4

EAT

Don’t

miss

Getting

there

SEE STAY

PHOTOGRAPHY GETTY IMAGES (DŌTONBORI AND KANIDOURAKU DŌTONBORI-HONTEN) & ALAMY (BUNRAKU)

Eat your way through

Kuromon Ichiba, one

of Japan’s largest

food markets, while

admiring the

gleaming seafood

and impeccably fresh

produce from more

than 150 vendors. At

the modest Takoyaki

Wanaka stall, a line

forms every morning

forwhataresomeof

thecity’sbestoctopus

balls. Other highlights

are a knife shop that’s

beenopensince1775,

and a tea house dating

back to 1937.2 Chome

4-1 Nipponbashi

Osaka

Japan’s second city stays true to its merchant roots with lively

malls and superb street food, writesAMELIA LESTER.

Kanidouraku Dōtonbori-Honten

This popular chain’s original

location overlooks the neon

wonderland of Dōtonbori (left)

• just follow the giant red crab
  (above). Inside, on the first of
  the restaurant’s four floors, the
  legion of live crabs hanging
  out in a tank are in capable
  hands; the kitchen turns out
  all things crab with remarkable
  consistency, from croquettes
  to kani nabe, a hearty hot pot.
  1 Chome-6-18 Dōtonbori

Again

Trust an unpretentious

Osakan to take deep-frying

tothenextlevel.Runbya

former sommelier, Again is

a Michelin-starred shoebox

devoted to the art of kushiage:

battered meat and vegetables

on a stick. The seasonal

omakase is almost impossibly

light, even if the fried-egg-and-

hamburger-curry skewer sounds

anything but.3F, Umebachi

Bldg, 1-5-7 Sonezakishinchi

Fujiya1935

What began as a noodle joint in

1935 is now among the World’s

50 Best restaurants. And it's

almost certainly the world’s

finest Japanese-Spanish eatery.

Tetsuya Fujiwara is the fourth

generation of his family in the

kitchen, though he trained

in Barcelona. Now he creates

imaginative, elegant fare

such as wasabi pasta and

lily root and black trule flan.

2-4-14 Yariyamachi Chuo-ku●

Conrad OsakaThis new luxury hotel

is located in the heart of the commercial

districtonthe33rdto40thfloorsofa

shiny skyscraper. All 164 rooms have

floor-to-ceiling windows with panoramic

views and signature white circular

bathtubs. Whimsical works by Japanese

artists including Kohei Nawa feature

throughout.3 Chome-2-4 Nakanoshima,

conradhotels3.hilton.com

BunrakuFoundedinOsakaintheearly

17th century, the traditional Japanese

theatreofbunrakustarspuppetssobig

they’re controlled by three puppeteers.

Stories of heroes and demons are

accompanied by a chanter and a musician

playing the shamisen, a three-stringed

instrument. The National Bunraku Theatre

ofers English audio guides.1 Chome

12-10 Nipponbashi, ntj.jac.go.jp/english

A walking tour with Inside Osaka reveals hidden hotspots in the

“nation’s kitchen”, as Japan’s rice-trade hub is known, as well as the

comedy clubs and theatres for which Osaka is renowned.insideosaka.net

Qantas flies

to Osaka from

Sydney direct.

Airlines including

Japan Airlines,

ANA and Jetstar

fly from select

Australian cities

via Tokyo.

Dōtonbori

GOURMET TRAVELLER 171

City hitlist