【Teacher Youqun】One bite and you're comforted—Japan’s famous Osaka-style okonomiyaki from a renowned shop

Original text byLi Youqun

This trip to Osaka was very spontaneous. I booked my hotel just moments before boarding the plane, had no particular destination in mind, and after arriving at Kansai Airport, I leisurely picked up a guidebook (an original Japanese-language travel book about Osaka) at TSUTAYA.

There’s no special reason—I’m just too familiar with Japan. Having traveled back and forth since childhood and lived in Tokyo for so many years, it feels like a second home. So coming to Osaka feels no different than going from Taipei to Kaohsiung—there’s no particular excitement, just a desire to momentarily escape fatigue.

That said, my impression of Osaka remains hazy. “Hmm, I came once in high school, visited Osaka Castle, saw Toyotomi Hideyoshi’s Golden Tea Room, and that’s about it, hmm.”

Dotonbori? Takoyaki? Heartwarming local hospitality? Distinctive Kansai dialect?

As someone who’s enamored with elegant Kyoto, I often bypass Osaka altogether, like some self-important Tokyo bumpkin with vague and superficial stereotypes about Osaka. So, “okonomiyaki”<き”(大阪烧)便成了随兴到大阪后，肤浅印象中其中一个浮现的选项。

Flipping through the newly purchased guidebook, sure enough, one page read: “Osaka-style okonomiyaki that will comfort your soul.” The phrase “first lunch of the trip” caught my eye—<き店へ。美舟は、旅行初日のランチにオススメです。”(大意是，漂散著浓浓大阪情}郑?押透垂欧绲拇筅嫔彰?辏?乐郏?萍龈?眯械谝惶煜碛梦绮偷哪恪）

Bingo!”Osaka-style,” “retro,” “Showa-era vibes,” “first lunch of the trip”—weren’t these descriptors all meant for me? Especially the word “retro,” which I just can’t resist. It’s like when a shoe store clerk says the magic word “limited edition”—I’m instantly ready to pull out my wallet.

Founded in Showa 23 (1948), the long-standing okonomiyaki shop “Mibune” in Umeda naturally became the first stop of my spontaneous journey.

Smaller and more old-fashioned than I’d imagined, Mibune is tucked away in the Hankyu Higashi-dori Shopping Street. Its dark wooden facade and interior, faded posters, and dim lighting aren’t deliberately vintage—they’re genuinely old.

Lifting the curtain, an elderly lady with a thick Osaka accent greeted me. Not understanding much, I simply ordered the mixed okonomiyaki (ミックス q, following the grandma’s recommendation.<き)和炒面(q<きそば)。

When the ingredients were served, the mixed okonomiyaki included pork, shrimp, octopus, and squid. The batter was mixed with premium yam powder, the same kind used in making mochi. The elderly lady skillfully wielded two spatulas in front of us, flipping the ingredients on the iron plate for about ten minutes until the familiar silhouette of okonomiyaki finally emerged. Then she generously sprinkled it with plenty of bonito flakes, along with her shop’s thick homemade sauce and seaweed.

The first bite comforted my soul.

The moment the hot okonomiyaki touched my tongue, the richly sweet sauce brought out the flavors of the chewy octopus, crisp cabbage, and the shop’s signature hearty batter—each element shining, then harmonizing into a delightful culinary symphony.

Halfway through, another elderly man brought over some yakisoba prepared at the counter, urging us to dig in.

Only then did I realize, “This is the first time in my life I’ve eaten authentic okonomiyaki in Osaka.”

Alright, so maybe Osakans aren’t really any friendlier than Tokyoites—but I have to admit, the okonomiyaki here really is better.

Mibune
Japan 530-0018 Osaka Prefecture, Osaka,
1-17 Komatsubara-cho, Kita-ku, Osaka-shi, Osaka
tel:+81-6-6361-2603

Li Youqun / International Fashion Director

A key figure in the Chinese fashion scene, holder of the record for most fashion magazine founding editorships. Active in the entertainment industry, he is a designated collaborator on fashion shows like “Women’s Greatest” and a go-to stylist for international brands and celebrities. With fashion at his core, he is the only person in China to embody the diverse roles of editor-in-chief, fashion director, stylist, and author.

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