Y’all know
that Osaka is considered as Japan’s culinary central. It has all kinds of
cuisines and a big range of food choices within a stone’s throw away from each
other. Whether it’s Italian food, burgers, boulangaries, takoyaki, yakitori
joints, ramen and cafes, you’ll be spoiled rotten in Osaka.
You’ve seen
many versions of “Where to...” or “What to..” eat in Osaka lists all over the
internet. Well, here’s my list of places and dishes that I legit enjoyed in my
last 3 trips in Osaka.
OKONOMIYAKI AND YAKISOBA
There are
three dishes synonymous with every mention of Osaka. Two of them being
Okonomiyaki and Yakisoba. There’s a lot of shops that specialises on both of
these delicacies. If you only have time for 1 or 2 shops, here’s the shops you
need to check out:
Houzenji Sanpei
If you find
yourself wandering around Houzenji Yokocho (one of Osaka’s most visited sites),
then you might want to consider dining at one of Osaka’s most iconic shops for
Japan’s beloved pan grilled savoury pancakes. Houzenji Sanpei is right in the
heart of this laneway dining destination.
Their Okonomiyaki offerings range
from ¥900 to ¥1500 with choices like potato bacon cheese and mushroom scallop
cheese. I personally love their special yakisoba (¥1450), which has the perfect
balance of sweet, soy and umami flavours with toppings such as shrimp, pork,
squid, and scallops.
Just like most okonomiyaki shops, they cook your dishes on
a sizzling hot plate on your table. Counter seating is also available.
Address: 1
Chome-7-10 Dotonbori Chuo-ku, Osaka
Nearest
Station: Namba/Nipponbashi
Ajinoya
This shop
is highly rated by both locals and by the Michelin folks that they included
Ajinoya in their Bib Gourmand list. It’s pretty much like Houzenji Sanpei but
the queues are longer (I suggest getting there extra early before opening time)
and okonomiyaki are tastier, bigger and more plump. I recommend trying their
Ajinoya’s Mix Okomiyaki (¥1,300) with octopus, pork, squid and shrimp. But my
absolute favourite here is their Omu Soba (¥1,160 for lunch, which is basically
a shrimp and squid yakisoba wrapped in fluffy omelette.
Address:
1-7-16 Namba, Chuo-ku, Osaka
Nearest
station: Namba/Shinsaibashi
Opening
Hours: [Mon] 6pm- 10:45pm [Tues-Fri] noon -10:45pm [Sat] 11:30am - 10:45pm
TAKOYAKI
Konamon Museum
Our
all-time favourite octopus filled sphere-shaped snacks are available almost
everywhere in Osaka. I can never resist those plump tasty octopus sphere snack
specially when topped with bonito flakes, mayo and that sweet & salty
takoyaki sauce. When you visit Osaka chances are, you’ll end up at some point
in Dotonbori. For convenience and for tasty takoyaki treats, check out
Dotonbori Konamon Museum. It’s the shop with the massive Octopus statue!
Address:
1-6-12 Dotonbori, Chuo-ku, Osaka
Hours: 11am
to 10pm
Nearest
station: Namba
Kogaryu Amerikamura Honten Takoyaki
My
favourite takoyaki shop has got to be Kogaryu in the America Mura area of
Shinsaibashi. Besides being delicious, it’s also value for money! A standard
classic takoyaki with the bonito flakes, mayo and takoyaki sauce for 10 pieces
only costs ¥580. The special negi takoyaki costs ¥680. Plus there’s Sankakukoen
park right across from the shop where you can chill and devour your takoyaki.
Another reason to visit Kogaryu is that this shop is also in Michelin group’s
Bib gourmand list.
Address:
2-18-4 Nishi Shinsaibashi , Chuo-ku, Osaka
Nearest
station: Shinsaibashi/Namba/Yotsubashi
Hours: 10am
to 8.30pm
OMURICE
Another
dish that’s almost everywhere in Osaka (and the rest of Japan) is omurice.
