This family-run restaurant offers okonomiyaki and takoyaki just like you’d find in Osaka, along with the Kansai region’s characteristic friendliness. The tables, a mixture of low-set and regular dining tables, are all equipped with a hotplate to keep your okonomiyaki warm and a takoyaki iron grill – you’ll cook those DIY.
The large grill where the chef cooks the okonomiyaki is visible from all seats, so you can watch the chef at work – whisking the batter with a furious pace to give it its distinctive fluffiness, then cooking it on the grill for ten to 15 minutes before a theatrical flip onto your table. Everything is done at a rapid pace, ensuring the okonomiyaki is at the ideal temperature and texture.
The okonomiyaki is slathered in Japanese barbecue sauce then scattered with okaka – a more finely ground version of the bonito flakes that usually grace the tops of these savoury pancakes. We love the mixed okonomiyaki (¥980), with plump prawns and tender squid mixed into the batter, but there’s also negiyaki (with green onion in place of cabbage) and Hiroshimayaki (with fried noodles) – all have a good balance of savoury and sweet. Don’t miss trying one of Naniwa’s signature grapefruit sours (¥550). They’re freshly pressed grapefruit juice mixed with shochu and ice.