Traditional Japanese cuisine seems to thrive in Bangkok these days. It is not surprising that the lack of traditional Japanese desserts in Bangkok scene has motivated Japanese entrepreneurs to seize the opportunity and fill in the gap.
Dadaya, a shop founded by three young Japanese businessmen, offers a traditional Japanese recipe called Obanyaki.
Although we are more familiar with the sweet options such as red beans and taro filling, you can sometime find savory Obanyakis in Japan as well. The three worked hard to source fine ingredients and figure out the best tasting recipes while trying to adhere to the traditional roots of Obanyaki, as served in Japan. And the result, of course, is simply delightful.
The savory options “Obanyaki meal” (40 baht) includes Chicken cutlets – crispy breaded chicken, Tuna Salad – minced tuna with chopped onion, and Gratin – chicken, mushroom, onion & spinach with white sauce.
The Chicken cultlets Obanyaki is definitely a champion with crispy chicken tender and flavorful Japanese sauce that would left your stomach filled and satisfied.
Another spin-off from Okonomiyaki (Japanese pizza) – a Dadayaki is an excellent creation.
A combination of cabbage, Japanese sauce and japanese-style mayonaise work really well together with the Obanyaki.
The owners took a challenge in introducing these savory recipes. However, it is their hope that these Obanyaki might become popular as a grab-n-go meal for rushed customers, especially the office workers.
For sweet Obanyaki selections, Dadaya provides five different flavors – Red Beans, Custard, Choco, Matcha and Taro (30 baht).
Dadaya’s red beans are imported from Japan from a source that specialized in making red bean paste for more than 100 years. I personally love the texture of their red beans, with some of the beans still quite intact and not completely mushed.
Custard Obanyaki came second on my list with its soft texture and wonderful smell. I really like that they did not make it overly sweet. I think their recipe for the custard is just right. Their Matcha green tea filling might be slightly to bland for the Thais’ liking and could use a tiny bit of adjustment.
For Choco Obanyaki, the chocolate filling is on the runny side but tastes quite rich nonetheless. Their taro is on the sweet side, which is not necessary a negative feature, depending your liking.
The genius decision is for them to allow two extra recipes, both the red beans and the custard, to be ordered with the Matcha batter (green tea flavored batter; 40 baht). I think these two flavors indeed work strikingly well with the green tea batter.
For beverages, Dadaya offers rich and creamy Green Tea Latte (50 baht, or 40 baht when order as a set with any Obanyakis)
as well as 5 different selections of tea – Mugi-cha (Barley tea), Sen-cha, Genmai-cha, Oolong-cha, and Hoji-cha (25 baht, or 15 baht when order as a set with any Obanyakis).
And to cool off the summer heat, a variety of Shaved Ice (40 baht) is also on the menu for your choosing – Matcha flavor, Strawberry flavor and Mango flavor.
Matcha shaved ice is a real treat, with slightly bitter green tea syrup, complemented with sweetened condense milk, chewy rice cake and delicious red beans.
Strawberry flavor – shaved ice topped with plump strawberry and strawberry syrup – is pleasantly refreshing.
And for a tropical feel, try Mango flavored shaved ice, where chopped fresh mango would brighten up your day.
Dadaya has impressed us with their careful selections of ingredients and traditional Japanese flavors. Though they only have one shop as of now, they plan to expand their franchise so we hope to see more shops around Bangkok soon. In any case, good news for those who are interested in sharing this new found traditional Japanese treat with friends and family, Dadaya has a professionally designed packaging that would make this flavorful Obanyaki a perfect gift for your loved ones.
