Five Places to Eat Omurice, Japan’s Comfort Food

Omurice (オムライス) is a popular Japanese comfort food, made of fried rice and eggs!  It’s a mainstay in both convenience stores and Japanese restaurants, from Tokyo and Chiba, all the way to Kyoto.  In the past, we here at TokyoTreat showed you a quick and easy recipe on how to make omurice.  Continue reading to see where in Japan you can enjoy this classic fried rice recipe in many different styles for yourself!

An Overview

First, let’s give a quick overview of what omurice actually is! Omurice is short for “omelette rice”, and it’s a simple dish of a French-style omelette over Japanese fried rice.  Ideally, the omelette should be smooth on the outside, and soft and runny on the inside.  This texture is achieved when you scramble eggs quickly while they’re in the frying pan.

Then, after frying freshly cooked rice in the pan with some salt and pepper, don’t forget to add some chicken thigh meat! It really gives omurice that savory goodness that’s loved both in Japan and beyond.  Finally, we get to the fun part–putting the omelette and rice together in one tasty package! 

There are two common ways to make omurice. One is wrapping the rice in the omelette (ganso-style). The other is putting the omelette on top of the rice (fuwatoro-style).  Both styles offer a fun surprise!  

Ready to experience this beloved Japanese food for yourself? Then let’s take a look at some restaurants in Japan that have omurice on the menu!

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Steak House Nobu (Asakusa, Tokyo)

Steak House Nobu is located in Asakusa, one of Tokyo’s more traditional neighborhoods.  It’s also home to some of the city’s most famous omurice.  First, Chef Nobu fries some seasoned white rice in the pan, then adds simmered chicken meat and white onions to the mix.  Then he continues frying with homemade demi-glace sauce, turning the rice into a nice tangy brown.

After wrapping the rice up in the thin, smooth omelette, it’s then topped with more demi-glace, tomato sauce, garnish, and fresh cream. 

Kichi Kichi Omurice (Gion, Kyoto)

Kichi Kichi is a Western-style restaurant headed by Chef Yukimura.  His viral cooking videos are very popular because he puts on quite a show when he cooks–flames and flips included! He makes omurice fuwatoro-style, meaning you cut the fluffy omelette open to reveal its soft melty center.  If you’re ever in the Kyoto area, definitely check this place out.

HANMER (Kawama, Chiba)

This humble, yet robust cafe is in Noda City, Chiba, over an hour from Tokyo Station. This author can tell you first hand that even though this cafe is off the beaten path, their omurice is definitely worth the trip!

They call their specialty otona no omurice, roughly translating to “Sophisticated Omurice”.  Instead of the usual demi-glace, HANMER flavors the fried rice with keema curry.  This makes the omurice spicier and richer than its other counterparts. HANMER also has pizza and other cafe/bar mainstays, but their omurice is quite popular with local customers!

Tacorice Cafe KIJIMUNAA (Irijima, Okinawa)

KIJIMUNAA  is a chain restaurant that takes this classic dish a step further by combining it with taco rice, a fusion dish that is native to Okinawa.  This double fusion Japanese cuisine is called omutako (オムタコ), which is short for “omelette taco). In addition to rice and ground beef, omutako also uses cheese, tomato and taco spices!

Yocchan (Azabu Juban, Tokyo)

Yocchan is home to another version of omurice called omusoba.  Omusoba is short for “omelette soba”, and it combines an omelette and yakisoba!  Some might say it’s similar to Hiroshima-style okonomiyaki because it also uses noodles.  If you ever find yourself in the laid-back and luxurious Azabu Juban neighborhood, why not head over to Yocchan and see for yourself?

How do you like your omurice? Let us know in the comments below!