Local Guide
Five hidden gems in Shinsekai where you can enjoy Osaka's unique cuisine

Osaka, which has nurtured its own unique food culture of "konamono" (powdered food) and "dashi" (Japanese soup stock), was called "the kitchen of the nation" in the Edo period (1603-1868), and today is a treasure house of delicacies known as "the city of the gourmets. Among them, this article introduces some of Shinsekai's hidden gems, known only to those in the know. We have carefully selected five restaurants of various genres and personalities, including chicken yakiniku, udon, soba, Western-style food, and butcher store croquettes. You will be able to experience the charm of Osaka's deep flavors.

Enjoy the freshness of Matsusaka's famous yakiniku chicken in a standing barbecue style!

Kashiwa
Kashiwa" (assorted young chicken thigh and breast) from 410 yen

This is a stand-up drinking establishment where you can casually enjoy Matsusaka Chicken Yakiniku, a specialty of Matsusaka City, Mie Prefecture, where the chicken is dipped in a rich red miso sauce. The attraction of this restaurant is the large number of items on the menu, as well as the chance to come across unusual parts of the chicken. The yakiniku is grilled on a grill placed on the counter, and you cook it yourself.
We recommend the "Kashiwa," an assortment of young chicken thigh and breast. Because fresh chicken is used, the meat remains fresh even after being grilled thoroughly, and you can taste the juicy flavor of the chicken. It is also nice to know that all the dishes are reasonably priced.

A special morning menu of yakiniku chicken that can be enjoyed from mid-morning.

The restaurant has an open atmosphere that makes it easy to stop by. The walls are lined with menus that list various parts of the dish.
The restaurant has an open atmosphere that makes it easy to stop by. The walls are lined with menus that list various parts of the dish.

On weekdays, the restaurant opens at 9:00 a.m., with the peak of customers around 10:00 a.m. A morning menu is available until 11:00 a.m., offering sake and a plate of chicken for 500 yen, making it a rare place to enjoy a quick chicken yakiniku in the morning.
In addition to the standard items, the restaurant also offers rare parts of chicken such as mohikan, fundoshi, otafuku, and ass skin, which are not found in other restaurants. Rare parts such as chicken hormone and "kokorozari," the tube connecting the liver and heart, are sometimes sold out in the morning. Please visit us to experience the depth of chicken yakiniku along with Osaka's standing drinking culture.

Local Guide Comment
The restaurant has a second location in Kyobashi, also in Osaka City, as well as a restaurant specializing in seseri kabayaki and hormone kushiyaki in the Shinsekai area. Both are all standing and reasonably priced. Please join the local customers and enjoy Osaka's standing drinking culture.
Hachitori Stand
  • address (e.g. of house) 1-6-10 Taishi, Nishinari-ku, Osaka MAP
  • Direction 3 min. walk from Osaka Metro Dobutsuenmae Sta.
  • Business Hours 9:00-21:00 (L.O.20:30), Saturday 9:00-22:00 (L.O.21:30), Sunday 8:00-20:00 (L.O.19:30)
  • Closed Year-end and New Year's holidays
  • Parking None

Curry udon noodles topped with crispy pork cutlets are a hearty dish!

Limited quantity of
Limited quantity of "Katsu Curry Udon" (pork cutlet curry udon) with a crispy, lightly battered cutlet on top, 1,350 yen.

This popular restaurant serves Sanuki-style udon noodles with chewy elasticity. The most notable dish is the "Katsu Curry Udon," a limited-quantity curry udon topped with a pork cutlet so large that it hides the udon. The juicy cutlet (pork) is lightly battered and deep-fried to a crisp, surprisingly light and easy to eat. The soup is made by pouring the spicy curry roux over soba noodle soup stock and zarusoba sauce, creating a rich and mellow flavor. We recommend ordering a small bowl of rice (100 yen) to go with the remaining soup.

Gentle udon noodles made with the finest ingredients and care

The restaurant is decorated with posters of rock musicians, of which the owner is a big fan, and autographs of celebrities who have visited the restaurant.
The restaurant is decorated with posters of rock musicians, of which the owner is a big fan, and autographs of celebrities who have visited the restaurant.

