Dotonbori is insane. It’s an over-the-top, flamboyant, neon-lit
mecca of a gastronomist’s paradise, with oversize illuminated billboards and
screens. A gigantic crab almost seven meters long marks the Kani Doraku
Restaurant, which sells everything crab—from charcoal grilled crab to boxes of
crab legs and crab sushi.
It has been called the heart of Osaka’s nightlife, and I
could see why as tourists milled about in this place called Dotonbori, running between
theaters and clubs, and stopping by eateries galore that offered takoyaki,
gyozas, munificent plates of crab (I have never seen so much crab in my life)
and weird sushi.
There, between the fatty bluefin tuna sushi and king crab
sushi in the refrigerated case of a random shop, was the ajitsuke kazunoko, looking fake and strange beneath its see-through
wrap. I knew I had eaten this once before—this was herring roe sushi. I had tried
it once at Kabuki in Pasadena, thought it was too salty despite Kabuki’s
attempt to mollify the taste by serving it with ponzu sauce, a lemon slice and
shaved bonito. It wasn’t one of my favorites, for sure, but this kazunoko
looked so rubbery and nubbled that it intrigued me. I was stuffed full of
charcoal grilled crab, but so what? At only ¥350 (about $3), it was worth a
shot.
“It’s intense,” admonished my travel companion. She also explained
to me that kazunoko is generally eaten during a New Year’s celebration in
Japan, as the roe symbolizes fertility, but it’s an acquired taste.
I considered myself forewarned.
After one small bite, I unceremoniously spat it out. Then I
took a deep breath, applied some of the soy sauce and wasabi that came in the
package with it, and attempted it again, but still did not like it. It was
definitely intense. And too salty-bitter-rubbery, or something. The texture was
also a lot tougher than Kabuki’s version of the herring roe sushi I had tried
years ago.
Dotonbori
Chuo-ku, Osaka
542-0076
Osaka Prefecture,
Japan
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