Osaka: Streetfood

Kyoto's next-door neighbor, Osaka, is considered Japan's kitchen. Osaka offers a wide variety of street foods especially in Dotonbori the heart of Osaka's street food. Osaka does share some regional foods with Kyoto, but Osaka has some signature dishes associated with the city.

Osaka is famous for its takoyaki. Takoyaki is octopus put into a deep-fried batter and covered in sauces including mayo and a takoyaki sauce that tastes similar to Worchestershire sauce. It is usually eaten as a snack. Takoyaki is so popular in Osaka that little plushies are made of it.

Another street food is yakitori, which is chicken fried on a stick. There are a variety of types of yakitori including chicken skin, thigh, breast, and heart. The picture below shows a stick with the chicken thigh and a stick with the chicken skin. There are special restaurants throughout Osaka called yakiniku where the customer chooses various raw meats and cooks them over an indoor charcoal grill.

Dango is a popular Japanese dessert not served exclusively in Osaka but make for excellent street foods. Dango are little dough balls sometimes covered in caramel and put on sticks.

The Dotonbori contains more than just these foods. There are sushi restaurants, restaurants that serve various Japanese pasta dishes, and seafood restaurants. Osaka has extremely fresh seafood since it is close to the ocean. There were many other food stands containing unusual treats. I found a food stand that grilled crab legs over a grill. They also made crab soup and put it into a half of a hollowed-out crab's body.

Generally speaking, Osaka does not contain healthy foods, but healthy options can be found among more typical Japanese dishes. It seems that most of the street food is eaten as a treat given the small portion sizes.


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