Founded in Nishinari in 2013 by the owner who trained at famous udon restaurants in Osaka and Kagawa. Now relocated near Shinsekai, it is a popular restaurant that sometimes draws a long line at lunchtime.
The specialty of the restaurant is to serve homemade udon noodles made from domestic wheat flour, freshly beaten and freshly boiled. Ingredients are carefully selected to avoid the use of chemical seasonings, and the soup stock is made with the gentle flavor of seafood that is typical of the Kansai region, which places great importance on soup stock. The menu also includes bukkake udon, curry udon, and kama-age udon, which can be enjoyed with a variety of toppings such as toriten (chicken tempura), ooebiten (large prawn tempura), and chikuwa tempura.

Local Guide Comment
You can enjoy a tasteful combination of the charms of Kansai and Kagawa udon. In addition to the delicious udon, the owner's courteous and friendly service makes the restaurant a very comfortable place to be.
Handmade Udon Noodles Tenkomori
  • address (e.g. of house) 1-7-26 Ebisuhonmachi, Naniwa-ku, Osaka City, Osaka MAP
  • Direction 1 min. walk from Osaka Metro Daikokucho Sta.
  • Business Hours 11:30-15:00 (L.O. 14:45)
  • Closed Sunday
  • TEL 06-6599-8778
  • Parking None

Curry soba noodles with authentic spices and dashi broth

Oage-no Curry Soba with Authentic Masala (Curry Soba Noodles)
Oage-no Curry Soba with Authentic Masala (Curry Soba Noodles)" 900 yen. Curry Soba with Meat" is also available for 950 yen.

This long-established soba noodle shop has been around since before the first Tsutenkaku Tower was built. The restaurant serves soba noodles made from the first type of buckwheat flour called Sarashina flour, which comes from the center of the buckwheat plant.
The recommended "Curry Soba" uses the restaurant's original roux made with masala mixed by an Indian chef. The soup, which is a combination of soup stock made from kelp, medjool and mackerel, and authentic spices, is an elegant Japanese-style curry that is easy on the Japanese palate. The pure white buckwheat noodles have a firm and firm texture, and their light flavor mixes well with the rich broth.

The interior of the restaurant has a retro atmosphere with a decor that has remained from the early Showa period.

The shop moved to its current location in 1912 (Meiji 45), the year the first Tsutenkaku Tower was built. The current location was rebuilt in 1956 after being destroyed by fire during an air raid in Osaka.
The shop moved to its current location in 1912 (Meiji 45), the year the first Tsutenkaku Tower was built. The current location was rebuilt in 1956 after being destroyed by fire during an air raid in Osaka.

A lineup of unique stores Among the unique shops in Tsutenkaku Hondori Shopping Street The restaurant's stately storefront makes it stand out from the crowd of unique shops in the Tsutenkaku Hondori Shopping Arcade. Currently, the fourth-generation owner of the restaurant wields his skills in the kitchen. The interior of the store, which still retains the atmosphere of the early Showa period, is neatly arranged, showing that the store has been cherished by successive owners.
The traditional specialties are "zarusoba" and "kakesoba," Sarashina soba served in aromatic broth. You can fully enjoy the smoothness of the soba as it slides down your throat. In addition to soba, the restaurant offers a wide variety of dishes such as oyakodon (chicken and egg bowl), tendon (bowl of rice topped with tempura), and a la carte dishes such as dashimaki tamago (rolled egg).

Local Guide Comment
It is a long-established soba restaurant loved by locals. The store is spacious with high ceilings, and quiet and peaceful time passes by. Outside the windows are lush greenery, and the beautiful crane statue that has been carefully passed down from the previous generation is also noteworthy.
Sohonke Sarashina
  • address (e.g. of house) 1-17-10, Ebisuhigashi, Naniwa-ku, Osaka City, Osaka MAP
  • Direction 2 minutes walk from Osaka Metro Ebisucho Station
  • Business Hours 11:00-19:00 (L.O. 18:30)
  • Regular holiday Friday
  • TEL 06-6643-6051
  • Parking None

Heleviev cutlet sandwiches" loved by many celebrities

Herb beef cutlet sandwich
Herb beef cutlet sandwich" 2,200 yen. It is also available for takeout.

