Best Japanese Food in Osaka!! 🇯🇵 300 Year Old Eel Restaurant! _ Osaka, Japan

Hey everyone, good morning. It's Mark Wiens, welcome to Osaka, which is one of the Japanese food capitals. And today I'll be taking you to eat at four restaurants that serve some of the best Japanese food in the city. We'll discover why people wait in line to try one of Osaka's most coveted bowls of dipping ramen. Oh man, oh the texture of those noodles is phenomenal. And taste a life-changing grilled eel restaurant that's been run by the same family for over 300 years. Oh that first bite, it will make you gasp in deliciousness. But first, we're beginning with a Japanese breakfast of champions. It doesn't get fresher than this. So welcome to Osaka's Kizu Market. This is a market with over 300 years of history. It's a neighborhood market where people come to buy all sorts of things, and food included. And there's a couple of really legendary, famous restaurants here. Okay, and this is the spot. Here's what we're looking for. There's two extremely famous places right next to each other. And I specifically wanted to come to the one with the blue lanterns and the blue curtain outside. Oh we're next in line, so I think it's just gonna be about a 15 minute wait. Excellent. We got the menu, as we're standing in line, and I think he's gonna come around, the uncle will come around and get our order before we go inside, so that will speed up the process. But very popular places, and such a cool place. I mean, it's so historical because we're on the outskirts of a 300 year old market, and I am very excited. Hello. Okay. I want the deluxe kaizen don. Okay Mike, okay we're in. Over here? Here or over here? Nice, we're in, and they have about three tables. But we got the bar counter seating, which is the best place to eat in Japan. Yes, excellent, and it just depends. Oh, and it's immediately here. Okay, deluxe one? Oh, arigato gozaimasu. Wow, and it just comes immediately. It's already prepared because you order outside, that's how they keep the process moving fast, but it comes literally sat down in seconds. Here it is, it's arrived. We're ready for breakfast. Okay, oh thank you. Wow, wow, arigato gozaimasu. Oh, it's all here. It's blooming. Okay, let's grab chopsticks. This is beautiful. It's like a blooming, it's like a flower when it's at full bloom, except all varieties of fish and seafood. There must be over a dozen different seafoods on this bowl, and it is, I believe it's called a kaizendan, which is a rice bowl with sashimi, assorted sashimi of the day, whatever's fresh for the day. Everything from crab to a shrimp on top to another shrimp to a variety of fish. There's eel on there, there's mackerel, I see salmon, probably some sea bream, and then right in the center are two of the highlight pieces of fish, the tuna. Both the akami, which is the red meat, and the otoro, which is the fatty tuna. And then a shrimp on top. And there's wasabi here. Let's get a little bit of wasabi, maybe put it onto the fish, and then take the fish, dip it in the soy sauce, soy sauce below. That is thickly cut and so fresh. Oh wow, oh yeah, that's good. Okay, next I'll go for some of the uni, sea urchin, as well as some of the salmon roe on the rice, that's a perfect vessel. Oh, and I think the rice might be slightly vinegared. Sometimes for a kaisendon, the rice is just straight rice, or it can be sushi rice, kind of depending on the chef's choice. I think it's slightly vinegared, but not overly vinegared. And it does have that incredible sticky texture to it as well, oh, but there's few things that can be better than uni on top of rice when it just melts into the rice. It's one of the great things of life. Okay, let's try the next fish. Let's move on to the salmon. Try the salmon. Wasabi, might be a, might have over wasabi'd, but I'm okay with that. A dip in the soy sauce. Oh yeah, oh, I over wasabi'd, and I love it. Oh man, that's fresh too. All that salmon just melts in your mouth. Moving on to the next piece of fish. I think this might be a type of tuna, just slightly seared. That's just straight butter. That melts in your mouth. And then you've got that little smokiness from the edge. And now let's try the, move into the miso soup. That's a perfect combination. The harmony, that's your beverage. The miso soup just goes down, kind of coats your mouth in that amazing, mellow, fermented soybean flavor. Let's try the next one, which I think is, I'm not sure if that's seabream, possibly seabream. Oh, that's incredible. Such a clean taste. Slightly muscular, not quite as melt in your mouth as the tuna, but has a beautiful, crisp flavor to it. I think this might actually be not fish at all, but it looks like beef. It looks like a slice