, which is the owner's hobby. I plan to visit at an earlier time next time. Thank you for the wonderful meal!

A Hiroshima-style okonomiyaki (Hiroshima-yaki) restaurant located a 10-minute walk from Higashi-Kurume Station. It is a rare style of restaurant where the staff cooks the okonomiyaki for you. There is a parking lot nearby. The menu consists of a strong style of okonomiyaki, with options of plain, with soba noodles, or with udon noodles. They cook without using any oil, which is their specialty. The owner is from Hiroshima and has been running this restaurant for over 40 years. The funky old lady owner talks about American robbers while cooking. A bottle of beer is reasonably priced at 500 yen tax included. I ordered the okonomiyaki with soba noodles (700 yen) plus an egg (50 yen), and it was delicious. The balance of flavors is great due to the lack of oil and the subtle seasoning, allowing the sweetness of the cabbage to stand out. The texture of the noodles becomes like crispy yakisoba as you eat. Okonomiyaki definitely tastes better when cooked by a pro. Despite its location, this restaurant is a gem in the area with its unique cooking style. I'm considering ordering one with pork and two eggs next time, but the squid tempura also looks tempting. It's a tough decision. For more details, check here: [link to blog post].

A grandma runs this okonomiyaki restaurant by herself! I've been coming here since I was a child! The okonomiyaki is delicious, and the yakisoba and udon are also great! I could never make them at home! I hope the grandma stays healthy and keeps serving her amazing dishes forever!

This time, I will introduce a shop I found on my way to the KODAIRA area in Tokyo. The name of the shop is "Hiroshima-ya" and they serve okonomiyaki. When I was traveling around Hiroshima, I could find unique okonomiyaki in various places. This shop in the residential area of Higashi-Kurume is run by a female owner from Hiroshima, who skillfully cooks okonomiyaki on a large iron plate in the shop. The okonomiyaki is cooked quickly and pressed with a heavy weight, resulting in a delicious dish. It gives you a pleasant feeling as if you were in Hiroshima. I will definitely come back to eat here again!

My current favorite hobby is cycling. Although I am not very experienced, I usually ride about 30-35km once a week. On this particular day, after a pleasant 18km ride, I decided to take a break for a meal. I found a quaint little restaurant in a quiet residential area about 1km away from Higashi-Kurume Station, where an elderly lady was working tirelessly on her own. The restaurant had only a small counter with seating for 6-7 people, and the view of the teppan grill in front of me along with the elderly lady was truly picturesque. I ordered the "soba, meatball," which is the classic dish here. The cabbage was roughly chopped rather than finely shredded, making it easy to puff up and therefore adopting the traditional "pressing" cooking method. The egg was cooked thoroughly and finished off with a sprinkle of seaweed. While there was no mayonnaise on the table, the elderly lady would provide it if requested. The cooking here is impeccable, as expected after running the restaurant for half a century. The seasoning is very simple, but the speed at which the food is brought to your mouth only accelerates, and I found myself finishing the meal in no time. Although I probably ate at the same pace as everyone else, I wish I could have savored this luxurious time a bit more. This is a restaurant I would definitely visit regularly if it were in my neighborhood.

Thirteen minutes walk from Higashi-Kurume Station West Exit. The shop is located in a residential area one block south from the street in front of Minamizawa Police Box, past Ito-Yokado. It may be hard to find, so aim for "Daini Kitano Yu" as a landmark. There is no parking lot. The interior has only counter seats. They offer three types of drinks: cola, orange juice, and healthy green tea, all priced at 150 yen. There are nine counter seats available. Smoking is allowed throughout the shop. Payment is made after the meal. On August 21, 2019, a little after 1 p.m., I visited alone. I ordered the squid okonomiyaki (700 yen) with an extra egg (50 yen). The squid is thinly sliced frozen squid placed on top and cooked. As for the taste... there is both squid and pork, but the pork might be the better choice. The prices have increased due to rising ingredient costs and the consumption tax hike in 2018, with the vegetable okonomiyaki now priced at 600 yen from the previous 500 yen. So, it seems average. The okonomiyaki itself does not compare to authentic Hiroshima-style okonomiyaki, but people seem to gather here due to the kind nature of the owner, making the shop thrive. It appears to be a place of relaxation for locals. I wish the owner good health and continued success in the future.

