My a lot of recent trip to Osaka was my sixth time in the city. but I still vividly remember the first.
Osaka was the first destination in Japan that we set foot in. We were travel newbies back then: lacking in knowledge, wisdom, and confidence. Every single day of that trip, we spent a loooong time deciding where to eat because we were so intimidated by everything.
We were on a incredibly tight budget that if we overspent on something, we would risk giving up another activity. There was this restaurant near the train station that we both wanted to try, but there was no menu outside. whenever we passed by, we stopped and stood in front of it, going over whether or not we must go in. We were so terrified we won’t be able to afford it that we ended up eating at a comfort store each time. (We were able to try only 3 restaurants on that trip, but they were all originally part of our itinerary.)
Of course, after several Japan trips, we know better. We now know that there are a lot of cheap but terrific food spots in every city, and we have gathered enough confidence (and money) to find and try them.
I guess that’s why I like checking out cities over and over again. When the streets and lights bombard you with old memories, you’re reminded that after each journey, people, like places, are never the same. This trip is different because this time, it was all about the food. We sought out the restaurants and stalls that could give us cheap but unforgettable eats. and here’s what we found.
Wat wordt er in deze gids behandeld?
Endo Sushi
Tokisushi
Ramen Yashichi
Menya Joroku
Hanshin Umeda main department store Snack Park
Hokkyokusei (Omurice)
Okonomiyaki Kiji
Aizuya Takoyaki
Kuromon Ichiba Market
Bonus: Supermarkets
Where to book cheap Flights to OsakaSearch for cheap flights here
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Endo Sushi
What to try: Sushi set 1
Price: ¥1150 + 8% tax
I eat at Endo Sushi whenever I’m in the city. ELK. ENKEL. TIJD. That must tell you how much I take pleasure in this small and unassuming sushi shop. That, despite being located far from the city’s lots of popular vacationer spots. It is nearly an attraction in itself with tourists going out of their way to have their own plateful.
Endo Sushi has been serving what lots of consider “Osaka’s best” for over a century. Yep, a lot more than 100 years, and they’re here to stay, despite being so small. The place has only five tables and a short bar, so expect to queue up a bit. immediately upon taking a seat, you wull be served a cup of hot green tea together with a hot towelette. On the table are two small porcelain bowls that cradle shoyu (soy sauce) and pickled ginger. Don’t go trying to find wasabi because it’s already mixed with rice. aside from the toppings, this wasabi mixture sets Endo besides other sushi places. It’s a best blend of saltiness and spice. If you’re not a fan, tell the chef or waiter upon ordering so they can create wasabi-less pieces for you.
Endo’s menu has only a few choices. You get to pick among four sets only, each priced at ¥1150 + 8% tax. Every set is made up of five pre-selected pieces (omakase), but you can have a piece replaced if you like.
I have tried all four sets, and set 1 — composed of anago (sea water eel), uni (sea urchin), tai (sea bream), toro (fatty tuna), and hamachi (yellowtail) — is, by a mile, het beste. lots of of these pieces have premium toppings including toro and uni. If you want to try the other plates, don’t be shy to buy more. It’s perfectly normal to have a rack of multiple plates because every piece is glorious. because it’s located just next to the fish market, they get first dibs on the freshest ingredients, and you can taste the freshness with every bite.
Operating hours: Monday-Saturday, 5am – 2pm (closed on Sunday and Holidays)
How to get there: The closest stations are Noda and Tamagawa. They’re very close to each other so just take whatever is a lot more convenient. From Noda Station, cross the street and turn left until you hit an intersection. turn ideal and walk along that road until you see Aji River. turn ideal onto the road just before the bridge. The big building to your ideal is Osaka Fish Market. walk towards the market and keep left — Don’t climb the overpass — and you’ll see Endo Sushi after the parking lot.
Tokisushi
What to try: 12-piece Assorted Sushi Set
Price: ¥1050 + tax
If ¥1150 can treat you to 5 pieces at Endo Sushi, an even smaller amount, ¥1050, can give you a dozen at Tokisushi (Toki Sushi).
Toki Sushi. photo by Vins Carlos
We love Toki Sushi for two things. First, its location. If you’re staying around Namba, then this must be within walking distance of your hotel.
The other, its affordability. A standard plate here, with 2 pieces of nigiri sushi, costs only ¥150. A a lot more premium sushi — like fatty tuna and sea urchin — are at ¥150 apiece. but a lot of diners get their assorted sushi plates, which cosT ¥ 730 voor 8 stuks en ¥ 1050 voor een dozijn.
We kochten de dozijn uiteenlopende. De serveerster serveerde een houten bord dat er bijna overvol uitzag met sushi, alle twaalf van hen bedekt met grote sneden zeevruchten. Veel worden echter gekroond met gewone toppings zoals inktvis, Tamago en gewone tonijn. Als je veel meer deeg hebt om te verbranden, moedigen we je ten zeerste aan om hun premium sushi -set (¥ 2100) te proberen, die je alle geweldige stukken zoals uni, Japanse paling en vette tonijn geeft.