of wagyu. It is it? Totally looks like beef. I could be wrong, who knows? I'm pretty sure that's beef, and really good beef. Oh yeah, that's stunning. Oh, that's so tasty. I love the amount of wasabi. It gave us a whole blob of wasabi, and I'm a massive wasabi lover. Especially like to mix that into the rice, and then I'll add on a little bit of soy sauce to the rice. Oh, wasabi up the nose. I love how generous they were with the wasabi. That's a huge bonus. I love that burn when it makes you tear a little bit. That just enhances the flavor and the experience. And over here, this looks like some marinated tuna, I think. Oh, that's incredible. Oh, it is marinated. Oh, that tastes exactly like poke. Oh, that soy sauce, sesame oil. That's why I love it so much, too. Tastes like poke. That's actually where I grew up loving raw fish, from my mom who was from Hawaii, and eating poke whenever we'd go back to Hawaii. That was my initial reason why I love raw fish so much. Oh, and that just brings back so many flavors, so many good memories. With hot rice, the fish just kind of melting in. Oh, yeah. Oh, that's good. Yeah, that's so good. Moving into the prized possessions of this bowl. Let's start with the akami. This is the red meat tuna. Look at that. Such a long slice. Pure happiness. Oh, wow. That melt. Yeah, we've got the raw shrimp next. I think you gotta kind of grab it by the head like this, and then bite it in the center. Oh, it's sweet and nutty. Make sure you get everything out of the head. That was so good. Down to the last bite. Saved the best bite for last. This is the otoro, the fatty tuna. Just a little bit of soy sauce, but I'm not even gonna overdo it on the saltiness. I just wanna taste the pureness. Last bite of an incredible kaizendan. Oh. Wow, yes. There's just nothing like it. Just letting it melt on your tongue in the oils of the fat of the tuna, just liquefying. Oh, that was good. Oh, let's see. Oh, he's the master now. Oh, excellent. And they're friendly as well. Yes. Emerging back. Oh, very, and much happier now than before. Oh, that was extremely satisfying. Everything was fresh, and I loved the selection and the variety as well. Delicious. And also, they were really friendly. What a way to start your morning for breakfast when you're in Osaka. Let's move on to the next place. Okay, here we are. Should be just up ahead. Ooh, it's kinda windy over here, but on my way to go eat what is one of the highest rated places for ramen in Osaka. It's a real local favorite. I'm extremely excited. I see it. That's the spot. There's almost always a line, and yes, there's definitely a line today. Okay, definitely. They have a whole cone line. I have no choice. Really, really looking forward to eating this. So gonna wait in line. Not sure how long it'll take, and it is a bright, summer, sunshiny day. Good thing I have a hat. Ooh yeah, that sun is pretty intense. This is definitely part of the experience in Japan, eating is waiting in line to increase your anticipation for the food. You can definitely tell this is a place where real ramen hardcore enthusiasts and affectionados come. So yeah, as you're standing in line, they come around with a menu. So you can order pre-order, chatting with some of the guys in the line. They're from other parts of Japan as well. It's their first time here, but they're very excited to eat here as well. Oh man, I have a huge dilemma though. There's the black pork noodles, which is famous, and also the skim and the dipping noodles, both of which are extremely famous. But I don't know if I have enough stomach space for both, since we have a lot more food still. And I've already eaten quite a lot of food today, so I think, oh man, help me decide which one should I go for. We're making progress on the line. I've graduated. There's four stools at the front. When you get off the line, then you get to the four stools. That's just before you get to enter the door. So we're getting close. So I'm inside the restaurant. This is the last waiting stop right at the doorway before you get a table. Okay, we are in. And I've got the bar counter seating, though it's a little high to see the chefs, but that's okay. And actually, the wait didn't take that long. It was only like a 30 minute wait, exactly 30 minutes. Thank you, arigato gozaimasu. Oh, nice. Okay, thank you very much. Thank you very much. Amazing. So space is a little bit tight in here, but I'll do my best. And what I got is the skemen, which is the dry noodles, which is served cold. That is one of the most beautiful noodle bundles I've ever seen, along with the broth. But the extra addition that they said you should add is the broth with the pork feet in it. And that's one of the specials. Okay, so this looks