Osaka Tours 👑🐷 Hidden Food and Hipster Neighbourhood Guide

Osaka is one of the largest cities in Japan. Although it is smaller than Tokyo, planning a trip to this vibrant metropolis can still be overwhelming. Since I've been to Osaka several times, I've seen most of the well-known tourist locations. So for this tour, I wanted to explore some of the funkier local neighborhoods that are off the beaten path. Osaka has plenty of unique spots to discover, and I'd like to introduce you to a few of them in this special edition of Tokyo Tours. Uh, I mean Osaka Tours. Pack your bags. We're taking the bullet train from Tokyo to Osaka. I hope you're ready to embark on this adventure with me and King Kogi. Dan's here too. Osaka is over 500 kilometers or 310 miles away from Tokyo, but the Shinkansen, aka the bullet train, makes for easy travel. From Tokyo Station, we arrive at Shin-Osaka Station in less than three hours. You can take the local train from Shin-Osaka Station to your next destination, or if you're burdened with luggage and heavy gear bags, head to the well-stocked taxi stand located directly outside the station exit. As you head towards downtown Osaka, you'll be rewarded with a super view of all the bridges and waterways weaving into the city as you cross over the Yodo River. Osaka has all the big city vibes. There are layers upon layers of twirling highways suspended over wide rivers and roadways. There are skyscrapers, large intersections, and they're all bustling with people, cars, and bikes. But Osaka also has a rich history and culture, with nature sprinkled throughout the city. First, I'm heading to a charming indie neighborhood with lots of history called Nakazaki-cho. But before I begin my backstreet wandering, I'm stopping at Yasumitsu Bauzu, a luxurious steamed meat bun shop. Located just a two-minute walk from the station, it only makes sense to grab a hot fresh Nikuman on the way. These Nikuman are made using local ingredients sourced from all over Japan, from the wheat used to make the bun to the pork, which is sourced from a special farm in Nagasaki. And the shop owner was super friendly. Yay, my favorite things! Now, if you're gonna come to this neighborhood to explore, make sure you swing by and grab yourself a delicious steamed bun. She asks you if you want it warmed up or not. I guess some people take them home and warm them at home, but I'm like, I want mine hot, girl. It was a five-minute wait. I am for sure gonna burn my face off, but it's gonna be totally worth it. Here I go. Oh my god. It's not hot. It's just right. Mmm. I never should have gotten this. Now it's gonna put all the konbini buns to shame. Mmm. Oh my gosh. There's like cabbage, mushroom, onions, maybe some menma in there. And this actual steamed bun itself definitely has been made with something whole wheat-y. It's bouncy, it's chewy, but it doesn't have that tough outer skin that happens at a konbini, obviously, because it's a konbini. They're still good, but this is like, whoa, now my mind has been blown. Mmm. Osaka, you're treating me right. This neighborhood has an incredibly unique look and charm, and it's not by accident. Historically, the houses in this area survived the air raids of World War II, and then in 2011, a local artist and business owner wanted to step away from the busy downtown Osaka vibe and bring new life to this area. He attracted local artists and they began restoring old homes, creating a plethora of local galleries, artsy shops, cafes, and vintage stores. They managed to breathe life back into the neighborhood with colorful murals and designs, while keeping the charm of the residential neighborhood intact. The new shops are quite naturally woven into the fabric of these old homes. This colorful corner shop was hosting a pop-up event, and it lured me in, and wow, what a wonderland. It was just tons of different indie artists all under one roof, selling adorable stickers. There were bags, jewelry, and artwork. They had stationery, they had clothing, and uh, hello, is this a bunny sushi shirt? Okay, well, just take my money. I give this area a solid 10 out of 10 for awesome backstreet exploration. Honestly, like most of these places I didn't even plan for, but isn't that what makes an adventure exciting and a vacation memorable? Now, I don't know about you, but when I see a tiny sign with a slice of pizza on it, I'm gonna follow it. Heading down another beautiful backstreet, a huge colorful mural pops into life, and then I see it, Hugh's Pizza. New York style pizza by the slice, and my heart does a tiny little flip. Hugh's Pizza is a beautifully designed modern shop, nestled inside a home built in the 1900s. The charm of the home blends beautifully with the new renovations, and speaking of beautiful, pizza. I order a slice of pepperoni, as well as the monthly special, Japanese pumpkin with spinach and marscapone cheese, and just