Various flavours of fried rice wrapped in a fluffy buttery blanket of egg. We
tried a few including a random café located in the Namba Walk subway area of
Namba station.
Kobe Kitchen Muguni
My
favourite has to be Muguni Kobe Café located in the Americamura area of
Shinsaibashi. If you think omurice with demi-glace is fancy, well think again!
This place does Omurice with creamy gorgonzola sauce (¥880) and the egg on
their fried rice is the fluffiest that I’ve come across. The star here is their
Omurice with Kobe beef! Their signature omurice topped with tender buttery
perfectly cooked medium rare Kobe beef steak. So legit that they even show you
a certificate that the steak is an authentic Kobe beef meat.
Address: 1F,
Nippomitsuderakaikan,
2-9-5,
Nishishinsaibashi, Chuo-ku Osaka-shi, Osaka
Hours:
7 Days 11.30am to 9.30pm
Nearest
station: Shinsaibashi
YAKITORI
Sumibi-yakitori Enya
I have been
told that Osaka-style yakitori dishes in general tend to go on the sweeter
notes compared to its Tokyo counterparts. A local favourite amongst chefs in
the area is Sumibi-yakitori Enya in Namba. There are 2 shops in the Namba area
and we ended visting the shops located west of Namba Station.
We went
with the usuals like kawa (chicken skin ¥90 per piece), negima (chicken thigh
pieces with spring onions ¥160 per piece), tontoro (pork neck ¥216 per piece)
and tsukune (chicken meatballs ¥180 per piece). The crispy karaage chicken
(¥648) here is so tasty with notes of ginger and salted rice malt. You need to
try their potato salad that’s creamy with hints of sweetness and light umami.
They also serve ice cream and candy at the end as part of their table service
fee.
Address: 4-6-4,
Namba, Chuo-ku, Osaka-shi, Osaka, 542-0076
Hours:
Monday - Sunday 17:00 - 1:00, the following day(L.O.24:00)
Nearest
station: Namba
SEAFOOD:
Kuromon Ichiba Market
There are
hundreds of seafood restaurants in the Chuo ward of Osaka alone. In my opinion,
the best starting point to sample some of Osaka’s finest seafood selection is
to head over to Kuromon Ichiba or “Black Gate Market”. The market is just a
short walk south of Nippombashi Station.
Just like
most markets in Japan, you can purchase fresh and cooked seafood from various
shops. Whether it’s grilled giant scallops, grilled unagi tamagoyaki nigiri,
uni (sea urchin), fried seafood or sushi, they have it all! There are also a
lot of shops that sell fresh veggies, pickles, niku (meat), treats like warabi
mochi, mitarashi dango and more. There’s an area south of the market where you
can sit and eat all the food that you have bought at the markets.
DESSERTS and SWEET TREATS
Pancakes
You can
find all 3 of Japans most popular soufflé pancake places in Osaka. The fluffy
pancakes of Gram, the range of
flavours from A Happy Pancake and if
you’re a fan of Bill’s ricotta pancakes, then you need to check out Micasadeco’s soufflé ricotta pancakes.
ELK Café has a good range of soufflé
pancakes too. You will only find them in Osaka, so best to check them out while
you’re in the area. The Shinsaibashi shop is particularly cozy.
Click HERE for my Japanese Pancakes post.
Cremia
After
making its debut in 2015, Cremia took Japan by storm. It’s a Hokkaido milk and
whipped cream soft serve concoction that is loved by both locals and tourists
alike. Cremia is found almost everywhere in major Japan prefectures. Just look
for the Cremia soft scream poster outside a shop! But your best bet to find
cremia is by visiting an Excelsior Caffe branch and you are certain to
get your Cremia fix. You can get the OG soft cream or soft scream drizzled with
matcha or chocolate powder. Some shops even have chocolate Cremia soft cream.