This Western-style restaurant, established in 1961, is located in a back alley not far from Tsutenkaku Tower. Its signature menu item, the "Halebeef cutlet sandwich," is a specialty loved by many customers, including various celebrities who frequent the restaurant. The thickly cut fillet of beef is deep-fried to a near-rare state, and the savory bread, juicy meat juices, and rich and mild sauce create a trinity that is in perfect harmony. In Osaka, the word "meat" generally refers to "beef. It is also a cultural tradition in Osaka to refer to fillet meat as "heretiku".

Located in a back alley in the downtown area, the restaurant is like a hideaway that retains the atmosphere of the Showa period.

The interior of the store has the air of a long-established restaurant, with a warm and welcoming atmosphere with carved wood interior, retro accessories, and photos from the time of the establishment.
The interior of the store has the air of a long-established restaurant, with a warm and welcoming atmosphere with carved wood interior, retro accessories, and photos from the time of the establishment.

The current owner took over the restaurant at the age of 46. Although he was a salesman with no cooking experience, he started by washing dishes under the watchful eye of his father, who had preceded him, and gradually acquired his skills. He says that he now loves cooking, and many of his regular customers continue to come to the restaurant because they are attracted by his soft-spoken personality.
Another specialty is the "Stewed Filet Cutlet with Curry Sauce," which is a cutlet wrapped in a curry spiced sauce. The owner of the restaurant, who pursues his own original taste while cherishing traditional flavors, also offers an original menu.

Local Guide Comment
This old-fashioned Western-style restaurant has been in operation for three generations. For a limited time only, the restaurant also offers a menu that reintroduces the restaurant's original menu from the time of its founding. The menu also includes hamburgers that are easy for children to eat, high-sheen rice with demi-glace sauce, egg sandwiches, and more.
Grill Bon
  • address (e.g. of house) 1-17-17-17 Ebisuhigashi, Naniwa-ku, Osaka MAP
  • Direction 2 minutes walk from Osaka Metro Ebisucho Station
  • Business Hours 12:00-14:30 (L.O. 14:00), 17:00-19:30 (L.O. 19:00) *Close when sold out
  • Regular holiday 6th, 16th, 26th of every month
  • TEL 06-6632-3765
  • Parking None

Strolling around Tsutenkaku while enjoying freshly made croquettes from a butcher store

Tsutenkaku croquette
Tsutenkaku croquette" is 150 yen, characterized by the crunchy texture and gentle taste of potatoes. Cash only.

Located at the entrance to the "Shinsegae Market Stall Street," which is lined with old-fashioned retro stores, this butcher store sells mainly fried foods. The Tsutenkaku croquette is a favorite of many customers. These croquettes are filled with the sweetness of juicy minced beef and onions, and are nostalgic in a way. The best part is that the fryer is located right next to the cash register, so you can enjoy freshly fried and hot croquettes. You can pick up your order in about a minute, making it a great place to stop by when you are hungry or strolling around Tsutenkaku Tower.

Enjoy Osaka's gourmet foods such as beef kabosu sandwiches and kushikatsu (skewered pork cutlets)

Sauce is placed in front of the cash register, so you can add more to your favorite flavor.
Sauce is placed in front of the cash register, so you can add more to your favorite flavor.

Founded in 1910, the store was a butcher store that sold croquettes, menchikatsu, and other fried foods on the side. The style has changed with the times and the movement of people, and now mainly offers fried foods for takeout. In the Tsutenkaku area, where there are not many restaurants where you can eat and walk around, the restaurant is valued by tourists from home and abroad as well as local regular customers.
In addition to Tsutenkaku croquettes, the restaurant also sells thick "beef filet cutlet sandwiches," as well as asparagus bacon and red ginger kushikatsu. You can enjoy the taste of authentic Osaka specialties at your leisure.

Local Guide Comment
The croquettes are priced at only 150 yen per croquette, making them easy on the wallet. You can enjoy freshly fried croquettes anytime, so when you visit Tsutenkaku, you will want to stop by even if you are full.
Meat Sakamoto
  • address (e.g. of house) 1-22-6, Ebisuhigashi, Naniwa-ku, Osaka MAP
  • Direction 2 minutes walk from Osaka Metro Ebisucho Station
  • Business hours 10:00-16:00
  • Closed Thursdays
  • TEL 06-6641-0508
  • Parking None

MAP

Hoshino Resorts facilities nearby
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The information in this article is current as of the date of the update. Please check before visiting as they are subject to change.