Restaurant:
Chinchikurin Hiroshima Okonomiyaki
350 E 1st St.
Los Angeles, CA 90012

Hello and Welcome to another edition of Restaurant Reviews!
Today, we’re taking a look at a brand new restaurant in the heart of Little Tokyo that’s looking to bring the hype of this Japanese "Soul Food" to the United States and the rest of the world.

ABOUT THE RESTAURANT

Chinchikurin is a Japanese restaurant specializing in Okonomiyaki, or Japanese Style Pancakes. There are many variations to this dish, but the Hiroshima version is often made with ingredients like noodles, cabbage, bean sprouts, green onions, and meat all layered together in an egg and batter mixture.

Hiroshima Okonomiyaki is a dish that dates all the way back to around 1950 and was first seen during the time that the city was recovering from the post-war effects of World War II when resources were scarce. From then on, it became a popular street food item and has now evolved into a popular bar food dish enjoyed by many in Japan.

Even though Chinchikurin predominantly sells Okonomiyaki, they seem to share their location with a takoyaki shop and have combined their menu items when dining in. Because most of their dishes are fried, it’s highly recommended to order some beer to wash down this hearty and 'soulful' meal (which we also did, but I got too excited and forgot to take a picture…)

Onto the Food!

APPETIZERS

1. Mentaiko Takoyaki ($5.50)

Description:

Fried Octopus Pancake Bites with Spicy Caviar Sauce, Seaweed, and Green Onions.

Review:

If you’ve seen my very first restaurant review post (which you can find here: The Search for the Best Ramen in Southern California), I’ve ordered this version of takoyaki there so I was interested in seeing how this specialized takoyaki shop would compare to that of a ramen shop.

There’s two main things I look for in a good takoyaki and those are: 1) Crispy Exterior and 2) Overall Flavor. At first glance, there didn’t seem to be much sauce over the top of the takoyaki so I was a bit skeptical that there wouldn’t be enough of the distinctive taste of the mentaiko mayo. The flavor of the mentaiko still had that rich and briny taste but was a bit more subtle than I was hoping for.

The exterior also didn’t quite have that perfect crispy texture but still wasn't too bad. The inside was soft and the batter had a slightly crispy and chewy texture, but wasn’t quite up to the standards I was looking for. Although this takoyaki was solid, I think I preferred the ones from Huntington Ramen a bit more.

Result:

Good enough to order, but not the best I’ve tried. 7/10.

2. Original Takoyaki ($5)

Description:

Fried Octopus Pancake Bites with Otafuku Sauce, Japanese Mayo, Bonito Flakes, and Green Seaweed.

Review:

Because the mentaiko takoyaki fell a bit short, we decided to order their original version just to see how they would fare. They seem to go pretty light on their sauces (in this case, their otafuku sauce - Ketchup, Worcestershire, Honey, and Soy Sauce) but I didn't really mind because they do have a bottle of extra sauce and Japanese Mayo at each table.

The sauce was pleasantly sweet and savoury and was a nice pairing with the creamy Japanese Mayo on top. The bonito flakes added a slightly chewy texture to the otherwise soft and fluffy takoyaki balls, but I thought that they actually added a bit too much here. The texture and flavor were again solid, but not quite up to the standards I was hoping for and seemed to be lacking just a tiny bit in both departments.

Result:

Decent, but I think execution could have been a bit better. 6.5/10.

ENTREES

1. Chinchikurin Okonomiyaki ($15.50)

Description:

Japanese Pancake with Crispy Noodles, Dried Fish Powder, Cabbage, Tempura Crisps, Green Onions, and Seasoned Ground Beef under a layer of egg and batter.

Review:

It was finally time for the main event, and we got started with their signature okonomiyaki dish, The Chinchikurin Okonomiyaki. This variation had the classic fixings of cabbage, green onions, noodles, and sauce but also had their special seasoned ground beef.

The beef was really tender and seasoned nicely and kind of reminded me of that soft, sweet, and flavorful taste you get in Korean Bulgogi Beef. You get a choice of either crispy or soft noodles and for this one, we opted to go for the crispy noodles. The noodles had an amazing crispy texture and was the perfect compliment to the soft and tender beef inside the pancake. Along with the sauteed cabbage and otafuku sauce on top, every bite was like a complete and wholesome meal with the perfect, harmonious balance of flavors and textures.

Result:

Very, very good and everything was on point. 9/10.

2. Broc'n Shrimp Okonomiyaki ($15.95)

Description:

Japanese Pancake with Soft Noodles, Dried Fish Powder, Cabbage, Egg, and Batter topped with Sauteed Shrimp and Broccoli with a Japanese Mayo Drizzle.

Review:

From the pictures of the huge pieces of shrimp, we knew we had to order this off the menu. The okonomiyaki came with 3 large pieces of shrimp that were perfectly cooked and had that soft and meaty bite to them. The combination of the broccoli and mayo gave the dish a rich and creamy factor that almost reminded me of something like a broccoli pasta alfredo.

To mix things up a bit, we decided to go for the traditional soft noodles on this one and to my surprise, it was just as good as the crispy version. The soft noodles had a chewier, more al dente texture and soaked up alot of the flavor from the sauteed vegetables and shrimp. Overall, this variation was also very, very good.

Result:

Creamy, hearty, and delicious. 9/10.

3. The B&C Okonomiyaki ($14)

Description:

Japanese Pancake with Crispy Noodles, Dried Fish Powder, Cabbage, Egg, and Batter topped with Basil, Okonomiyaki Sauce, and Monterey Jack and Cheddar Cheese.

Review:

According to the menu, this won the 'best toppings' award in an okonomiyaki competition held in Hiroshima and I can see why. I'm surprised cheese isn't used in more variations of this dish because okonomiyaki is kind of like a Japanese pizza and, as expected, works amazingly well with all the other ingredients. The cheese provides an extra layer of hearty and gooey goodness and along with the herby aroma of the basil, makes this taste like an actual pizza. It's hard to say which of the three I liked best, but this was definitely the most unique tasting and might have been my favorite if it had a few more ingredients like corn or meat.

Result:

Cheesy, hearty goodness. 8.5/10.

OVERALL RATING

The Okonomiyaki here is pretty tasty and it’s an added bonus that this restaurant has a unique and fun eating experience with their tabletop grills and the mini little spatulas they give you to eat with.

According to their website, Chinchikurin already has shops throughout Japan and Los Angeles is their first stop in their goal of expanding internationally. This franchise has already gained massive popularity in their two LA locations and I wouldn't be surprised to see more of these restaurants popping up soon.

Food: 8/10
Service: 8/10
Value: 8/10

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