Maido!
Japan has a long tradition of street food known all over the world. In Milan there are two places where you can experience it: Maido located in Via Savona 15 and Via Jacopo dal Verme 16.
Inside the restaurant there are many references to anime and manga culture, first of all Kiss me Licia: the father of the protagonist was precisely a chef of okonomiyaki. But to better appreciate street cooking perhaps it is good to make some historical and geographical reference.
Okonomiyaki literally means “what you want on the grid”. Often vulgarly definitive as “Japanese pizza” or even “emptyfridge”, this dish is strongly disputed by the cities of Hiroshima and Osaka. Both are vying for fatherhood. According to the inhabitants of Hiroshima, the okonomiyaki was born in the post-war period and was the evolution of issen-yoshoku (Western snack food), an economical food for children prepared with the ingredients of humanitarian aid. It is distinguished by the presence of soy bean shoots and scrambled eggs.
Another key dish of Japanese street food proposed by Maido! is the onigiri, the famous triangular-shaped rice meatball stuffed with various ingredients and wrapped in a strip of nori seaweed. Prepared during the Nara period (710–748 A.D.), the onigiri is highly appreciated by samurai who keep it in bamboo leaves during their travels. Historiography finds it in the 11th century with the name “tokiji”.
The menu also includes miso soup, edamame, takoyaki, rice burger (chicken teriyaki or sautéed beef) and yakisoba (also in udon version): they are the classic sautéed noodles with otafuku sauce, carrot and cabbage julienne, aonori seaweed, marinated and chopped ginger, katsobushi and mayonnaise).
There are also sweets: matcha tiramisu, matcha cheesecake, daifuku mochi (assorted tastes), yukimi daifuku (ice cream stuffing) and dorayaki. Drinks include several Japanese craft beers, sake and original cocktails. Maido! It is part of the Seguilabocca project that puts the quality of ingredients and food as “fun” for a real street food experience.
📍 Via Savona 15, Milan 📞 02 3943 4027
📍Via Jacopo del Verme 16, Milan 📞 02 607 1515
💰 $$