incredible. And you can feel the coolness of the bowl. I think the noodles are boiled and then probably washed or rinsed in cold water. So you take a few of the noodles, probably too many, just a few of the noodles, because you wanna be able to slurp it up in the broth. Take a few of the noodles. And then we go into that hot broth. That's like a, it's not just a dipping sauce. That's an entire bowl of soup and broth and the entire pig leg in there, pork leg. Now we can slurp it. Oh man. Oh, the texture of those noodles is phenomenal. And that rich, fatty, collagen-heavy broth just sticks to the noodles. Oh man. One I didn't even notice, below that broth, there's some green onions and leeks, I believe. And then you have some pieces of fish cake. And then you have some pieces of the chashu below there as well. Oh, but man, I'm just loving those noodles. Those noodles are incredible. The texture, they're slightly gooey, hardy. And I think even one of the things that even people are aware of is what flour, what wheat flour they use and where they're from, each ramen shop. And then down below the bowl, you have the fatty pieces of the pork leg. And then you have big pieces of chashu down here as well. Wow. Oh, that melts in your mouth. Oh man, that is unbelievable. Oh. Oh, that's incredible. I've learned that the trick is to not take too much at a time. Just enough. And that way you can really enjoy every noodle strand as well as slurp it up and inhale all the flavors. I think what's also unique about this bowl is it's the noodles and the soup rather than a dipping sauce. And the soup is a dipping sauce. The bamboo shoots, that is such a rich broth. So, so full of collagen and skin and flavor. And it's definitely salty, but that's what makes it so good. Oh, the chashu is insane. And one of the things on the table for condiment is just a bit of pepper. But be sure to only add any seasoning once you've eaten at least about a half of the bowl. Look at this pork leg just melting. I think I'm getting my year's supply of collagen in this one bowl. You can also taste some of that soup, that broth. Salty, but so flavorful. Like unbelievable flavor. All that pork fat just melting into the broth. Yeah, this is phenomenal. That's a flavor overdose. Wow, that was good. Okay, so step outside. Oh man, that was good. Look at the line now. That's highly recommended. No wonder it's one of the best rated ramen shops in Osaka. And then one thing also to quickly mention is that it's a premium bowl of ramen. And so even the most affordable versions are maybe more expensive than other places. And then I also had the additional pork leg add-on or pork foot add-on. And so my bowl came to, or my portion came to 2,500 yen, which is definitely a premium bowl, but the quality was outstanding. Next up on this Japanese food tour in Osaka, we're going to a restaurant that's been open for over 300 years. And what I've been reading, it's still operated by the same family for 15 generations. Talk about immense history. And they also happen to serve what is one of my favorite all-time Japanese meals. Oh, I can actually smell it in the air. That's the spot right up there. Konnichiwa. Oh, okay, okay, we go in the elevator. Excellent, so you come in the elevator up to the fourth floor. Okay, nice. Okay, so we remove our shoes. Poor kids. Our shoes. Arigatou gozaimasu. Oh, nice. Arigatou gozaimasu. Okay, here we are. We're entering. Oh, nice, we got seated immediately. And they're so friendly as well already. They're so friendly, their service. And it's so, I'm gonna keep my voice very low for this meal because it's a small restaurant. Arigatou gozaimasu. And so here are some of the rules. One dish per person. Please put phone on silent. Please do not come to our restaurant. Oh, please wearing perfume. No perfume, because that can alter the aroma of the food. So it's all floor seating on the tatami mats, which is one of the best ways to eat in Japan. Let's take a look at the menu. So yes, we're here to eat unagi, which is Japanese-style eel. And it really is, when I come to Japan, it's a meal I seek out. It's such a delicate and nowhere prepares it like Japan. Okay, gonna start with green tea. Oh, it's cold green tea. Oh, nice. So the eel has arrived, and there's two famous dishes that you can order here. There's more things on the menu, too, but the osaka mamushi, which comes in the classic rectangular-shaped lacquer box, but then also what's called the ohitsu mamushi. And I could not decide between the two, and so Ying and I decided to get both of them. So get ready for the reveal in the square wooden box. And this is the osaka mamushi. This is one of their specialties here, and it's cooked Kansai Japanese-style. Open it