Nagoya-Style Dishes in Los Angeles

Among the places I've visited in my travels, I've had the privilege of visiting Nagoya, Japan a number of times. The reason is because my church has a partnership with a ministry there that does a lot of good work. Last November I spent the longest period there, about 3.5 weeks, mostly confined to a small apartment in the which is as bustling as any major Japanese city. As a culinary destination, Nagoya doesn't compare to cities such as Kyoto, Osaka or Tokyo. It's more of an industrial town, with the headquarters of Toyota in Aichi prefecture (similar to a state or province), and the headquarters of Honda located in nearby Minato prefecture. You might find it interesting to note that this prefecture alone once produced 1% of the world's gross domestic product, which (at the time) was equal to the country of Russia or Taiwan.

That essentially makes Nagoya like Japan's Detroit, except that it doesn't feature $100 abandoned homes and a crumbling infrastructure. Instead you find a new-ish city searching for culture and cuisine, and thankfully it has adopted some local specialties. My favorite one is amazingly simple - tebasaki or fried chicken wings that feature such an ethereal and savory crisp that they are incredibly addictive. They're dusted generously with finely-ground mix of white and black pepper, giving it a terse heat that lightly singes your palate before a gulp of cold beer can reset it.

In Los Angeles, the closest thing I've found to true Nagoya-style tebasaki can be found at Furaibo on Sawtelle, though the minuscule wings there just don't have the unction or umami-enriched deliciousness that I'm familiar with in Nagoya (the purported creator of tebasaki wings is a restaurant in Nagoya of the same name, though I'm not sure they are affiliated). However, I do enjoy the spicy chicken wings at Izakaya Bincho on the Redondo Boardwalk - they are a spicy version of tebasaki and features a thin, lovely crust over juicy jidori chicken wings.

I haven't been able to find misokatsu, essentially just pork donkatsu that has a sweeter glaze than the version you would find at Curry House or Wako in Koreatown. I didn't particularly think that misokatsu was that distinctive.

A version of Taiwanese Spicy Ramen
Unfortunately, the delights of Taiwanese Spicy Ramen, an oily-spicy bowl of noodles that is curiously absent in its namesake country of Taiwan, have eluded me in Nagoya. Instead I tried the ramen, which highly resembles a more savory version of dan-dan noodles, for the first time last week at Sashi in Manhattan Beach, where Nagoya-born chef Makoto Okuwa offers it on the menu for $11.

It's an appetizer-sized portion that features dense ground pork and beef atop soft, flattened noodles, almost like Korean knife-cut noodles (kalgooksoo). The dish is very well prepared, and the chili oil gives it a fiery heat that beckons one toward a chilled glass of water, or perhaps some sake to quench it. Even though our table had enjoyed a spread of 15 or so courses, we were raving about this bowl of noodles.

I plan to return to Nagoya in May for a short visit, so hopefully I will get a chance to try the dish there. In the meantime, I can take a trip to Manhattan Beach and try chef Makoto's excellent version. I spoke with the chef about possibly bringing some other Nagoya specialties to L.A. It'll have to be a work in progress, as much of Sashi's menu is sushi and fusion-centric, catering to the local clientele.

I'm constantly on the lookout for dishes that I've discovered during my time in Nagoya, and I plan to regularly visit Japan to continue to expand my repertoire.

Furaibo
2068 Sawtelle Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90025
(310) 444-1432

Izakaya Bincho
112 N International Boardwalk
Redondo Beach, CA 90277
(310) 376-3889

Wako Donkatsu
3377 Wilshire Blvd
Ste 112
Los Angeles, CA 90010
(213) 381-9256

Sashi
451 Manhattan Beach Blvd
Manhattan Beach, CA 90266
(310) 545-0400
www.sashimb.com