About the achievements of the first generation Iune Mitsuo, who spread Hiroshima's okonomiyaki throughout Japan

• Table of Contents
• Who was the founder, Mitsuo Inune?
• The beginning of Mitchan Sohonten
• The achievements of the founder, Mitsuo Inune
• Let's go try the flavors of "Mitchan Souhonten", established by the founder, Inue Mitsuo!

Who was the founder, Mitsuo Inune?

*This article is an excerpt from the YouTube channel of "Hiroshima Okonomiyaki Mitchan Sohonten [Official]".

The first owner, Mitsuo Inune, was the person who popularized Hiroshima okonomiyaki to the point that it became known as soul food, and was the founder of "Micchan Souhonten."

"I think it was the first generation Iune Mitsuo who made soba noodles the mainstream and popularized the menu item 'soba meat ball'," says the second generation Iune Mitsuo. He is a beloved disciple of the first generation Iune Mitsuo and is the head okonomiyaki chef at Mitchan Sohonten, who has inherited the taste, technique, and spirit of the first generation.

The beginning of Mitchan Sohonten

Micchan Souhonten was founded in 1950. It started as a food stall in Shintenchi Park (now Alice Garden). When it first opened, it was called "Mikasaya," but in 1953, the name was changed to "Micchan," the nickname of the founder himself, to make it easier for his acquaintances to find among the many food stalls.

Due to the influence of the founder, Inune Mitsuo, many of the okonomiyaki restaurants in Shintenchi Park at the time started adding "XX-chan" to their store names.

The achievements of the founder, Mitsuo Inune

We have been serving okonomiyaki since the restaurant first opened, but we have been making improvements day by day to make it even more delicious.

Ingredients and how to make okonomiyaki

For example, to make a more delicious and filling okonomiyaki, they changed the spring onions that had been commonly used up until then to cabbage and added bean sprouts.

In addition, it seems that the first owner, Mitsuo Inune, also came up with the idea of putting yakisoba on top of okonomiyaki. In the past, yakisoba and okonomiyaki were made separately, but when they tried putting yakisoba on top of okonomiyaki to make more space on the hot plate, it turned out to be delicious. On top of that, they could serve two servings for the price of one, and it was filling, so Mitsuo Inune established it as a menu item.

Your favorite sauce

At the time, there was no okonomiyaki sauce, so they used Worcestershire sauce. However, it was too spicy and would drip when poured over okonomiyaki, so they came up with a thickened sauce in collaboration with a sauce manufacturer.

Eating with a spatula

It was the founder, Mitsuo Inune, who created the style of eating okonomiyaki directly from the hot plate with a spatula without using a plate, which is now common in okonomiyaki restaurants. At the time, metal spatulas were used with cloth wrapped around them, but to accommodate this style of eating, a wooden board was attached to the handle, improving the spatula to make it easier for customers to use.

Efforts to popularize okonomiyaki

The first generation Iune Mitsuo came up with many ideas for okonomiyaki, but he didn't keep them all to himself, and would generously share them with neighboring restaurants. According to the second generation Iune Mitsuo, when asked "Can I use the sauce?" he would answer "Yes, sure." In a later interview, he said, "I thought that doing this would be good for Hiroshima okonomiyaki."

"I think there was a strong desire to spread Hiroshima okonomiyaki at the time," says second-generation owner Inune Mitsuo.

From around 1985, he served as a lecturer at store opening training sessions held by Otafuku Sauce in various locations, including Tokyo, spreading the flavors of Mitchan Souhonten to many people. Many people would train at Otafuku Sauce for four to five days and then go on to train at Mitchan Souhonten stores, and he would openly teach them everything he knew.

The founder, Inune Mitsuo, seems to have been a man who spared no effort in spreading Hiroshima okonomiyaki throughout the country.

Let's go try the flavors of "Mitchan Souhonten", established by the founder, Inue Mitsuo!

In this article, we introduced the various achievements that founder Inune Mitsuo left behind in the Hiroshima okonomiyaki industry. According to second-generation Inune Mitsuo, the founder Inune Mitsuo had a warm personality like a father outside of work, and was a person worthy of respect. The taste of Hiroshima okonomiyaki created by founder Inune Mitsuo has been passed down by many craftsmen. Please come and try the taste of the okonomiyaki at "Micchan Souhonten" established by founder Inune Mitsuo!

Click here for the YouTube video "The achievements of the first generation Iune Mitsuo, who spread Hiroshima's okonomiyaki throughout Japan"

Click here for the YouTube channel of "Hiroshima Okonomiyaki Mitchan Sohonten [Official]"