MILK DO dore iku? KITTE大阪店 (Osaka, JAPAN) ★★★★☆

After enjoying a very nice afternoon tea at Ritz Carlton Osaka, it was time to go back to shopping. Since our dinner tonight will be at KITTE Osaka, we decided to simply hang around the upscale mall for the extra hour before dinner.

Just when mom and I were patrolling the basement level, he ran into this newly opened doughnut shop from Sapporo called MILK DO dore iku? But not a single soul? Finally, I realized that they were still preparing their doughnuts and they won't be ready for another 45 minutes. Time to get behind the lineup.

There were two reasons why MILK DO dore iku?'s doughnuts were so unique. First, the silky smooth custard cream was exclusively crafted using Hokkaido milk, and secondly, the doughnut shells were infused with a blend of lemon (also from Hokkaido) in the flour giving it a very special and unique flavor.

We have nine flavors to choose from.

From left to right: Vanilla custard cream for little nugget, pistachio for Jelloman and Earl Grey for myself.



I like the texture of this doughnut pastry, it was soft, wobbly and a bit chewy reminiscent of the one from I'm Donut?.

The custard cream was slightly disappointing though. Yes, it was very milky but was missing the rich essence of Earl Grey tea flavors.

Food Rating: 6.6/10

Price: ￥￥￥

Address: B1F, KITTE Osaka, 3-2-2 Umeda, Kita Ward, Osaka 530-0001, Japan

Closest Metro Station: Umeda 

Tel: +81 (0)6 4400-4280

Website: www.instagram.com/milkdodoreiku?igsh=Y2Z6M241aGhyaG4w

Opening Hours: 10:00am - 8:00pm daily 

The Lobby Lounge at The Ritz Carlton Osaka (Osaka, JAPAN) ★★★★☆

After our visits to LUCUA, Grand Front Osaka and Grand Green Osaka, we took a break in shopping and sat down for a relaxing afternoon tea at The Lobby Lounge in The Ritz Carlton Osaka.



With Christmas just around the corner, the tea salon is already furnished with enchanting and festive decorations creating a magical and inviting ambiance that perfectly captures the spirit of the season.

We decided to select our pastry for the cake set from the renowned Gourmet Shop on the ground floor of the hotel, known for some of the finest French pastries in the city.

I was totally out of words after laying my eyes on these exquisite and delightful desserts.

Where should I start? 😝😝😝

I haven't got my caffeine fix today so it was the perfect time to kill two birds with a stone.

Mont Blanc (￥1,400) – I knew exactly what mom wanted without even asking. As she's a sucker for anything with chestnut, this classic Mont Blanc with intricate layers of chestnut purée and chestnut confit easily brightened up her day.

Pear Caramel (￥960) – For me, I went with this pear caramel tart. 

Underneath the delicate pear cream was a thick slice of pear compote followed by some caramel ganache and a buttery pâte sablée as the base. While the pastry might not win any awards for its presentation, the interplay of flavors and textures was nearly perfect. 

And just when we were about to leave, some live music reminding us that Christmas was fast approaching.

     

Food Rating: 6.9/10

Price: ￥￥￥

Address: G/F The Ritz Carlton Osaka, 2-5-25 Umeda, Kita Ward, Osaka 530-0001, Japan

Closest Metro Station: Umeda 

Tel: +81 (0)6 6343-7020

Website: lounge.ritzcarltonosaka.com

Opening Hours: 12:00pm - 9:00pm (Mon - Fri), 11:00am - 9:00pm (Sat - Sun)

 

YUNiCO (Osaka, JAPAN) ★★★★☆

Renowned as "The Ginza of Osaka," Kitashinchi (北新地) is a bustling entertainment district in Umeda known for it abundance of bars, clubs, cafes and restaurants. Despite my frequent visit to Osaka, it was my first time stepping foot into Kitashinchi and I have one mission to accomplish today, to check out Michelin starred YUNiCO's Japanese Italian fare.

Situated on the 4th floor of a small and discreet commercial building, YUNiCO's name is a play on chef-owner Yamamoto's initial, and the word ‘unico’, Italian for ‘unique’.

Chef Yamamoto trained at Ristorante Hiro Aoyama for 10 years before making the move to Osaka. From what I have heard, he's best known for incorporating local produce into his Japanese Italian cuisine including vegetables from Kyoto, fresh fish from Awaji, among other ingredients sourced from all over Japan.

Meet our handsome server (forgot to jot down his name) who's half Japanese and half Chinese!

First off, we were given a visual tour of all the ingredients featured in today's omakase menu.

Our amuse bouche soon followed and it was turnip espuma with chunks of braised beef brisket topped by some light beef consommé jelly.

The first starter of the tasting menu was yellowtail carpaccio with two types of Japanese radish, topped by a small patch of caviar and shaved bottarga. Not bad.

Next, we had a beautifully executed deep-fried matsutake mushroom with a thin batter (like a tempura), finished off with a nice sprinkle of curry powder on top. Very delicious.

This guy was very impressive! 

Taro deep-fried to a crispy crust. A couple slices of rosemary focaccia were served up together with the deep-fried taro.

Mini burger made with homemade ham and brioche. There was no mayo in between, just a bit of mustard seeds for some extra flavor and bite.

Taking a page out of Hong Kong's cha chaan teng? The whole set of cutlery hidden inside a drawer under the table!

The burrata cheese came with very fresh creaminess, delicate texture and a rich, milky flavor. It was a very nice match with the juicy tomatoes and vinaigrette, and extra virgin olive oil.

Traditional Italian beef tripe soup was next. Everyone was surprised by the spicy kick from the fresh black peppers.

The soup was accompanied by some parsley (left) and chili (right) sauce but I didn't think I would need more extra kick.

A meal from an Italian restaurant won't be complete without a pasta dish. The homemade

spaghettini was nicely tossed with duck ragout and finished with a little shaving of parmesan cheese. I like the combination of flavors and textures but the pasta itself could have been slightly less cooked.

We have been waiting for some meat for a while and it finally arrived in the form of charcoal grilled pork. 

The black pork was really succulent and I love the way it was matched with the celebriac purée, Japanese miso and sea salt. The miso, in particular, surprised me with how its savory-sweet flavors elevated the taste of the pork. 

Dessert came in a cup with a pool of strawberry sauce topped with yoghurt ice cream, condensed milk espuma, strawberry sorbet and a fresh strawberry.

And a cup of hot tea to sooth our palate after the meal.

Visiting YUNiCO felt a lot like visiting a good friend's house for lunch. The atmosphere is very comfortable and homey, and all the dishes were impeccably prepared using some of the freshly sourced local ingredients. Needless to say, it was a fantastic way to kick off our trip in Osaka.

Food Rating: 6.8/10

Price: ￥￥￥

Address: 4/F, 1-5-17 Sonezakishinchi, Kita-ku, Osaka, 530-0002 Japan

Closest Metro Station: Kita-Shinchi

Tel: +81 (0)6 6225-8007

Website: https://y-unico.jp/

Opening Hours: 12:00pm - 3:00pm (Sat), 5:30pm - 11:00pm (Mon - Sat)