Osaka
Arriving to the energy of Osaka was a stark difference from Kyoto.
After an evening walk through Dotonbori, we found ourselves perched on a bridge, snacking on takoyaki (fried octopus dough balls) paid for through a vending machine. Watching the Glico man in the distance, we continued our search to a tucked away bar.
I used it as a jumping off point for a solo trip to Naoshima (the “art island”) and returned amidst chaos due to an incoming typhoon that ended up delaying some of our plans.
Our time in Osaka was brief, but we explored fun neighborhoods, ate delicious soba, played VR Pacman and took hilarious photos in a booth.
STAY
Hotel Cinnamon - A basic, budget hotel that has a decent design. Small rooms, but good location.
COFFEE
Lilo Coffee Roasters - Great, small coffee shop
Brooklyn Roasting Company Namba - Large coffee shop with lots of seating. Average coffee and food, but a good spot to park it and hang out with wifi if you need some hang space.
Bird Coffee
Wad
Mill Pour Coffee
FOOD
Naniwa Okina - Michellan star soba noodle spot that’s delicious! Take their recommendation.
Biotop - Rooftop cafe in a fun neighborhood. Part of a cute retail space.
Shabuwara - Delicious shabu shabu--we went twice!
DRINKS
Bar Shiki - Passionate bartender willing to play around and try some fun drinks.
Bible Club - Underground bar with a prohibition theme. Hard to find but worth a visit.
Bar Nayuta - Favorite bar in Osaka. Minimal seating and difficult to find but it’s a great hip spot making customized drinks. Very casual feeling compared to some other more “proper” bars.
ACTIVITIES
VR Zone - This was a super fun experience--way more fun than I expected! We played VR Pacman and had a blast! We also visited the photobooth floor and took ridiculous photos where we could alter our makeup and eye size. Very Japanese...ha!
Orange Street - Cool shopping area to walk around.
Kuromon Market - Crazy food market filled with interesting seafood and goods.
Dotonbori - A busy, Vegas-y part of the city on the river. Fun energy and lots of lights.
SHOP
Truck Furniture
TRAVEL
The entire city is easily traversed by foot, train, or bus.
There are no app-enabled bikes or scooters so don’t count on them.
Taxis and Ubers are available but definitely run more expensive.
Bold - Highly Recommend
Bold Italics - Haven’t personally experienced but comes highly recommended and looks amazing.
Italics - Haven’t personally experienced but looks promising