Restaurants in Osaka

This small specialist restaurant serves a fusion of modern Japanese and French cuisine. Most of the dishes on the menu are vegetable-based, and great care is taken in the preparation and presentation. Hajime has a reputation for offering an innovative and fun dining experience.

Honkogetsu has two Michelin stars and serves modern Japanese kaiseki cuisine (a series of small, intricate dishes) using only the best seasonal ingredients. The restaurant is only open in the evenings, and the seasonal menu changes monthly. Each dish is a delicate concoction of the freshest seafood and vegetables.

Seating is limited - there are only 12 seats surrounding the chef's preparation area - so make sure you reserve in advance. There's only one menu, but what you'll get is inventive and seasonal and often looks too good to eat. Prices are reasonable for the quality, too, given that the restaurant has three Michelin stars, although the chef doesn't speak English.

This rooftop restaurant is very popular with young Osakans and has an inviting outdoor lounge area, perfect for enjoying the evening breeze during Osaka’s fiendishly hot summer months. The decor is Moroccan in style, and the menu is Mediterranean with a delicious selection of Greek and Middle Eastern dishes, all with a Japanese twist.

This restaurant is probably most famous for the huge mechanical crab moving around on its outside wall, and it has become a symbol of the Dotonbori area. The menu has a vast array of crab dishes prepared in all possible ways - from crab shabu-shabu (cooked at the table in boiling water) and crab kaiseki (very small, intricate dish) to crab salad and crab sushi. The portions are generous, and the service is friendly. An English menu is available.

Located on a narrow alleyway lined with quaint shops and restaurants behind Hozenji Temple, this is a deservedly popular Japanese BBQ spot. Seating is in private booths, and tables have in-built BBQs. Cook your own wagyu steak with delicious garlic rice as an accompaniment.

Nawazushi serves super-fresh sushi in a traditional Osakan atmosphere. Customers sit around the main counter and can watch the chefs expertly slice sashimi and form delicious morsels of nigiri sushi. There are daily and seasonal specials. The atmosphere is boisterous so don’t be shy to yell out your order!

This extremely popular udon restaurant chain serves delicious bowls of the thick white noodles in massive salad bowls. What’s also interesting is the variety of noodles Tsurutontan have on their menu – from the traditional tastes of bean curd and sour pickled plums to more modern and western-influenced variations such as carbonara udon and curry udon. Expect to queue at the door during busy times.

Not far from the Namba Parks shopping complex is this popular yakitori (skewered chicken) restaurant. It has a huge range of skewer food, including grilled chicken, leek and green pepper. The atmosphere is friendly, and there’s an English menu. Because of its popularity, dining time is limited to two hours per group.