Ik zou Endo Sushi elke dag kiezen boven Tokisushi, maar dat wordt verwacht omdat de eerste veel duurder is. Maar ik moedig je nog steeds aan om beide te proberen. Als je dat wel doet, probeer dan eerst Tokisushi, zodat je niet onder de indruk bent.
Werkuren: 11.00 – 23.00 uur
Hoe te komen: de dichtstbijzijnde stations zijn Namba en Nippombashi.
Ramen Yashichi
Wat te proberen: Shoyu Ramen
Prijs: ¥ 730
Zoals veel best bewaarde geheimen in Japan, is Ramen Yashichi gehuisvest in een bescheiden, compact, groezelig gat in een muur die gemakkelijk voorbij is. Dat deden we bijna, gezien het feit dat er geen wachtrij buiten stond, vrij ongebruikelijk voor een ramensplaats die zogenaamd een van de beste in Osaka is. Maar er is een perfecte, verstandige verklaring voor.
Zodra we in de rij begonnen te gaan, werden we benaderd door een van de personeelsleden, die ons een nummer gaf met een kleine boodschap die ons vertelde om op de opgegeven tijd terug te komen. Dat is hun manier om te voorkomen dat een lange rij voor de winkel wordt gecreëerd (misschien omdat het de ingang van de aangrenzende winkels zou kunnen blokkeren). Maar het was halverwege de middag van een weekdag, dus we konden niet veel wachten. In 10 minuten waren we binnen en probeerden we de All-Japanese automaat te achterhalen die klanten bestellingen aanneemt. Het personeel was echter genadig genoeg om ons te helpen.
Binnen de kortste keren zaten we aan een van de weinige twee tafels en serveerden een grote kom ramen. Er zijn hier drie hoofdtypen ramen: Shoyu (sojasaus), shio (zout) en tsukemen (noedels worden afzonderlijk geserveerd om te dippen). Online consensus is sterk voorstander van Shoyu, dus beide Vins en ik hebben hetzelfde gekocht.
Kosten:.
SHOYU: ¥ 730
Shio: ¥ 780
Tsukemen: ¥ 880
Ramen Yashichi. Foto door Vins Carlos
Dit was de eerste keer dat ik mijn lichaam stopte met een ramen in een bouillon op kippen. Ik ben gewend aan varkensbeen (tonkotsu) en heb eerder rundvleesbot (gyukotsu) geprobeerd, maar deze was anders. Ik was doodsbang dat ik teleurgesteld zou zijn omdat ik aannam dat het, gezien het feit dat het op kippen gebaseerd is, licht zou smaken. Ik hou van mijn soep zoals ik hou van mijn mannen, rijk en sterk. Het was echter allesbehalve licht. Het was vol, bijna net als Tonkotsu, maar romig. Zie het als het lovechild van een tonkotsu ramen en een kip macaroni -soep. Het is een van die bouillons die met elke lepel veel smaakvoller worden en de zoete marinade van de Chashu -toppings aanvullen. Voordat ik het wist, was mijn kom leeg.
Operationele uren: maandag-vrijdag 10:45 uur-16.00 uur (gesloten: zaterdag, zondag)
Hoe te komen: het dichtstbijzijnde treinstation is Nakatsu. Ramen Yashichi ligt op slechts 3 blokken daar vandaan.
Menya Joroku
Wat te proberen: Chukasoba
Prijs: ¥ 700
Menya Joroku’s Chukasoba
Probeer “Best Ramen in Osaka” te googlen en u krijgt een Gazillion -lijsten die zijn opgesteld door verschillende websites. Menya Joroku is een nietje in deze aanbevelingen.
Menya Joroku (Menya Jouroku) is verscholen in een smal steeg in Uranamba, een korte wandeling van veel van de cruciale attracties in Namba of Dotonbori. Hun specialiteit is Chukasoba, een ramen in Takaida-stijl die wordt gekenmerkt door de diepe donkere bouillon, gemaakt met kippenbouillon en zwarte sojasaus. Veel beoordelingen zeggen dat het ondanks zijn kleur verrassend licht is. Ik smeek om te verschillen: ik vind het een beetje aan de zware kant. Het heeft een intense zoute smaak met een vleugje zuur. Dat is geen slechte zaak voor mij, want zoals ik al eerder zei, ik hou van sterke, rijke profielen. Elke portie wordt bedekt met plakjes geroosterd varkensvlees, gehakte lente -uitjes, bamboescheuten en een royaal scheutje zwarte peper.
Als je smaakpapillen voorstander zijn van het lichtere einde van het smaakspectrum, koop dan in plaats daarvan Samma Shoyu Ramen. Dit maakt ook gebruik van kippenbouillon maar gemengd met gedroogde saury visbouillon, waardoor een lichte maar dynamische smaak ontstaat. Elke kom wordt ook geleverd met lente -uitjes, geroosterd varkensvlees, bamboescheuten en Nori.