CANELÉ du JAPON
Some of the
best caneles I have come across in my life is in Osaka! They are a tad smaller
than the ones I’ve seen and tried in Australia but for tasty morsels priced
between ¥120 to ¥150 yen, they were amazing! They have a wide range of flavours
and we tried the following: Shiro (Their OG rum & vanilla), Hojicha, Matcha
Anko, Kokoto nut (coconut) and special white raisin & rum. The shiro
flavour was my favourite. It had a perfect crisp shell with an almost
semi-custardy inside.
Address:
2-1-13, Dojimahama, Kita-ku Osaka-shi, Osaka
Hours:
11:00am to 7pm daily
Warabi Mochi
When in
Kansai, one has to try warabi mochi! Whilst you can get them at sweets souvenir
shops, food halls, there are 2 other places you can definitely get them from:
Kuromon Ichiba Market and 7 Eleven.
These
delicious stretchy delights are my absolute type of mochi. You can have it with
tea or have it as part of a dessert platter and in some places even serve them
in soft cream! But I prefer to have it on its own and savour the goodness along
with the peanut butter tasting kinako that it is coated with.
Pablo and Bake by Kinotoya
Another
Japanese treats that are known worldwide are Japanese cheese tarts. Two of the
most popular chains are Bake and Pablo, which you can also try in Osaka.
There’s a
lot of Pablo shops in Osaka alone. Their cafe in Nishi-Shinsaibashi has a huge
range of tarts, coffee, softserves, cheese filled langue de chat and more. They
also have cakes, milk shakes and savoury dishes.
Bake by
Kinotoya originated from Hokkaido. The star in their tarts is the cheese
filling. The custardy cheese mousse filling is more oozy and cremeir compared
to Pablo. 6 pieces of their mini-tarts is ¥1,275. Some shops even offer smooth
velvety milky softserves.
Lord Stow’s Portugese Tarts
Andrew Stow
opened the first Lord Stow’s in the island of Macau. His empire has expanded to
places like Hong Kong and the awesome Dotonbori strip of Osaka. As you enter
Dotonbori from Mido-suji, the shop will be immediately on your left. Their OG
Portugese tarts are simply amazing with their buttery flaky pastry and custardy
creme brûlée like filling.
Address:
1-10-6 Dotonbori, Chuo, Osaka
Hours: 10am
to 12midnight daily
Nearest
station: Namba
LeTao at Sweets Box
You cannot visit
Japan without trying one of the best cheesecakes it has to offer. LeTao hails
from Hokkaido, which produces the best dairy products in Japan. Their double
fromage is the most luscious and premium cheesecake I’ve had. It’s a two
layered cheesecake with a no-bake mascarpone cheesecake and the bottom layer of
baked cheesecake. The combined contrast of each layer delivers the most
balanced cheesecake texture as a whole. The Sweets Box shop at Yodoyabashi
Station carries LeTao products.
Address: Keihan Train Yodoyabashi Station
West exit of the ticket gate.
Hours: 10am to 9pm daily
Nearest station: Yodoyabashi Station
PIZZAS and BURGERS
il Sole Rosso
Japan has
numerous AVPN (Associazione Verace Pizza Napoletana) certified pizza places and
one of them is a highly rated shop in Shinsaibashi on the east side of
Mido-suji Boulevard. IL Sole Rosso has a pizzeria trattoria vibe. A booking in
advance is recommended. They still welcome walk-ins but there is a time limit
(they gave us 1 hour from the time they took our order).
We opted for
a margherita pizza (good value at ¥990) and a quattro formaggi pizza
(¥1490). The margherita here was perfect with its thin doughy base with charred
bits underneath, freshly made tomato base sauce and beautiful toppings of
buffalo mozzarella and basil. The quattro formaggi pizza is a cheese lover’s
dream with so much creaminess, umami and without the gorgonzola cheese being too
overpowering. Best value AVPN pizza that I have come across in my life.
