Visiting temples after paying respects is a no-no, but grabbing some okonomiyaki after is totally fine. Today we greeted the Kannon-sama and then went in search of a restaurant. Surprisingly, all the shops were packed with tourists, but we finally found a spot at this place. We ordered a variety of dishes like the Five-Ingredient Tempura, Aromatic House Special Tempura, Seafood Assortment, Asparagus, Chorizo, Plum Cucumber, Kimchi, Sauce Yakisoba Double, along with some draft beer, mega highballs, and a white hoppy set. The restaurant seemed pretty ordinary with no standout features, but the okonomiyaki itself was quite delicious. Perhaps our cooking skills played a role, but as amateurs, we didn't have high expectations to begin with. The interior and atmosphere of the restaurant felt a bit hastily put together, but as we got tipsy, we didn't mind as much and actually found it quite cozy. As the savior of those struggling to find okonomiyaki, we owe this place a debt of gratitude. As Hinako Sugiura said, "Asakusa is a town where the sacred and the profane, the formal and the informal coexist." Her work "Relaxing at the Soba Shop" is like my bible. Asakusa is truly a charming town.

On my day off, I decided to take a break and go to Asakusa to try some Monjayaki at "Kamiya-ya Shin-Nakamise Street" for a change of pace. It was my first time visiting, even though I had passed by many times before. The place was surprisingly spacious, and despite it being a day off, it was almost full from early on. I had a hard time deciding what to eat, but eventually settled on the Kamiya-ya Monja, Baby Star Monja, Mentaiko Monja, Seafood Okonomiyaki, Chorizo, Yakisoba (large), Beef Tsukune, and Anko Maki. The Kamiya-ya Monja had a variety of ingredients and since it already had mentaiko, I decided to transfer 2/3 of it to make a Mentaiko Monja (haha). The Mentaiko Monja was packed with flavor from the mentaiko and was delicious. The Seafood Okonomiyaki was filled with plenty of ingredients, and the Monja had a savory taste even without additional seasoning. The Chorizo was authentically spicy, the Beef Tsukune was juicy and flavorful, and I ordered two Anko Maki for a satisfying dessert time. It was bustling with people coming in and out, likely due to it being a day off. I look forward to going back again.

Today I was planning to go sightseeing in Asakusa, but I was overwhelmed by the unexpectedly large crowds, so I hurriedly searched for a lunch spot. I really wanted to eat monjayaki! I wandered around the area where monjayaki restaurants were crowded. Every place had a line! Finally, I found a restaurant that seemed like I could get in, but they said they had a reservation, so they guided me to a nearby affiliated store. It turns out that this restaurant has three stores in this area and you can make a reservation! It's nice to be able to make a reservation in such a touristy area. Asakusa is an area where tourists come from all over the world, so there were many foreign customers. However, since it's a style where you cook it yourself, even though there are instructions on how to cook, it might be a bit difficult for foreign or first-time customers to understand. I also tried my best to cook it myself. The cabbage was cut too thick, it would have been better if it was a bit thinner... But it was delicious! The negiyaki (green onion pancake) was also consistently delicious! Thank you for the meal!

■Flavor House SP Monja 3.5■Seafood Risotto Monja 3.5

It was a one drink minimum.

It's good that the entire restaurant is non-smoking. The taste depends on the person cooking, haha.

I recommend trying the Carbonara Monjayaki and the Ra-yu (spicy sesame oil) Monjayaki.

While walking around the Asakusa area, I noticed that many restaurants require reservations or have specific conditions for the number of people, especially on weekends. However, I felt relieved when I found out that Kajikaya accepts reservations even on busy weekends, so I decided to use it for a meal gathering. I was looking forward to trying out the traditional monja and okonomiyaki dishes, so I ordered the Kajika Special. The combination of chewy mentaiko and savory dashi was delicious, and the occasional crispy bits added a nice touch. The teppanyaki dishes like eringi mushrooms, scallops, and asparagus cooked in butter were also very tasty. We also enjoyed the classic pork okonomiyaki and yakisoba cooked on the hot plate. With a decent selection of drinks and snacks at reasonable prices, we had a great time enjoying the flavors of the downtown area.

I have used this place for lunch. I have been to Monja in Tsukishima several times, but Asakusa was my first time. I made a reservation for this restaurant. The exterior was quite interesting. When I went up to the second floor at 12:30 on a Sunday, there were a few people waiting in line for lunch. Some teppanyaki restaurants provide plastic bags to store bags or jackets, but this one did not. There was a place to put belongings, but the bottom was greasy, so I was afraid it would get even dirtier if I put something in it. The attitude and service of the staff were not good. They were not friendly and only did the minimum required. When it came time to pay, the staff kept staring at me with a fierce look, which was a bit scary. I forgot to ask for a receipt. I ordered the Monja with the name Koshimiya and one Okonomiyaki with beef tendons, and the Okonomiyaki came first. Since they didn't say anything, I thought I had to eat the Okonomiyaki first, so I took a picture. Then the Monja arrived. There was nothing particularly noteworthy about the Monja or the Okonomiyaki. I didn't like the taste of the sauce. I was surprised that a drink was mandatory. It must be because it's a tourist area with a lot of people coming in.

