After the short break, time to eat again!
This time we took a cab ride to Tsukishima to have Monjayaki. I have always wanted to try real okonomiyaki but it is pretty hard to find in LA. Monjayaki is sort of a variation of Okonomiyaki, a sort of savory pancake that is made yourself at your table. This variation is not quite a pancake, but more like a watery puddle of goodness. We went to a place called Kondo, which apparently has been there longer than most of the many monja shops there.
Kondo Monja
Click on pics to embiggen.
Let’s get to the food part already. You are seated at a table with a hot flat grill in the middle along with some accessories: a couple of spatulas to cook with, various oils and spices and a set of tiny flat spatulas to shovel the finished product into your mouth. This restaurant also provided a little spray bottle of Febreze-like stuff to get rid of the smoke odor from your clothes. This came in handy as the party sitting next to us were chainsmoking up a storm (4 people – 6 packs of cigarettes).
The tools.
After you order you get your ingredients: a bowl of thin watery slurry batter, cabbage, shrimp, and various combinations of ingredients. We started with Pork, Kimchi and noodles (the cabbage, shrimp and batter are the common ingredients)
Check out the video!
And then you just eat it
yes, it looks like vomit...
...but it tastes good.
Next combo: crispy ramen noodles, and curry.
you cook an egg in the middle of the hole in this one.
This combo is Tarako (cod fish roe), mochi (!) and....
...CHEESE!
making the wall for the batter (tarako cooking on the right)
cheese in the hole. cheese in the hole!
Gooey puddle.
closeup of the goo (with fish egg detail)
Tasty and smoky. All you need is a table grill, a couple of spatulas and little mini snow shovels then you too can have your own Monjayaki party (remember to bring at least 2 packs of smokes per diner).
Note: This restaurant was in an area where almost every single restaurant serves Monjayaki. One restaurant has a doll strapped to a chair in front of it and supposedly it promotes fertility to people who touch it. I touched it.
Magic fertility doll. Its magic works through a plastic bag.
Dinner done.
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