up. Oh, that's so beautiful. It's one of the best gift openings you can have in Japan. And let's also open up the one in the rounded lacquer box. That's beautiful, the way they layer on the eel. And this one is gonna be eaten in a totally different style. And from what I was reading, they cook the eel osaka or Kansai-style, which oftentimes eel in Japan, or sometimes eel in Japan is first steamed and then grilled, but their style is that there's no steaming. It's just straight grilled, so often giving it a crispier texture on the outside as opposed to other versions. And let's first try, just go straight into the rectangular box. This one is the osaka mamushi. You've got generous grilled eel on top with rice on the bottom. And there should be also eel layered into the rice as well, which is the signature as well. Let's get, the best thing to do is get a little bit of eel and rice all in one bite. And lift up all of that glaze, all of that sauce has just penetrated into the rice. Oh, wow. Oh, that first bite, it will make you gasp in deliciousness. That eel melts in your mouth. The fattiness, but then the outside glitters where that glaze is, where it's been grilled, is crispy and kind of has this glazy crust, a crust to it, a grilled crust, all with a soft rice. And the eel oils seeping into the rice. Oh, man, that is sensational. Oh, look at, and there is tons of eel at the bottom there. I got a whole piece of eel from the rice. And that has like kind of two different textures. The one that's crispy on the top and the one that's really soft in the center, into the rice. Yes, that is impressively tasty. Okay, let's try the next version. For the oitsu mamushi, there's three ways to eat it. For the first, and they give you a nice directions written in English, which is really nice of them. The first serving, you gotta eat it as is. It says to put it in the bowl. So you take out about a third of it and you put it into your bowl and eat it as is. Put it into your bowl. Okay, I think that's pretty good. Make sure you get some rice. I think it's about the same as last one. Make sure you get rice and eel all in one bite. That is stunning. I'm not sure if the, hard to tell if it's a little bit different. It may have some, from what I was reading, it may have some dashi stock within the recipe as well. Oh, that's amazing. Okay, and then let's try the next version. For the next style, you put wasabi, a little bit of wasabi, and some of the leek. A little bit of leek. You add a little bit of seaweed on top. So that's the next. Oh, with that wasabi. And the wasabi is definitely fresh wasabi, so it's not overly pungent. Has a sweet, mellow bite to it without being overpowering over the eel. Oh, that's incredible. Okay, and then the third version is with the wasabi and leek already in your bowl, and then you add in some of the soup to your bowl. I think that's the soup at least. Okay, oh, I think it's both. Okay, and now you can eat it. This is the third method. So this method you can kinda probably drink and eat at the same time. Oh, that's good too. I think that is the dashi stock, which is very light, umami-filled, and that makes it almost like an eel and rice porridge with all those flavors coming together. It is really cool because you have three different methods of eating it. You know, I've never had unagi, Japanese eel, this way before. Oh, okay, you cannot go wrong with both, both versions here. I do really love how it's grilled and crispy on the edges, caramelized and crispy. It's so gooey and melt in your mouth on the inside. And that sauce is spectacular. Not too sweet. Has this incredible glaze factor to it, and just melts into the eel. Okay, then we gotta try the soup, which is with eel liver. Open that up immediately, and you smell the smokiness as well as yuzu. I think yuzu citrus in there. Really light, really clean. And yeah, the flavor of the citrus in there, maybe this is the eel liver. Oh, that texture, it melts in your mouth, and you do have a little bit of a fishy taste to it, which is excellent. And then just a little plate of pickles, kind of a palate cleanser with cabbage and cucumbers and a little bit of kelp as well. Very light and delicate, but just kind of refreshes your mouth from the richness of the eel. You don't even want one grain of rice to go to waste. Make sure you get every single, every single grain of rice out. You wanna clean it. It's gone way too soon. It just goes down because it just melts in your mouth, it goes down so easily. Then you get your receipt, and then you go to pay downstairs on the first floor. Thank you very much. Okay, thank you. Arigato gozaimasu. Thank you. Arigato gozaimasu. Thank you. Thank you very much. Any restaurant that's lasted for 300 