During a stroll in Asakusa, I found this main store but it was full, so I visited the sister store. The food was all delicious, no complaints about the taste. However, the portions were a bit small. The prices are fine, but for the amount you get, it feels a bit lacking. I understand that okonomiyaki and monjayaki are a bit more expensive than other dishes. The restaurant has a spacious interior and a cozy atmosphere, so if they improve the portion sizes, I would like to visit again.

I was looking for a restaurant around 6 o'clock for dinner, and happened to come across this place so I decided to go in. The restaurant was empty so we were seated right away. They had a mysterious one drink minimum (for high school students and above). After ordering, I wanted to change my order so I called the waiter. I wanted to change my order quickly before it went to the kitchen, but I was ignored several times. My friends and I called the waiter about 5 or 6 times. Finally, the waiter responded with an annoyed tone, saying "Wait a moment!" The service was terrible. I ordered the special tonpeiyaki and okonomiyaki, but they looked different from what I know and from the menu photos. Maybe if I had ordered the kimchi version it would have been different? Perhaps they used good quality pork, but there was hardly any pork between the egg and the batter. It was disappointing. The okonomiyaki was small and tasted average for a price of over 1000 yen. The restaurant was not very clean, and the waitstaff seemed unmotivated, playing with their phones and chatting. There were autographs of celebrities on the wall, but I couldn't understand why. I should have gone to a restaurant I already knew. I will never go back to this place.

I saw a half-price ticket with a picture of delicious okonomiyaki on it and decided to go check it out. I ordered the Koshikake Modern-yaki for 500 yen instead of the usual 1200 yen, and also requested a Monja-yaki while waiting for it to be cooked. The Monja-yaki was a bit on the pricier side, around 900 yen. The taste was quite good, but one thing bothered me - they had a one drink minimum policy even for lunch. It felt a bit silly to order a drink like oolong tea just to meet the requirement. Although the half-price deal was tempting, I realized that the overall cost performance wasn't as great as I had hoped. I wish they had been more upfront about the one drink policy, as it's not something you see at every restaurant, especially for lunch.

After wandering around the Asakusa area, we decided to have a meal at a okonomiyaki restaurant that caught our eye. However, the name of the restaurant is "Kamiya." It's quite bold... Well, the original is "ya," not "ie" (house). It's located on the second floor of a mixed-use building near Shin-Nakamise Street. The interior is divided into two large sections, with a slightly strange layout. It was quite crowded, but when we told them the number of people, we were led to a table in the back on the left side. Looking back now, this was not a good choice... We had been walking in the cold city, so we ordered a draft beer and some typical izakaya dishes like umekyu (pickled plum and cucumber), simmered dish, and tomato. We discussed our order around the table with a built-in iron plate. Of course, this restaurant offers a wide variety of okonomiyaki, monjayaki, and teppanyaki. For snacks, we ordered enoki butter and scallop butter. We grilled them on the hot plate and enjoyed the fluffy texture. Well, it's not bad, so we switched to highball and entered full drinking mode. After eating the traditional pork tempura, it was time for monjayaki. We ordered the Baby Star Ramen monjayaki that I somehow like and ate while discussing the correct way to make it and the etiquette. Monjayaki may not be delicious, but it somehow gets lively and surprisingly goes well with alcohol. As we ate carefully with a small spatula, our throats got dry, maybe because the flavor was strong. So we started poking the hot plate while drinking highballs. Although it's all self-cooked powder dishes, the variety of items was peculiarly large, but there was nothing particularly impressive about the dough or ingredients. The most difficult thing at this restaurant was the ventilation? Perhaps it was because I happened to sit in a bad spot, but I ended up sitting in a position where I was hit by a draft, and I was cold the whole time... The restaurant had a decent crowd (it seemed like there were a lot of tourists at first glance), but sitting by the window and being hit by the outside air made me freeze. I wore a coat to protect myself, but as a result, I ended up smelling really bad. So, we randomly entered an okonomiyaki restaurant, but the most memorable thing was how cold it was.

During a sightseeing trip to Asakusa and Skytree, my friend and I stopped by around noon because we were craving monjayaki and beer. The glass for the draft beer was nicely chilled, which helped us relax. We ordered monjayaki with mentaiko, mochi, cheese, and chorizo. The staff offered to cook it for us, which was a nice touch. We should have also ordered some other dishes like squid legs to go with the chorizo. It's a great place to enjoy drinks without any worries during the day, so we might drop by again.