Address: 2F
Yanjing building, 1-4-14 Shinsaibashi Osaka, Chuo-ku
Hours:
[Monday to Saturday] 11: 30 ~ 15: 30 (LO14: 30) 17: 30 ~ 22: 30 (LO21: 30)
[Sunday] 11:
30 ～ 15: 30 (LO14: 30) , 17: 30 ～ 22:
00 (LO21: 00)
Nearest
station: Shinsaibashi
Pizza Stand NY
On the west
of Mido-suji Boulevard is America-mura. In an area full of American themed
shops, it’s just fitting to have an Americana style pizza. Pizza Stand NY is
run by Mr Daisuke Fukumoto. A lot of expats who live in the area refers to
their New York style pizza “legit”. Expect classic flavours from cheese pizza,
pepperoni pizza, and sausage pizza to new iterations like mushroom pizza and
margherita-style pizzas. Personally, I think their pizzas are pretty legit too.
A huge NY-style slice starts from around ¥500 and a whole pizza from ¥3500.
Address: 2
Chome-9-36 Nishishinsaibashi, Chuo, Osaka
Hours:
11:30am to 9pm daily
Nearest
station: Shinsaibashi and Namba
Critters
If there is
only 1 burger place that you can visit in Osaka, then it needs to be Critters.
This place has that full on Americana diner vibe with memorabilia and vintage
fittings. It’s conveninent as it is right smack bang in the middle of
Shinsaibashi. It always gets a queue so it’s best to get there before or just
right at opening time.
We tried
their Double bacon cheeseburger, a cheeseburger, and fried chicken. Their
burgers start from ¥950 comes with fried potato wedges. Most burgers in Japan
look beautiful but the excess folded lettuce can sometimes cause all the
fillings to slip out of the burg. Critters massive burgers are well-constructed
with perfectly seasoned patties containing coarsely grounded mince beef. Each
patty has pockets of beautiful meat juice bursting with flavour. The cheese is
perfectly melted and the burger has a good amount of sauce. The fried chicken’s
coating is crunchy hiding underneath some of the juiciest chicken meat I’ve
had. Nostalgia alert: Critters has rootbeer float on their menu!
Address:
1-10-35 Nishishinsaibashi, Chuo-ku, Osaka
Hours: 11am
to 11pm
Nearest
Station: Shinsaibashi
YAKINIKU
Gyu-kaku
A lot of
yakiniku joints out there can get quite expensive if you are not careful with
what you order. I recommend Gyu-Kaku if you want yakiniku that’s value for
money. It’s big chain that does all-you-can-eat meat, seafood and sides
starting from ¥3,480. You can get meat cuts from beef ribs, beef skirt, chicken
in cheese, to aged premium steak to pork belly and seafood. There’s also a
choice of either meats that are flavoured with shio (salt) or tare (sauce).
Sides range from salads, to pickled veggies, rice and soup. As usual, there’s a
grill on your table to cook your meats and seafood on and you are given a
tablet to choose dishes from. Once you have put through your order, the dishes
come out. You are also given 90 minutes for the duration of your stay and your
tablet will give you a reminder of how long you have left before time is up.
Also, you will be charged extra for any leftovers on your plate.
Address:
1 Chome-6-１０ Dotonbori,
Chuo, Osaka, Osaka
Hours:
11.30am to 5am the next day.
Nearest
station: Namba
CAFES
Lilo Roasters
Lilo was one
of the first ever specialty coffee shops that I’ve visited in Japan. The
convenient Shinsaibashi location is a plus and they close quite late at
10pm. Owner and head barista Keita Nakamura roasts all his blend and
single origins in-house. This is a common sight in the Osaka specialty coffee
scene. Nakamura-san does a lot of collaborations with other cafes and also
judges coffee competitions. The dude’s got clout and you bet that he has the
skills to back that up.
I’ve tried
his filter coffee from cold brews to pour overs. I’ve had sweet juicy Kenyan
coffee and bold Colombians. When Keita is behind the counter, you need to
really try his pour overs. I really like their blends too which tend to have
milk chocolate notes through a latte.