Menya Joroku’s Samma Shoyu Ramen
Kosten:.
Chukasoba: ¥ 700
Samma Shoyu: ¥ 750
Hanshin Umeda Main warenhuis Snack Park
Wat te proberen: Kadoya Shokudo’s Shoyu Ramen
Prijs: ¥ 600 voor gewoon ramen, ¥ 850 met alle toppings
Hanshin Snack Park is een stand-up food court die populair is, vooral onder de lokale bevolking. located inside the Hanshin Umeda main department Store, it houses over a dozen stalls selling Japanese foodie treats like sushi, takoyaki (snack balls with a bit of octopus), and ikayaki (a crepe-like snack filled with squid bits). but what we found a lot of satisfying and filling here was the ramen served by a kiosk called Kadoya Shokudo.
Kadoya Shokudo serves standard ramen, with shoyu broth and thin, soft Chinese noodles. As you may have noticed, I’m not a fan of ramen with light broth, but this was a pleasurableverrassing. The dashi is clear but has the best mix of saltiness and umami. It reminded me a lot more of the fishy, immaculate taste of udon broth than ramen.
Kosten:.
Plain: ¥600
Ramen with egg and additional pork: ¥850
Hokkyokusei (Omurice)
Omurice has its roots planted in Osaka. In particular, the main branch of Hokkyokusei in Shinsaibashi is regarded by lots of as the first to serve omurice decades ago.
Omurice is a basic dish. It’s generally omelette and rice but presented in a a lot more creative fashion. Its early incarnations had mushrooms and onions mixed with the rice and served with ketchup. but today, it takes lots of forms. At Hokkyokusei, the most popular versions are hashed beef omurice and beef curry omurice.
We asked the staff for their bestsellers and they pointed to the hashed beef and beef curry plates. Hence, Vins bought the 2-in-1 omurice, served with both curry and hashed beef, poured on either sides of the omurice. I bought the a lot more expensive beef stew omurice. This way, we get to try three different variations in one seating. To be honest, the taste is just fine and the price is a bit steep for it. I’ve had better versions in other restaurants at a more affordable price. The beef chunks in my beef stew were hard, nearly leathery. Of the three, I liked the hashed beef the most. It was bright and rich. but I still think it’s overpriced. but I guess the hype is a lot more about its history and environment than the food.
Okonomiyaki Kiji
What to try: Okonomiyaki
Price: ¥850
We had just finished checking out the view from Umeda sky Building’s observatory, when our grumbling tummies and a quick Google search led us to the door of Okonomiyaki Kiji, at the tower’s basement food court called Takimi Koji. We were greeted by the staff, who gladly ushered us in. Spotting our cameras, he asked if we wanted to sit by the bar (perhaps so we could get better angles).
We were there for okonomiyaki, but he highly recommended the yakisoba. We ended up with both. The chef began creating the dish in front of us. The a lot more they took form, the a lot more we realized that these would be huge pieces, maybe bigger than we can handle. When it was all done, he split both the okonomiyaki and yakisoba in two, and evenly distributed the pieces.
Okonomiyaki is Osaka’s popular standard pancake normally made of wheat flour, cabbage, and eggs. Kiji allows you to choose the protein components of the dish, so we selected a mixture of everything: bacon, beef, squid. The last piece was a shiso, a perilla leaf. (I’m not a fan of perilla, but Vins is.) Kiji’s was everything you could hope for in an okonomiyaki: big, filling, flavorful, and well-seasoned. and because our buy sat on the grill the entire time, it remained warm throughout the meal. Cost: ¥850.
But that yakisoba absolutely upstaged the okonomiyaki. The yakisoba had a soft, juicy but non-soggy texture that was punctuated by the squid, meat and veggie bits.
Operating Hours: Friday-Wednesday 11:30am-9pm (Closed: Thursdays)
How to get there: Closest train stations are Osaka and Umeda.
Aizuya Takoyaki
What to try: Takoyaki Set
Price: ¥500
Aizuya is widely believed to be the birthplace of takoyaki, Osaka’s a lot of popular street food. Yep, they are credited for inventing takoyaki. Their takoyaki is served without any sauce, which shows just how confident they are with the taste of their product. and it need to be pretty darn awesome because they got a recommendation from Michelin’s Bib Gourmand 2016 Guide. All these made us visit. Unfortunately, it was still closed when we arrived and we didn’t have the luxury of time. Boehoe.
Anyway, if you want to try it, a 12-piece plate is only ¥500, 15-piece ¥620.
Aizuya has a few branches including one in Umeda and another in Namba.
Kuromon Ichiba Market
For over 190 years, Kuromon Market has been known as Osaka’s kitchen for its nearly limitless variety of gastronomic options, ranging from rare fruits to mouth-watering seafoods that you can eat or h