years, 15 generations, you can almost guarantee will be an incredible experience. And this was nothing short of phenomenal. And on top of one of the, right up there with some of the best eel unagi meals I've had in Japan, the service and the friendliness is on the next level here. Really highly recommended. Extreme quality. Pricing, I mean, it's not cheap, but the value for what you get, I think is totally worth it for a very special meal. Amazing food in Osaka. For our next meal on this Osaka food tour, we're going to a very, very famous restaurant serving one of the most popular foods, a dish that Osaka is known for. And I specifically wanted to go to this restaurant. I know it might be a little bit touristy, but it is extremely famous. It's legendary. They've been serving this same dish since 1965, and they said four generations. Okay, here we are. Yes, I think that is definitely the line. As you're standing here, you can enjoy the aromas of the okonomiyaki and start to think about it. And then also you got the menu, which they present in many different languages because of the international popularity. But they're most famous for okonomiyaki. But you also got, we have to try the yakisoba as well. So from the end of the line, about a 60 minute wait. I love how they say no suitcases allowed. One set B. Okay, okay. Set B, mixed yakisoba. Mixed yakisoba. These two toppings. Okay. Oh yeah, bonito and green seaweed. Okay, thank you. Oh, we're moving up again. And as you're on the steps, they come and take your order pre-order. So that's great. That might save some time. Once we get inside, we'll probably sit down and might be ready to start eating. That's how they probably keep the line moving as fast as possible. We made it to the front door, at least the first front door. All the awards they've received. International, global. Okay, thank you. Oh, we are in. Can you follow me? Okay. And we are in. Oh, immediately this poof of okonomiyaki aroma and steam hits you as you enter. Oh, it's not a very good place. Okay. Okay, thank you. Okay, no problem. Oh, you gotta put the bag inside here. They have a cubby hole for you to put your bag. It really was about a 45 minute to an hour wait. We are in. But that delicious aroma of okonomiyaki just hits your, the griddle fried batter just hits your nose immediately. And from what I was reading, this restaurant, I specifically want to come to Ajinoya because it dates back to 1965. And now the fourth generation, it's still family run. But this place is very popular with both Japanese and also lots of tourists as well. And he is immediately. Is it okay to video? Thank you, thank you. Okay, yes. Okay, immediately it comes. Okay. I'll say some pieces of pork go down first. And now this is the batter. What's unique about the batter here? Oh, okay. Okay. Octopus, shrimp, squid. And minced meat. Oh, he really whips that up. And you can see all the cabbage in the batter. One of the things I was reading is that they use a lot of cabbage in their batter. So it has a light, fluffy texture to it. Oh, that goes down. Where are you from? Thailand. Thailand? First time? First time, right? Oh, and that goes down. He really whips that up in the bowl. As I was reading from the menu, it's gonna take about 15 minutes to cook the okonomiyaki all the way through. So that's just slowly bubbling and sizzling away on the hot griddle right in front of you. And all tables have their own hot griddle. And I think for sure, part of the fun of the okonomiyaki experience is watching them cook it right before you. Similar to a hot pot experience where you see it all being prepared right before you. You can kinda cook it yourself. And that just enhances the taste buds and the excitement of eating before you eat. Oh, it's time for the flip. Oh, nice flip, nice flip. So she came around and flipped it. And that's strategic. They put those slices of bacon-looking pork at the bottom so that they sizzle. And then when you flip it over, they're on the top. And that batter looks very eggy as well. Kind of looks almost like an omelet. Plus the batter, it's so much more than just a pancake. Cheers. So we're still waiting. They're still slowly simmering and cooking. And actually, they still have a lot more process and a lot more sauces and things, toppings that they're gonna add to them. We'll have to wait to find out, to see what they do. One more. Here she comes with all the sauces. Everything will be okay? Okay, yes, very good, thank you. Okay, so this is the big next step. Ooh, I think that's mayonnaise. Is it mayonnaise? So mayonnaise goes on first. A little bit of mustard, it looks like. And this is the famous okonomiyaki sauce, which I think includes dates and maybe raisins. Dark sauce. And