Address: 1
Chome−1−10-28 Nishishinsaibashi, Chuo-ku, Osaka
Hours: 11am
to 11pm Daily
Nearest
Station: Shinsaibashi
Granknot Coffee
Another café
with a convenient location especially if you are staying around Shinsaibashi
and Namba is Granknot Coffee. They are located in the heart of the Orange
Street shopping district. The space has a very industrial and vintage look with
warm lighting. There are communal and 2 seater tables available.
They roast
their own beans from singles to blends. The singles that are roasted for filter
tends to be around medium in body and flavour. Their Ethiopian coffee on V60
pour over (¥450) was a tad darker for my liking but was still light enough that
I could enjoy the flavours. The blends are done a little bit darker. So you
get a nice sweet and dark chocolate notes in your latte (¥480). I also
recommend their fluffy sugar coated Nutella doughnut (¥350)!
Address: 1
Chome-23-4 Kitahorie, Nishi Ward, Osaka
Hours: Mon
to Wed and Friday 9am to 6pm, Thurs closed, Sat and Sun 11am to 6pm
Brooklyn Roasting Company
This was
recommended to me by Sydney’s most awesome coffee connoisseur, James Fridley
a.k.a. @Bitterbliss on Instagram. The homie James visits Kansai a lot so if you
want any coffee recommendations in Osaka, follow him!
I love the
space’s whole rustic vibe. You can choose either a blend or single origin for
your milk coffee whether it would be a caffe latte or cappuccino. I also had a
filtered Yigracheffe coffee and it was quite fruity. The doughnut were tasty,
fluffy and was value for money at ¥300. The cinnamon scrolls with cream cheese
icing were massive and so good for the steal price of ¥350.
Address: 2
Chome-1-16 Kitahama, Chuo, Osaka, Osaka Prefecture 541-0041, Japan
Hours: Mon
to Fri 8am to 8pm
Sat &
Sun 10am to 7pm
Convenient stores and food stores
When in
Osaka or any major city in Japan, you need to hit up 7 Eleven, Lawsons and
other food stores to sample local baked goods, the best egg sandwiches,
onigiri, beverages unique to Japan and more. The quality of their hot savoury
dishes like karaage chicken etc. is beyond what you would normally expect from
a convenient store food.
RAMEN
Click HERE for my Osaka and other Kansai ramen recommendations.
**BONUS ROUND: KOBE**
Mouriya Honten – Kobe Beef
Kobe is only
30-40 minutes by train from Osaka. As most of y’all know, Kobe is quite known
to have the best beef in the world. The area near Sannomiya station has lots of
steak and yakiniku restaurants. Mouriya has been around for many years. They
have been around since 1885! We booked online (www.mouriya.co.jp/en)
for a lunch session.
The
restaurant is teppanyaki-style where they cook your rice, vegetables and beef
on a large hot plate right in front of you. Everything is cooked with great
care and showmanship. They present you the beef so you can marvel on all that
Wagyu marbling before it gets cooked. We opted for their premium A5 Kobe beef
sirloin fillet steak (180grams for ¥16,800) and a normal Kobe beef rump steak
(150grams for ¥7,500). Any order of beef comes with soup, salad, vegetables,
rice or bread and coffee or tea. Both were exceptionally amazing but the A5
Kobe Sirloin was more buttery. I have not come across a beef that buttery and
tasty with only a simple salt & pepper seasoning. It’s an experience all
meat lovers out there need to do when in Kansai.
Address:
2-1-17, Shimoyamatedori, Chuo-ku, Kobe-shi, Hyogo, 650-0011
Hours:
Monday - Sunday & Day before holiday & Holiday 11:00 - 22:00(L.O.21:00)
Monday -
Sunday & Day before holiday & Holiday Lunch: 11:00 - 15:00(L.O.15:00)
Nearest
Station: Sannomiya
Posts
