The BEST places to visit in Osaka for Foodies
Overwhelmed figuring out what places to visit in Osaka for the best food? Unsure how craft the perfect itinerary around your favourite hobby - eating! Leave it to me…I’m dishing on all my Osaka food hits and misses as well as some general suggestions on how to incorporate food into your travels…
Things to note about food in Japan
Many restaurants in Japan are 10 seats or less, so you may want to book or be prepared to line up. In a lot of these smaller dining venues (mainly the ones where drinking aren’t the focus), the food generally comes fast and it’s not a place to stick around to chit-chat. A lot of these smaller restaurants also tend to make just one thing (or variation thereof) compared to more varied menus we come to expect from Western dining options. Not good or bad, just different, and something to consider for fussy eaters.
Japan is home to many regional specialities so it helps to know what’s local and popular in each area to help you narrow down and plan your itinerary. This is very unique compared to Australia where this is less defined. Also note that food quality in Japan is very high. You don’t need to eat somewhere expensive to have great food. You can even have a quality for meal for less than $10.
My favourites eats in Osaka
Tempura Tentora. An unassuming tempura restaurant in an underground train station mall nearby our hotel. Super fresh, light, lots of optional veggies. All in all good quality set lunch meal for around $10-12AUD - including free tea. I still think about how satisfied I was with this meal. 9/10
Tonkatsu Minato. Another mid-range option, around $35 for my dinner meal. You can definitely taste the difference between this level of tonkatsu (breaded/schnitzel pork) and those around $10-15 you can find most places. The meat is super thick and juicy, yet somehow still light despite it being, well, fried. Lots of sauce options and top notch (although quite formal) service. 9/10
Gyukatsu Motomura. Motomura is a pretty famous Gyukatsu (breaded/schnitzel steak) venue in Osaka. When we got there around 12:30pm for lunch, there was a line of around 10 couples waiting to get in. I’ve seen people on social media lose it over how amazing the steak is here. Did I think it was that amazing? No. But for around $25AUD, I thought it was a solid steak and I loved each of the several little side dishes that came with it. VERY hot tip for you: they have an “annex/overflow” branch just 30 seconds down the street. We walked over there and they seated us right away! 8/10
Plus honourable mentions to:
Gyoza Ninoni - solid cost to value ratio. Gives a local cheap and cheerful vibe. You won’t leave hungry.
Hughes Pizza - quality American style thin slice pizza and EXTREMELY friendly service.
Side note: I am aware my top 3 are all fried foods! Elsewhere in Japan, I swear some of my favourite foods were not fried at all!
What I felt was overrated
Honestly, there wasn’t too much I found that was overrated when it came to food in Osaka. And definitely nothing that was terrible. That said, there were a few things I ate that I do feel weren’t quite worth the money compared to all the great food Osaka has to offer…
The ‘strawberry on a stick’ treats you will see dotted around most areas. Maybe I just picked the wrong store/chain but the strawberries I tried were pretty normal tasting and it was about $5AUD for 4 berries only. I was expecting hand picked, super sweet and ripe berries for that price! Should have just had another 37th matcha soft serve instead.
Street food stalls in Dotonbori. This is THE famous area for street food stalls in Osaka. The vibe is popping and the food I tried was good, but it was much more costly by portion then it would be to eat it anywhere else in Osaka. If you’re willing to pay the premium for the atmosphere and the novelty of hopping one stall to the next, then go for it.
Foodie must-dos in Osaka
Hit up the big four local specialities of Osaka - takoyaki (balls of octopus), okonomiyaki (savoury pancake), shoyu ramen (soy sauce), and kushikatsu (deep fried and breaded everything on a stick).
Visit a depachika. A depachika is a food court found in large department stores, usually on the basement level These aren’t your standard food courts however - they’re full to the brim with speciality foods and very luxurious sweet treats.
Try eating in underground train station malls. These are hidden gems FULL of nice Japanese restaurants when you want to sit down and eat somewhere goo but affordable. They’re also ideal for when it’s raining too.
Do a $10 food challenge. See how far you can stretch your $10 on food. For example, you can order a solid ramen for a only few dollars, keep an eye out for the 100yen drink vending machines, check out the many great hot and cold food options in convenience stores. This will help you save a few $ for souvenirs too.
Try Japanese specific flavours - sure you can get vanilla ice-cream but what about matcha or red bean flavour instead?
There you have it - a rundown of all the best foodies picks for your Osaka holiday! What foods are you most excited to try when you go to Japan?1