The restaurant is located in a residential area one street away from the main road. It may be difficult to find without local knowledge. It is recommended to take the train or ride a bicycle as there is no parking nearby. The counter can only seat 7-8 people, so it is best for individuals or small groups. The elderly female owner doesn't seem very business-oriented, so be prepared for a leisurely dining experience. The usual order is okonomiyaki with soba noodles and meat for 700 yen, along with a bottle of beer for 500 yen. The okonomiyaki comes with bonito flakes and nori already sprinkled on top, so you just have to enjoy the flavors. The noodles, ingredients, sauce, and cooking style are all ordinary, resulting in a standard taste. Since there is no competition in the area, the food may be perceived as delicious and receive high ratings.

In June 2019, I had a Hiroshima-style okonomiyaki with soba noodles and pork, along with an egg, at a Hiroshima okonomiyaki restaurant in Higashikurume, Tokyo. The restaurant was located in a residential area, not far from the train station. The atmosphere was authentic, with a well-used iron griddle and a simple, traditional feel. The okonomiyaki was like a cross between a meatball and soba noodles, with a good balance of flavors and textures. The cabbage was crispy and flavorful, and the sauce had a hint of spiciness and a subtle sweetness. Overall, it was a satisfying meal that made me want to visit Hiroshima. The restaurant may not be fancy, but it had a charm that I preferred over more upscale okonomiyaki places in the city. It's a great spot to pass the time before heading to the public bathhouse in the evening.

It's like an old-fashioned okonomiyaki restaurant in Hiroshima. The taste was good, and you can enjoy Hiroshima-style okonomiyaki without having to go all the way to Hiroshima. The combination of noodles and batter was great. They put a little batter on top of the cabbage, which is a classic cooking method. The portion size was generous. It seems that the price has recently increased by 100 yen, so it's about 50 yen more expensive than in Hiroshima. It's understandable since it's in Tokyo.

As someone from Hiroshima, this taste is nostalgic. It's a simple style of okonomiyaki that I feel may not be available even locally now. The noodles are traditional Chinese noodles and the sauce is the simple Otaku sauce, with a nostalgically straightforward taste.

KOUTA =========== The food was delicious and the service was excellent. I highly recommend this restaurant.

Full of Showa era vibes!

It's just okay, I guess⁉️

A Hiroshima-style okonomiyaki restaurant with three large iron plates. The shop is run by a female owner. I went for lunch around noon. I parked my car in a reserved space in a nearby parking lot. I ordered a "soba-niku okonomiyaki" for 600 yen, with an additional 50 yen for an egg. I also asked for squid tempura to be added. The other customers were all locals, and some were buying takeout okonomiyaki. All the customers, except for me, were women. The youthful owner is said to be celebrating her 77th birthday. She quickly cooked the okonomiyaki, showing her unique techniques like finely shredding the pork and squid tempura, pressing the okonomiyaki with a hot weight to cook thoroughly, and carefully crushing the eggs and applying the sauce. The okonomiyaki was delicious, especially when eaten directly off the iron plate with a spatula. I wanted a beer to go with it. I paid 650 yen for the meal, which included the squid tempura. It seems like the owner adjusts the portion sizes based on the price. Overall, it was a tasty meal. The restaurant is listed as smoking allowed on Tabelog, but it will become a non-smoking establishment from 2017.

