16 cuisines represented in our Osaka guide. Click through to the entry to see editor picks, what to order and how to book. Want a wider lens? All cuisines in this country or global cuisines index.
16 cuisines, most places first
Japanese31 restaurantsThis is the heart of how Osaka eats, the kitchen of Japan, with kushikatsu, okonomiyaki and takoyaki sitting alongside refined kaiseki.
Ramen11 restaurantsRamen in Osaka favours a lighter, soy-forward Kansai bowl over the heavy tonkotsu of the south, though both are easy to find.
Cocktail bar9 restaurantsOsaka drinks late, and its bar culture runs from precise cocktail rooms to the lantern-lit alleys off Dotonbori.
Cafe8 restaurantsOsaka reads its coffee through the kissaten tradition and a newer roaster wave, and the two now share the same streets.
Street food8 restaurantsStreet food is Osaka's defining export, the city earning its kuidaore name on takoyaki, kushikatsu and crab eaten standing up.
Japanese izakaya7 restaurantsThe izakaya is where Osaka's eat-yourself-broke spirit lives, all small plates, cheap pours and shoulder-to-shoulder counters.
Bakery6 restaurantsOsaka took to the European bakery early, and the city now treats the boulangerie as an everyday fixture rather than an occasion.
Brewery6 restaurants
Brunch6 restaurantsBrunch in Osaka is a riverside habit as much as a menu, built around the canals and converted warehouses of the centre.
French fine dining6 restaurantsOsaka punches above its size in French fine dining, with several of Japan's most ambitious kitchens clustered near the Kitashinchi dining district.
Japanese sushi5 restaurantsOsaka's sushi tradition runs to pressed and box-style as much as the Tokyo-school nigiri counter, and the city now does both well.
Wine bar5 restaurantsOsaka's wine bars lean intimate and counter-led, often doubling as bottle shops or sitting above a kitchen.
Chinese2 restaurantsChinese cooking in Osaka spans cheap counter gyoza to refined modern tables, and the high end has grown around the Kita restaurant district.
Indian2 restaurantsIndian cooking has a quieter footing in Osaka than the city's home-grown street food, surfacing mostly in small set-meal kitchens.
Korean BBQ1 restaurantOsaka has the largest Korean community in Japan, centred on Tsuruhashi, and its yakiniku culture grew straight out of that neighbourhood.
Vegan1 restaurantPlant-based eating is still a niche in meat-and-griddle Osaka, but a small handful of dedicated kitchens have carved out a following.
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