then finish it with bonito flakes, which is like a dried fish, tuna flakes. And then a sprinkle of seaweed. Okay, thank you. Oh, and that aroma of the sauce hitting the hot griddle. Smells incredible. That's sweet. You can smell the sweet, sour aromas coming out of that sauce. Maybe I can cut it? Is it okay? So she puts all the toppings on, and I love those bonito flakes. They just kind of wave as they have that heat. And you can kind of cut it, give you your own personal trowel to cut it. And you can kind of cut it, I guess you can cut it in different shapes, or just kind of cut it like the pizza style where you have triangular shapes. Let's try it out. And look at that cross section. Yeah, you can see how there's so much cabbage just folded into that batter and that egg. All the sauce just kind of melts into the entire structure. Oh, fully loaded. All of the proteins are nestled within, and all that sauce, the mayonnaise, okonomiyaki sauce, is just completely kind of melted and caramelized, and you can see how sticky it is on the top. First bite, the legendary okonomiyaki. Very hot. Oh, I think this one is better than most that I've tried. Because of the way the cabbage, there's so much cabbage within that batter, making it light and fluffy, and it still has kind of that crisp texture of the cabbage. So it feels quite light rather than batter-heavy and floury. It's really light and fluffy. And then you've got the sweet and sour taste of the sauce, the creaminess of the mayonnaise, the smoky flavor of the bacon, and the minced meat in there. And every now and then, depending on what ingredients or toppings you get, you'll get little shrimp or little pieces of octopus or squid. Here comes the yakisoba served on this shovel pan. Oh, it just scoots it over. Yakisoba, the fried noodles with all the, oh, so all the seasonings are in there already, as well as an egg. Bonito flakes on top. There's meat below there as well. I think the final thing of our set is the negi, is it called negiyaki? It's like a green onion pancake. That's a totally different structure. Oh, it definitely looks more eggy. Almost looks like an omelet filled with green onions and meat in there, or proteins inside of there as well. I can't even remember which protein it is. For the yakisoba, Micah's gonna mix it up. Come on, man. Mix it with the egg too. All those noodles so that it kind of, all the yolk broke, yes. And there's lots of cabbage in there. Oh yeah, be careful of your hands. Okay, you can see the pork in there. You can see pieces of octopus as well. Oh, there's lots of cabbage at the bottom as well. Some meat, the tangly noodles, and the egg. I wanna get a shot of like this. Yeah, thanks, man. Okay, Micah, noodles? Yakisoba, Micah? All right, let's try some of the yakisoba. And you gotta get, I think so, so I guess to speed up the process, they kind of precook the yakisoba and you just kind of mix it on the hot plate on your own. Oh yeah, you really taste the flavor of the okonomiyaki sauce. That sweet and sour sauce. That's good. I think for me, definitely one of the highlights of okonomiyaki yakisoba is seeing it being cooked right before you, maybe even more than the taste. That being said, for sure, it's one of the best okonomiyakis I've had. Gotta try one piece of that green onion pancake. It's a totally different structure and complex. It's more like a two-faced omelet. Is that, oh, there's, maybe there's beef in the center as well and two different sauces that you can eat it with. Let's try this sauce first. Oh, oh, I like that one. The freshness of the green onions. I think it's beef inside of there, too. Oh yeah, totally different structure and style. Oh, very tasty. Yeah, I love those green onions. And it's kind of like two different sides being held, two different sides of an omelet. I think the top is like an omelet. The center is filled with green onions and meat and then the bottom is more of a batter. Oh, this one, the green onion is delicious. Osaka really is a Japanese food paradise. And all the places we went to, we went to some historical restaurants, some legendary places, also some places just with some really good food. I hope this gives you a few ideas of what to eat when you're in Osaka. But again, it's just scratching the surface. There's so many more places to eat throughout this amazing, food-loving city. I'll have everywhere listed in the description box below and I wanna say a big thank you for watching this video. Please remember to give it a thumbs up if you enjoyed it. Leave a comment below, I'd love to hear from you. And if you're not already subscribed, make sure you subscribe for lots more food and travel videos. Good night from Osaka. I will see you on the next video.