Abeno Too

Nicknamed 'Osaka soul food' because of its popularity in the Kansai region of Honshu, Japan's main island, okonomiyaki is akin to Spanish tortilla, but with shredded cabbage dominating the eggy base instead of potato.

At Abeno, pioneer of this specialism in Europe, you can order typical Japanese side dishes too; the standout is asparagus and tiger prawn gyoza. There are also not-so-typical combinations of egg and noodles (om-soba) or rice and noodles (soba-rice) - Atkins dieters, beware.

But the main event is to select fillings as simple as pork or as outlandish as mushroom, lotus root and cheese, then watch the mixture cooked ('yaki') as you like it ('okonomi') on a hotplate at your table. Service comes with a smile, plus advice on sauces, fish flakes and seaweed sprinkles. The result is comfort food that each diner can help themselves to with their own knife-edged spatula. You may want to decline generous spirals of mayonnaise and okonomiyaki sauce to let the fresh, flavoursome ingredients speak for themselves.

The simple menu is matched by no-frills surroundings: cream walls, brushed steel panels, and hollow bench seating in which customers can stow valuables. It's a relatively good-value option too - if you don't succumb to the temptation of fillet steak teppanyaki or the Kansai special mix.