Tag Archives: octopus

Ono Seafood


In search of poke, this place kept popping up in recommendations, but I didn’t try it until I attempted to go to Haili’s Hawaiian Food. To our dismay, they were closed. Ono Seafood was across the street so I decided to give it a shot.

I ordered the super bowl with an additional poke flavor for 50 cents more. The super bowl comes with rice, extra poke and a drink. I chose the Shoyu Ahi Poke and Haw’n Style Tako Poke. The Shoyu Ahi has tuna, shoyu (soy sauce), green and white onion, limu (algae), kikul, chili pepper, and sesame oil. The Haw’n Style Tako has octopus, sea salt, green and white onion, limu (algae), kikul, and chili pepper. Overall, I found the pokes to be mediocre. Nothing was outstanding.

(747 Kapahulu Ave, Honolulu, HI 96816)

Aizuya

Aizuya is the birthplace of takoyaki. Tako means octopus and yaki means to fry or to cook in Japanese. Due to food shortages in the twentieth century, wheat flour was sent over to Japan by the US as a relief after World War II. It became more popular than rice, which wasn’t sustainable until recently. Endo Tomekichi used the flour to create choboyaki, bite sized balls of batter cooked in a special hemispherical grill. At the same time, in Akashi, akashiyaki was developed. It is a piece of octopus surrounded by loose, eggy batter and then is dipped in dashi, a clear fish broth. Tomekichi combined the two recipes and created takoyaki to be sold in his first takoyaki shop, Aizuya. Takoyaki is now one of the staples of Osaka. It is popular on the streets of Dotonbori. Japan’s Universal City Walk also includes a Takoyaki Museum for takoyaki lovers.

Below is the original takoyaki. The original recipe does not include sauces or toppings.

Below is a set of six made of takoyaki batter with green onions and another set of six made of meat and green onions.

Aizuya also sells akashiyaki but is sold as part of a meal set. All around Osaka, there are chains of Aizuya shops, even in metro stations. We traveled to the original location in Osaka, next to the Osaka JR station, only to realize there was a closer shop near the Namba station that we were staying close to.

Chibo

Posted in Oahu, Osaka by

Osaka’s Dotonburi district is know for okonomiyaki. We got lost looking for this place amongst the crowds in Shinsaibashi and walking around in the rain. Luckily, we found this on the row of restaurants in Dotonburi.

We ordered the oko tako, which is octopus wrapped in egg topped with teriyaki, mayonnaise and bonito flakes. I loved the bonito flakes because they were bursts of flavor compared to the bland ones I’ve had before.

On the okonomiyaki with everything i.e. beef, pork, octopus, and squid, we opted for the additional green onions and egg toppings. The okonomiyaki is plated on the grill in the middle of the table.

This is the location I went to 千房 道頓堀支店 Japan〒542-0071 Ōsaka-fu, Ōsaka-shi, but there are locations throughout Osaka and one in Oahu, Hawaii.