How to eat monjayaki: Tokyo's runny griddle dish

What monjayaki is, why it goes so well with a cold beer, how to cook it step by step on the hot plate, eating it with the little hagashi spatula, the crispy okoge, and how to ask the staff for help.

Monjayaki is cooked on a hot plate right at your table, and you eat it straight off the plate with a tiny spatula. Here’s how it works, step by step.

A table with a hot plate holding a thin layer of monjayaki with two small spatulas, next to a mug of beer — Monjayaki on the hot plate, with a beer on the side.

Monjayaki: a Tokyo griddle dish

もんじゃ焼き (monjayaki) is runny batter with cabbage and toppings, cooked on a hot plate at your table. Tsukishima in Tokyo has a whole street of monja shops.

A thin, bubbling layer of monjayaki with cabbage and toppings, sprinkled with green aonori seaweed — Cabbage, toppings and a sprinkle of aonori seaweed.

Otsumami: great with drinks

You eat it a little at a time, straight off the hot plate, so it goes well with a cold beer — a good snack to go with your drinks (おつまみ, otsumami).

A hand lifting a bite of monjayaki with a small spatula, next to a mug of beer — A bite of monja, then a sip of beer.

Dote: make a ring

Fry the toppings, then shape them into a ring called a 土手 (dote).

Fried cabbage and toppings shaped into a ring on the hot plate, with two large spatulas — The dote: a ring of fried toppings.

Kiji: pour in the batter

Pour the batter (生地, kiji) into the middle of the ring. When it thickens, mix everything and spread it thin.

Batter being poured from a bowl into the middle of the ring of cabbage on the hot plate — Pour the batter into the middle of the ring.

Hagashi: the little spatula

Eat it straight off the hot plate with the little spatula, the はがし (hagashi). Press a bit onto the spatula and take a bite.

A hand holding a small spatula with a bite of monjayaki on it, above the hot plate — Press a bit onto the hagashi and take a bite.

Okoge: the crispy bits

Leave it on the hot plate a little longer for a browned, crispy bite — the おこげ (okoge).

A small spatula holding a lacy, browned crisp of monjayaki above the hot plate — Okoge: the crispy, browned bits.

First time? Ask for help

Most shops are happy to show you how to make it:

Some shops will also cook it for you:

Can’t read what’s on the menu? Izakaya Buddy’s Scan the menu explains each dish in English.