wow. Actual pepperoni. I miss this kind of well-cooked, chewy cheese, not too much cheese, tons of pepperoni. Look how generous this is. These are the kind of slices that you have a hankering for, that you just really can't find in Japan. Finding it in Osaka, excellent. Not only is the pizza great, the owner and chef is a delight to speak with, and we ended up staying longer than expected. With a great vibe, good food, and good company, you just can't go wrong with Hugh's Pizza. We're heading to Fumi no Sato, an area that is likely on no one's tourism radar. While this video is about neighborhoods, vibes, and snacks, I've also made an Osaka food guide video, and it features a unique okonomiyaki restaurant, which is why I'm out in this local area. But I love a good local neighborhood. You just never know what you're going to stumble upon. Now, if you've seen any of my other Tokyo tours video, you'll know that I'm kind of obsessed with collecting stickers off the street. By collecting, I mean, I just take photos of them, and there's this one sticker in particular. That's right, everybody, say it all together. Crod. Crod, damn it. This sticker is all over Tokyo. So of course, I've got my eyes peeled looking for it. I have not been able to find it thus far. However, there are two Tokyo stickers that are here in Osaka. Nero, super super Tokyo, and this one here, Scotch. Pretty cool to find them all the way out here in Osaka. And there's a couple of ones that I'm keeping my eyes out for, like this one that says BB. I'm finding it all around Osaka. So I'm wondering, what is the crod of Osaka? This shopping arcade is brimming with neighborhood charm. The area shows what real day-to-day life is like for local residents. Oh, what's this? An onigiri shop, plus a vintage kimono shop. What an epic combo. You have highly rated modern bistros sitting on the same street as old-school cornerstone sushi shops. You have a few quirky izakayas, which I'm sure would be hella fun in the evening. This shopping arcade is a lovely blend of real-life wear and tear, mixed with modern murals and upkeep. You could spend the afternoon puttering around the shopping arcade, trying street food, and taking in the local feel at your own pace. If you come to Fuminosato for the okonomiyaki, don't forget to enjoy the stroll through this lovely area. I've been living and exploring Japan for a while now, and I'm thrilled to announce the launch of my very first digital travel guide store. I've spent years gathering pins to my favorite shops and areas, and now they'll be available for you to build your own adventures while visiting Japan. When you purchase one of my guides, it will include a personalized online map with my hand-picked recommendations. I've included directions, photos, voice notes, and every place listed has my personal travel notes. The info box contains a link to my travel guide store, and I've included a free guide that you can check out and use right away. I'll be adding more guides to the store throughout the year, including expansion packs to all the Tokyo Tours video series. I'd love to hear suggestions for the types of guides you'd find useful, so please let me know in the comments section. Now, back to Osaka Tours. Another day, another excellent find. Take exit 3 of Tanimachi Roku Chome Station, and bam! Welcome to Typhoon Hanten. Named to represent the theme of cooking from countries where typhoons pass, they're serving up Thai, Taiwanese, Okinawan, and Vietnamese food all in one funky spot. This place is painfully cool looking. The stickers! There are so many details scattered throughout the store to gaze upon. We came specifically today for the lunch special. I've got a lovely bowl of Vietnamese pho served with thin slices of beef, plenty of rice noodles, and a generous topping of cilantro. It came with one steamed dumpling, pickled acai, and a bowl of non-Japanese steamed rice. All this for under 900 yen. The noodles were perfectly cooked and the broth was nice and light. But the big winner here was Dan, who went for the Thai curry noodle. It was creamy, coconutty, curry magic. It had thick egg noodles to sop up the broth and crispy fried egg noodles on top for texture. I am just drooling watching the footage back. With lunch procured, we were ready for our next exploration, which was right around the corner. When I first moved to Japan, I kept seeing all these things called arcades in my neighborhood and I absolutely thought that it meant like a video game arcade, right? And I would like go to it and be like, where's the arcade at? And I could never find this arcade. But then I realized arcade is used slightly differently in Japan. It usually means a shopping arcade, a covered outdoor shopping area. This shopping street has a retro old-school feel to it, which a lot of Japanese people might describe as a Showa era type feel. Looking around, it feels