I hate to say this, but maybe there's nothing outstanding about the okonomiyaki here. However, for those who have been eating here since a long time ago, it must be perfect. When we visited for the first time, we felt a warm and cozy atmosphere that cannot be evaluated with a score. The taste of the okonomiyaki made by the mother who cooks is superb. The ambiance of the place is like a 5-star rating in itself. There were four young men and women dining when we visited, along with a lady who seemed to be a local. The interior of the restaurant is just a single L-shaped teppan grill, and we barely managed to fit as a couple. The young group that seemed to have finished eating graciously gave up their seats for us. They mentioned that they had come all the way from Mie. Apparently, this place was used as a filming location for the Bad Boys movie. It was featured on the news this summer. The shop is run by a hardworking grandmother, as mentioned on TV. However, the mother who has been working hard for 35 years doesn't like being called a grandmother. The local lady dining alone mentioned how she always craves the okonomiyaki from here while chatting with the mother. Apparently, the shop also makes souvenirs. It costs the same as the okonomiyaki, which is 600 yen. We tried the soba and squid tempura okonomiyaki for 600 yen. The squid tempura is like a snack, according to the mother. She tore it up and added it to the okonomiyaki. The okonomiyaki is made by spreading the batter in a circle, adding green onions, dried shrimp, dried fish, plenty of cabbage, and yakisoba noodles on top. Then, the torn squid tempura is added, more batter is sprinkled, and it is flipped and pressed flat. It is served on the teppan grill in front of us. The mother recommended eating it directly from the teppan grill for the best taste. It was piping hot! The sweet okonomiyaki sauce matched perfectly. We also tried the udon and pork okonomiyaki for 600 yen, which has the same process as the previous one but with thin pork belly instead of squid tempura and udon instead of yakisoba. It was my first time trying udon in okonomiyaki, and it was not bad, but I still prefer yakisoba in okonomiyaki. Both dishes had a simple and nostalgic taste, with the mother's touch being essential. The thin batter makes it feel quite healthy even with a whole portion of yakisoba or udon. People who come to eat here end up feeling like family with the mother. It was that kind of place. Thank you for the meal, and we will definitely visit again.

13th July 14, went shopping at the Higashi-Kurume Ion Shopping Mall with the family. We were planning to have lunch inside Ion, but jrNO1 wanted to go to this place instead. Even though we had been there once before, he remembered it well. When we arrived, it was almost full, but someone kindly offered us their seats so we could sit down. We ordered the pork extra large for 600 yen, regular for 500 yen, squid extra large for 600 yen, and yakisoba extra large for 500 yen. This place serves Hiroshima-style okonomiyaki. Watching the grandma prepare it was fascinating. She used a round iron-like device to stretch and finish the okonomiyaki, which was filled with plenty of cabbage and a sweet and savory Otafuku sauce. The love of the grandma is evident in the dish! By the way, the VIP seats here are in the center where the griddle is hot, so you can enjoy the dish piping hot until the end. Delicious! 25th January 14, a recommended Hiroshima-style okonomiyaki restaurant by a fellow reviewer. Located one street off the main road, diagonally across from the public bathhouse, this okonomiyaki and yakisoba specialty shop is run by a grandma alone. The Hiroshima-style okonomiyaki cooked on the griddle that occupies most of the shop space is authentic. Today, on our way back from the hot spring facility in Tokorozawa, it was me, jr, and three other men. The menu includes vegetable okonomiyaki for 500 yen, meat or squid okonomiyaki for 600 yen, and yakisoba for 400 yen. You can have udon noodles instead of soba, and there is even a large size menu for both soba and udon. This time, we ordered the meat okonomiyaki with soba and udon each, and yakisoba. When you place your order, the grandma starts cooking right in front of you. First, she makes a crepe-like round dough and then adds cabbage, yakisoba, pork belly, and dried shrimp on top. Finally, she adds sauce and seaweed. She finishes it off skillfully. The sauce is, of course, Otafuku sauce and Otafuku yakisoba sauce. The finished okonomiyaki is eaten directly from the griddle without using a plate. It stays warm and tastes simple but delicious. It feels nostalgic in a way. The grandma said she will continue running the shop until she's 100 years old. She hasn't raised prices in over 30 years. I'm sure she will continue to do so in the future. I hope this shop continues to thrive for a long time. Delicious!