Yagenbori Hassho

Hassho probably is the most famous okonomiyaki restaurant in Hiroshima, having snaking long queues after nightfall even on a weeknight. Of course, they are serving up Hiroshima style okonomiyaki.

They also have a Bib Gourmand and Tabelog Hyakumeiten Okonomiyaki award for 2019 and 2018 to their name.

November 2024 Update: Do scroll down for our more recent visits in Nov 2024. TLDR; rating remain the same, but I do feel food has changed a bit (for the better).

Oysters Yagenbori Hassho 薬研堀八昌 — **Oysters**
Yagenbori Hassho 薬研堀八昌

Salt and Pepper Yagenbori Hassho 薬研堀八昌 — **Salt and Pepper**
Yagenbori Hassho 薬研堀八昌

Grilled Oysters (¥935)

Ordered oysters too while waiting for the okonomiyaki to be made, plus oysters are in season during the time of visit (just not peak season yet).

I mean this definitely can’t compare (and also unfair comparison) to an oyster speciality restaurant like Kakiya which we ate in Miyajima. So just being very objective here.

Taste: Sweet and creamy grilled oysters, grilled meat always go well with salt and pepper. In this case, it elevates and also adds a contrasting taste to it.

Texture: A bit chewy on the outside layer, but when you bite in it is soft and juicy. Size-wise it is smaller than the regular ones we had at Kakiya.

Overall: It is hard to go wrong when you have nice produce to work with, especially on a straightforward grilling method.

Rating: 3.25/5

Soba Nikutama (¥880)

The long-awaited Hiroshima style okonomiyaki after queueing 1.5 hours outside (and around 30 minutes for the okonomiyaki to be made) - Soba Nikutama!

Just a quick summary of Osaka and Hiroshima style okonomiyaki:

Osaka - No noodles, mixes most of the ingredients into a batter, and then adding a final layer of meat into the mix
Hiroshima - Cooking the layers separately before stacking it up 1 by 1

You can refer to my Kiji review, which is one of the most delicious Osaka styled okonomiyaki.

First impression, super generous noodles serving as you can see the egg looks so mini compared to the size of the okonomiyaki. To be honest, it is too much carbs for me haha! But hey, different strokes for different people, probably many others would enjoy a large amount of noodles to their meal.

Texture: Crunchy from the different layers (batter, cabbage, beansprouts, pork, fried egg), plus the fresh noodles being grilled till firm and slightly crispy on the outer layer.

Taste: Sweetness from the grilling/boiling of the fresh cabbage, as they also added water onto it during the process. The okonomiyaki and mayonnaise sauces also added sweetness into the mix.

Overall: A vastly different style compared to Osaka style, the main difference will be the crunchiness from the different layers, and the addition of noodles.

I would say both Hassho and Kiji are very good, and rate them both on the same level. You definitely won’t go wrong with either.

To conclude, it will depend on your preference towards a certain style more that will decide the winner in this tie.

For us, our preference lies with the Osaka style in this context.

Rating: 3.5/5

Note 1: They also provide okonomiyaki sauce and mayo sauce on the side for you to add-on if you require more.

Note 2: They only uses double yolks eggs, which is to say very interesting for us as it is our first time seeing that. You could refer to more of my photos below which includes almost the step by step of their cooking process and the double yolks eggs!

Menu Yagenbori Hassho 薬研堀八昌 — **Menu**
Yagenbori Hassho 薬研堀八昌

Grilling the noodles Yagenbori Hassho 薬研堀八昌 — **Grilling the noodles**
Yagenbori Hassho 薬研堀八昌

Adding the crepe Yagenbori Hassho 薬研堀八昌 — **Adding the crepe**
Yagenbori Hassho 薬研堀八昌

Making it nice Yagenbori Hassho 薬研堀八昌 — **Making it nice**
Yagenbori Hassho 薬研堀八昌

Looking neat here Yagenbori Hassho 薬研堀八昌 — **Looking neat here**
Yagenbori Hassho 薬研堀八昌

Frying the eggs, notice the double yolks! Yagenbori Hassho 薬研堀八昌 — **Frying the eggs, notice the double yolks!**
Yagenbori Hassho 薬研堀八昌

Stacking the eggs on the other end of the okonomiyaki Yagenbori Hassho 薬研堀八昌 — **Stacking the eggs on the other end of the okonomiyaki**
Yagenbori Hassho 薬研堀八昌

The finishing touch of adding the sauces and condiments Yagenbori Hassho 薬研堀八昌 — **The finishing touch of adding the sauces and condiments**
Yagenbori Hassho 薬研堀八昌

November 2024 Update

In our recent Nov-Dec 2024 trip to Japan, we managed to visit Hassho thrice. So here’s our recent visits’ review.

**Cabbage with sesame and soy sauce**
Yagenbori Hassho 薬研堀八昌

**Salt & Pepper**
Yagenbori Hassho 薬研堀八昌

**Grilled Oysters**
Yagenbori Hassho 薬研堀八昌

Grilled Oysters (¥1100)

Ate during Oyster season (late November), I feel their recipe has changed a bit compared to our 2019 visit.

