Abeno Too

Abeno are critically-acclaimed Okonomi-yaki Restaurants, born in Osaka, nurtured in London.

ABENO 'OKONOMI-YAKI'

Welcome to the website of Abeno and Abeno Too, Europe's only specialist 'Okonomi-yaki' restaurants.

The first Abeno was established in 1993 in the now defunct Yaohan Plaza Shopping Centre in Colindale, north London by two emigres, one from Bridlington, East Yorkshire (not important), the other from Abeno-ku in Osaka.

Osaka is important because it is the culinary hot-pot of Japan and also the home of the Kansai-style of Okonomi-yaki.

Since 1993, Abeno has striven to recreate an authentic Kansai okonomi-yaki experience in London by sourcing only the best ingredients (all our meat and lots of other ingredients are organic) and staff teams.

Every single team member is important to each of us.

http://www.abeno.co.uk

Cheese and Biscuits: Abeno Too, Covent Garden

I have no idea of the literal translation of this phrase, but as far as I can make out from my lunch there on Saturday afternoon, it's probably something like "egg and rice patties, cooked on a hot plate in front of you".

It tasted pretty much like you'd expect - noodles and vegetables, wrapped in egg.

The ingredients arrived raw in a metal bowl, with a whole egg yolk perched proudly on top.

In fact, it's probably true to say that were it not for the extra excitement of seeing your food prepared in front of you, the cuisine at Abeno would be considered too dull to be worthy of a prime location in the centre of our nations capital.

I can perhaps see how this kind of thing would work in Japan, where the fusion of European and Japanese ingredients may seem exotic and different, but when I saw the contents of the metal bowl being mashed up and dropped onto the heat all I could think was "I could have done this myself, at home, and it would have cost about 50p".

Abeno too: flippin' pancakes. [Review] | London Eater

In addition to their flagship flat doughs, they’ve expanded their menu over the years to include bento lunch deals in the form of curry chicken with rice and green tea ice cream, just to give you an example.

So my grill man started by showing me the uncooked ingredients of the Tokyo mix of pork, squid and chicken along with their special dough recipe all mixed in a stainless steel pot before he dumped it onto the hotplate and flattened it to let it cook in front of me.

Taste wise, it’s ok – the dough base is floury and tasted like a cross between a pancake and a pizza.

If the pancakes were in the £5-£8 bracket, then it’d make for a great lunch spot but for the £10-12 crowd, it’s punching above it’s weight and you might do better with a visit to Misato for rice or Baozi Inn for noodles.

Verdict: The pancakes taste like a cross between pizza and pancake with your choice of grilled meat or vegs and lots of japanese mayo.

Abeno Too Japanese Restaurant, Great Newport St, Chinatown ...

Abeno Too is a cheap place to eat at 17-18 Great Newport Street in Chinatown, London, and serves Japanese food.

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Disclaimer: London Drum has no association with this Japanese restaurant, and details can change at short notice.

Abeno Too, Great Newport Street, London | Restaurants/Japanese ...

The waiters and chefs at Abeno Too are Japanese, always a good sign in a city where inexpensive Japanese food is usually cooked by Chinese and Koreans.

Most of the customers were, as well, which is unsurprising, given that this restaurant specialises in okonomiyaki, a savoury tempura pancake that is immensely popular in Japan and almost impossible to get in the UK.

And very good they were too, with a choice of meat vegetable and fish fillings, and plenty of authentically Japanese condiments piled on top.

Each table, and the long sharing bar, has a hot plate, and the pancakes are cookedwith great panache in front of the diners.

A bustling sociable atmosphere and a good selection of Japanese side dishes and drinks make for a unique, cheery place to get a quick, delicious and fairly healthy meal in the West End.

Abeno Too | Japanese Restaurant | Covent Garden, London

The younger sibling of Abeno is a discreet little place just off Charing Cross Road near Leicester Square tube station.

Abeno is synonymous with 'okonomiyaki' – a speciality of the Osaka region best described as 'half pancake, half omelette' with a variety of added ingredients cooked on a hot plate at your table.

The rest of the lengthy menu is a varied mix, ranging from omsoba (essentially soba noodles wrapped in an omelette) to duck teriyaki plus a few desserts including the ubiquitous green tea ice cream and red bean pancakes.

Drink Kirin beer straight from the fridge, saké or tea.

Abeno Too is also featured in: Hardens

Okonomiyaki at Abeno Too – Covent Garden WC2 | LardButty food ...

Turn away now if you’re tormented at the idea of having a big fat tasty Japanese pancake cooked right in front of you, ready to eat all steaming hot and covered in tuna flakes, kewpie mayo and Japanese trimmings… We tried and loved okonomiyaki (Japanese pancakes) while on holiday in Japan last year (see Okonomiyaki in Japan blog).

Our visit last night was to Abeno Too on Great Newport Street (off Leicester Square) where there are no reservations.

Two okonomiyaki pancakes in the making – Tokyo mix left, Osaka mix right The pancake is flipped over when it’s done on the first side, and sprinkled with Katsuobushi or bonito tuna flakes (so light, they dance in the steam) and aonori (powdered seaweed).

Nearly ready…  topped with Kewpie mayonnaise + okonomi sauce before serving Queueing outside Abeno Too  – a line had formed by the time we left at 7.30pm The bill for this fairly quick meal for two, which included a couple of drinks each, came to £94.75 before service.

Abeno Too restaurant info: – Lardbutty rating: 4 / 5 – Type: Okonomiyaki, Japanese – Address: Abeno Too, 17-18 Great Newport Street, London – Postcode: WC2H 7JE – Nearest station: Leicester Square – Website + menus: Abeno Too website – Abeno photos: photos on flickr – Location: Abeno Too map Check out this ‘sakura-yaki’ special at Abeno in Bloomsbury, London: Petal-shaped pancakes, a cherry blossom season special at Abeno, May 2017  (a 20 second timelapse) The five mini-pancakes are: beef, bacon, squid, prawn + mushroom, around a central egg yolk (pistil), with a kewpie-mayo ‘blossom’ outline, dusted in powdered seaweed and sprinkled in tuna flakes @ £20.80 (shared between two).

review of London Japanese restaurant Abeno by Andy Hayler in ...

This restaurant, just yards from The British Museum, opened in 1999.

It specialises in okonomiyaki, the Japanese savoury pancake cooked on a large steel hot-plate.

There are two main styles of this dish: Kansai and Hiroshima.

In the Hiroshima version the ingredients are introduced in layers on to a grilled pancake rather than mixed together.

The okonomiyaki ranged in price, depending on the ingredients, mostly from £10.50 to £18.50, with a couple of pricier specials.

Abeno Too | Restaurants in Covent Garden, London

Getting your hands on Osaka’s most famous street food, okonomiyaki, has got much easier in London over the past couple of years.

But for our money this stalwart (and sister restaurant Abeno by the British Museum) are still the best for the full experience.

As well as the ample range of okonomiyaki fillings – anything from pork, squid and kimchi to pork, bacon, cheese and salmon – stir-fried noodles (yaki-soba) and noodles wrapped in omelette (om-soba) also make popular choices.

Highlights of a recent visit included perfectly tender chunks of squid in a Tokyo-mix okonomiyaki, plus a cooling summer special of simmered, chilled baby aubergine with dashi and ginger.

It’s no wonder the small cluster of tables and counter-side seats are often packed.