like so many of these shops and restaurants are like frozen in time, but then you suddenly get the sprinkle of new modern shops as well. Oh, would you like some homemade fresh tofu? They have soft, firm, fried, stuffed mochi tofu pouches. Okadaya Hanten has been making tofu here for literally decades. But just around the corner, there's a modern steamed pork bun shop awaiting anyone who wants a quick bite. And just outside there, there's a kelp shop and a little resting spot with a tiny fountain filled with wee fish. The shopping street is super busy with people just getting on with their own lives. And one of the most unusual things for me as a Tokyo dweller is the amount of bikes allowed to just zoom around in shopping arcades all over Osaka. In Tokyo, you have to walk your bike or you have to just leave it elsewhere completely when entering a shopping arcade. There are plenty of local izakayas and restaurants on Karahori shopping street. And now that I've introduced you to this excellent area, I will leave you to explore and discover on your own. As for me, I'm looking for a bar to rest my weary feet. Rally's transports you from retro Osaka to a funky little speakeasy in America. Run by a husband-wife duo, they have a changing menu which focuses on American classics made from scratch. When I saw a crock pot of homemade chili, I immediately ordered the loaded chili cheese fries. Some of you are going to laugh at this, but it was served with real import sour cream, which is like gold to us foreigners living in Japan. Gold! I saw a Bloody Mary on the menu and I was compelled to order it. It was made with the bartender's homemade mix. Plus, he loves hot sauce and he has a large collection, some of which are homemade. They have six beers on tap, which are always changing, and they're from local Japanese craft breweries that I love. After a long day of reading, speaking, and exploring in Japanese, it can be a vacation in itself to just kick back and have a good old chinwag in English. Tokyo versus Osaka. Observations. I have never seen single seating chairs at a subway station anywhere in Tokyo. I kind of feel like I'm back in school or like on a plane. The trains look nearly identical. A few of them had longer seats, but nothing to write home about. However, one big difference is where you stand or walk on the escalators. In Tokyo, we stand on the left side. No, no, no. In Osaka, you stand on the right and pass on the left. This subtle difference is quite funny to observe at crowded bullet train stations as chaos occurs on the escalators. Osaka is just gorgeous at night. The rivers are lit up and the reflections create a rippling neon mirror effect. And there is no better place to see this than Dotonbori. Yes, this is a major tourist spot, not some deep local find. It's bustling with all the energy and lights of an amusement park and very honestly, it's not my favorite spot in Osaka, but if you haven't seen it, it's absolutely worth checking it out. But I would recommend going at night time. Even on a rainy night, it looks extra Blade Runner-y. I love the comically large food signs, something very unique to Osaka. The giant moving snow crab is an iconic image of the area. But there are also massive takoyaki balls, kushikatsu, and um, and this guy. There are soft glowing paper lanterns, flashy LED lights, and huge neon signs. It pretty much feels like being on a living movie set and the theme is crazy neon Japan. Just be aware that this area tends to be super crowded. It's quite overloaded with lots of different sounds and lights and there tend to be giant lineups for food. I have another video, the Osaka food guide, and I compare Dotonbori takoyaki to a unique takoyaki shop in a local less busy neighborhood. If you're planning to eat here, my advice is to walk just a bit further down Dotonbori and you'll find plenty of shops with shorter lines as well as intriguing side streets leading to more local izakayas. Also, I- What is this graffiti? No, no, masterful artwork up upon this wall. Well, bend over bump art has blessed me with luck because waiting for me at the end of Dotonbori shopping arcade was a roasted sweet potato mobile. These trucks are only around in the autumn and winter, so if you happen to find one, it's your lucky day. For 500 yen, I got a massive potato slow roasted the traditional way in the back of a tiny pimped out potato truck. Yes, the traditional way. Osaka, thank you for your excellent adventures and super cool neighborhoods. I hope this guide has encouraged you to visit some of the places off the beaten path and I hope you can carve out your own experiences and adventures. And oh, what's this? Did you really think I went to Osaka and didn't eat a ton of delicious food? Of course I did! We put together an Osaka food guide showcasing places and foods unique to Osaka and introducing some deep find local locations. Enjoy!