Batter coating seems to be thicker, and grilled with a lesser time thus less/minimal burnt crisp marks. So it really depends on personal preferences on the batter and how crisp/burnt exterior texture. And lastly, price increase to ¥1100, no surprise since it is already been 5 years since our last visit.

Other than that, I think it’s pretty much the same, will just copy over what we wrote in 2019.

Taste: Sweet and creamy grilled oysters, grilled meat always go well with salt and pepper. In this case, it elevates and also adds a contrasting taste to it.

Texture: A bit chewy on the outside layer, but when you bite in it is soft and juicy. Size-wise it is smaller than the regular ones we had at Kakiya.

Overall: It is hard to go wrong when you have nice produce to work with, especially on a straightforward grilling method.

Rating: 3.25/5

Grilled Beef (¥1100)

Tried different side protein dishes in our 2024 visit, so next up is the order of Grilled Beef.

Taste: Flavourful and still retains the juice of the meat when you bite into it. As usual goes well with salt and pepper.

Texture: I mean it’s no medium rare, but it’s not super tough/rubbery either. Not expecting too much from an Okonomiyaki restaurant to be of a steak house or specialised teppenyaki standard.

Overall: Domestic Japanese produce are still of a good standard even though not Wagyu grade, and with good produce and cooking, it will still be of a decent quality. Although I do hope can have a bit more generous portion.

Rating: 3/5

**Soba Nikutama with okonomiyaki sauce, mayo sauce, and hot sauce**
Yagenbori Hassho 薬研堀八昌

Soba Nikutama + Negi Topping (¥1040 + ¥270)

I feel in our Nov 2024 visits, their recipe for the okonomiyaki has changed a bit (to the better IMO) also. Seems to have more vegetables in it which is great, but not sure the pork slices are lesser now, or just because the vegetables’ ratio is higher so gave us that perception.

Both the missus and I enjoy their new rendition (in our opinion) of Soba Nikutama, more vegetables for a more balanced meal. But still very (carb) filling, same amount of everything in 2019, but now with more vegetables and a new hot sauce on the side to add-on to our okonomi! It’s really more is more.

Other than that, I think the rest are consistent to our 2019 visits as much as we can remember.

(We did also order an Okonomiyaki without Negi topping for proper comparison of 2019 vs 2024 visits)

Texture: Crunchy from the different layers (batter layer, cabbage, beansprouts, pork, fried egg), plus the fresh noodles being grilled till firm and slightly crispy on the outer layer. This time we even ordered with an extra Negi topping on top, even more crunch!

Taste: Sweetness from the grilling/boiling of the fresh cabbage, as they also added water onto it during the process. The okonomiyaki, mayonnaise, and hot sauces also added sweetness and spiciness into the mix. The extra Negi topping does add the sharp Negi vegetables taste into the mix.

Overall: Same same but different compared to 2019, but we clearly prefer the current 2024’s rendition which is an improved recipe for us. Our score remains the same as 2019 visit, can’t push up to 3.75 in our opinion yet.

Rating: 3.5/5

Yakisoba (¥1040)

Yakisoba is one of the missus favourite dish, so this time round we also ordered 1 Yakisoba in one of our visits.

Ingredients: Generous amount of noodles, cabbage, pork, onion, squid, beansprouts and sunny side up on top.

Texture: Crunchy from the different layers (cabbage, beansprouts, pork, and squid), plus the fresh noodles being grilled till firm and slightly more crisp/burnt (compared to the Okonomiyaki) on the outer layer as it is stir fry on the teppan without the batter layer.

Taste: Without adding the sauces, the taste a little bit plain as it slightly seasoned only.

As it is only lightly seasoned, you can taste the original sweetness of the cabbage, onion, and beansprouts. When the vegetables are being stir-fried on the teppan, the juiciness was locked inside the vegetables, and when you bite it, you enjoy the natural sweetness and juiciness + slight crunchiness of the vegetables.

Thus, there’s 3 sauces on the side for adding on as per personal preferences. Okonomi sauce (sweet and slightly salty), mayo (creamy), and hot sauce (spicy) to custom to your likings.

Overall: A decent Yakisoba, but in our opinion just order the Okonomiyaki when you are at Hassho, as that’s the much better choice.

Rating: 3/5

**Grilling/boiling the noodles on the teppan**
Yagenbori Hassho 薬研堀八昌

**Double yolks eggs as usual!**
Yagenbori Hassho 薬研堀八昌

Lighted Signboard Yagenbori Hassho 薬研堀八昌 — **Lighted Signboard**
Yagenbori Hassho 薬研堀八昌

Shop Front Yagenbori Hassho 薬研堀八昌 — **Shop Front**
Yagenbori Hassho 薬研堀八昌

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Address: 広島県広島市中区薬研堀 10-6

Opening Hours: 4pm-10.30pm Tuesday to Saturday, 4pm-9pm Sunday. Close on Monday, 1st and 3rd Tuesday of the month.

Payment Method: Cash

Tabelog: https://tabelog.com/en/hiroshima/A3401/A340110/34000100/

(Last visited: November 2024)

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Yagenbori Hassho - The most famous okonomiyaki restaurant in Hiroshima!