Okonomiyaki, often translated as as-you-like-it pancakes, are a popular Japanese dish.  Found throughout Japan, each region has it's own specialty.  Kansai-style and Hiroshima-style are particularly well-known.  Although both start with a batter and cabbage base, Hiroshima-style also includes noodles and an egg. For both kinds, customers choose from a variety of ingredients including squid, octopus, corn, cheese, shrimp, kimchi, and mochi.   It's often topped with a thick sauce, mayonnaise, and seaweed flakes.  While cooks sometimes prepare the dish (see above), customers often fry the okonomiyaki themselves at their tables, thus having full control to make it to their taste.   Unlike other staple Japanese foods, such as sushi and ramen, okonomiyaki has not taken off to the same extent in the United States.  A possible point of interest for your students would be to discuss why this is the case.  Does okonomiyaki "fit" with their vision of Japanese food?  Why or why not?  Is it only a matter of time before okonomiyaki becomes popular?