Page 22 - foodservice magazine September 2019

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TPRAODFEILTEALK
ORATNEK’S KATSU SANDWICH – SYDNEY
By Nicholas Jordan
Katsu sandwiches are everywhere in Sydney. They’re spreading across menus faster
than poké, uni and things in bowls. But before Paper Bird (RIP), Cho Cho San, Sandoitchi, Rising Sun and all the others were posting katsu sandwiches on their menus and Instagram accounts, there was Oratnek. The Redfern cafe, owned and run by former Bill’s head chef Kenny Takayama, opened in 2015 with a simple pork katsu sandwich on the menu, the same recipe they’re famous for today.
The bread comes from Adzuki, a Japanese bakery in Newtown. Takayama asks for
it how Japanese people like it, thick cut, absurdly soft and porcelain white. On one half goes a light layer of tonkatsu sauce, which is like barbecue sauce but fruitier but not as sweet, Takayama says. On the other slice goes a touch of American mustard and grated fresh cabbage.
In the middle goes the katsu, a thick and messily juicy hunk of panko-crusted pork. Slapped with sake before frying and seasoned only in salt and pepper, it comes out soft enough to bite through without having to saw your teeth but with enough texture to contrast with the bread.
Crucially, it’s served hot. Takayama and his team deep fry every piece of pork to order. “Our menu says 15-minute wait, but people don’t care, it’s nice when it’s juicy and hot,” he says.
And that’s it – bread, cabbage, sauce and pork. Takayama says he doesn’t know why it’s been such a big seller, he just wanted to put
it on the menu because he wanted to eat it. His advice for any chefs wanting to replicate his success is this: “Try not to be famous or popular, just do what you want to eat. That’s what I always want to do. If you don’t love it, it won’t be tasty.”