Mugi to Tori 麥×鷄 (Osaka, JAPAN) ★★★★☆

Everyone was feeling the heat in Kyoto, so none of us really had much of an appetite when we were enjoying our Japanese skewers tonight. But now that we have left Umeda and back in Shinsaibashi, I suddenly found myself getting a little hungry.

While everyone else decided to call it a night, I decided to head out for something warm and comforting. And I already had the perfect spot in mind — Mugi to Tori (麥×鷄), just a few steps from our hotel.

The highly rated ramen shop was closing in less than half an hour so I had to hurry to get my ticket from the vending machine.

I last visited Mugi to Tori back in 2023, and I still vaguely remembered the lingering aftertaste of their signature broth. Tonight, I finally got to relive that moment — two years later.

Mugi x Uni (2,200 yen) — Their creamy chicken broth is blended with rich sea urchin, which makes it one of the more luxurious ramens in Shinsaibashi. The chicken broth is long-boiled, then whipped right before serving to create a smooth, velvety cap of fine bubbles—rich in flavor without feeling overly greasy.

As a fan of awa-kei (bubble-style/foam-style, 泡系) ramen, I love how the noodles seem to sink into that silky, “cappuccino-like” layer of foam on top. As usual, I took a quick sip of the broth first, then focused on the noodles. The broth was deeply umami-rich, with flavor coming from both the chicken base and the uni front and centre.

The buckwheat noodles were clinging to the broth beautifully.

The marinated soft-boiled egg was faultless.

The silky and flavorful pork chashu soaked up the broth brilliantly.

The chicken chashu was very tender and juicy.

The marinated bamboo shoots were thick-cut, giving them a really satisfying mouthfeel. But I could probably do without the seaweed and purple onion, as there were already plenty of flavors and textures in the bowl.

Earlier, while we were on the way back from Umeda, we have taken a little time to enjoy the city-wide display of illuminations along some of the main roads.

I felt really blessed to have made it to both Mugi to Tori (麥×鷄) and Men Style Tanimoto Ke Honmachi (麵スタイル谷本家 本町店), two of the most coveted ramen spots in the Shinsaibashi area. This is definitely one of the highlights of my Osaka trip.

Food Rating: 7.4/10

Price: ￥￥￥

Address: 3-1-16 Minamisenba, Chuo-ku, Osaka, 542-0081 Japan

Closest Metro Station: Shinsaibashi 

Tel: +81 (0)6 6121-7601

Website: www.instagram.com/mugi_tori

Opening Hours: 10:30am - 3:00pm, 6:00pm - 10:00pm daily

Kushikatsu Shiruhisa Ohatsu Tenjin 串かつ 知留久 お初天神店 (Osaka, JAPAN) ★★★★☆

I have secretly prepared a surprise for little nugget tonight. He’s been asking when we’ll be having kushikatsu on this trip, and I’ve kept my plans close to the chest all this time.

Founded in 1946, Kushikatsu Shiruhisa Ohatsu Tenjin (串かつ 知留久 お初天神店) is a high-end, historic deep-fried skewer restaurant in Osaka. It’s famously credited with creating the omakase-style dining approach for kushikatsu meals, and inventing the multi-compartment sauce plate that’s now standard across Japan.

This branch of Kushikatsu Shiruhisa is located inside K’s Square Building (ケイズスクエアビル) in East Umeda (東梅田). Not the easiest place to get to unless you know Osaka well enough.

We just came back from Kyoto in late afternoon and once we emerged from Osaka station, we started making our way to Kushikatsu Shiruhisa. While some of us wanted to hang around Hep five before dinner, mom wasn’t walking very well with her bad knee, so I called a Uber to get us there .

Eating Kushikatsu without sitting at the counter table will be uncivilized. So, once we got into the restaurant, I immediately signaled for the bar. 

Luckily, there was one lady who spoke reasonably good English and she guided us throughout the night. 👍🏻👍🏻

Dinner officially got started and we were presented with their signature multi-compartment sauce plate topped with a small bucket of chilled vegetables. For a restaurant best known for introducing omakase to the Kushikatsu world, we didn’t hesitate to give it a try. Of course, we also got some skewers from the a la carte menu to satisfy everyone’s craving.

Beef sirloin — Very very tender. It worked especially well with the special beef sauce that tasted like a little like American BBQ sauce.

Shiitake mushroom — Always a crowd pleaser. Very very juicy, and perfect with the lighter batter.

Minced fish with shiso leaf and mustard — Beautifully decorated and tasted even better than it looked.

Shrimp — Another a crowd pleaser. Flaky on the outside, yet springy and firm inside. It was a good sign when nobody wanted to share the skewer.  😂😂

Zucchini — Best enjoyed with salt. This was a little on the hard side.

Salmon with salmon roes, mayo — The salmon roe, mayo, mustard seeds, and crispy seaweed all came together for a great mix of flavors and textures. Super good.

Tilefish — Best enjoyed with salt. This came with incredible sweetness and the crispy scales just perfect.

Eggplant — Stuffed with minced fish (That's what my notes said)? I didn’t dare to ask, but the texture and flavor were really interesting once the two came together.

A huge thank-you to our new friend, who was incredibly helpful all night — she served and explained the dishes while standing right between the chef and me. Thankfully, she spoke just enough English for us to communicate without any issues.

When we were about to leave, we noticed this section of the dining area with regular tables. It reminded me a lot of a German beer hall or a traditional German restaurant. But who would want to sit here if the bar tables are open. 

I could tell some of us were still a little hungry, but the scorching heat in Kyoto had really worn us out. In the end, everyone just wanted to head back to the hotel, relax, and chill. Except for me, I have got plans for a nice bowl of chicken paitan ramen (鶏ガラパイタン).

Food Rating: 7.1/10

Price: ￥￥￥￥

Address: 1/F, K's Square Building, 2-8-15 Sonezaki, Kita-ku, Osaka 530-0057, Japan

Closest Metro Station: Higashi-Umeda

Tel: +81 (0)6 6312-2703

Website: https://www.shiruhisa.com/

Opening Hours: 11:30am - 2:00pm, 5:00pm - 10:00pm (Thu - Tue)

Chez Nous HKGTA Town Club (Hong Kong, CHINA) ★★★★☆

I haven’t seen my buddy V since we got together for his birthday celebration late last year. Rumors had it that he was taking a hiatus in Beautiful British Columbia—killing time while watching the lowly Canucks on TV — but it turned out to be just gossip after all 😆😆.

He’s been back in town for some time, and early this month he pinged me to ask when I’d be free for a gathering near my birthday.

After agreeing on a date, he’s been keeping the location secret until the week before our dinner. To my pleasant surprise, it was a place I have never visited before.

Located on the 24th floor of New World Tower in Central, HKGTA Town Club is a members-only club spanning over 18,000 square feet, designed as an urban oasis. It features a lounge, a Japanese restaurant, a French restaurant, private rooms, and more. Our dinner venue was Chez Nous, an intimate and cozy French restaurant right in the heart of the premise.

On a Tuesday night, Central was pretty quiet and so was the club.

We enjoyed some snacks while we went over the food and drink menu.

Of course, we toasted to good health, and I’m genuinely grateful for another year of (well… decent) health, happiness, and peace.

Escargots de Bourgogne — We started things off with some sautéed snails from France. These were drizzled with garlic purée, shallot sauce, and brioche crumbs. Absolutely lovely dish to whet our appetite for the night.

Pâté en croûte — This was kind of my idea and it worked out alright. The meat pie featuring a mix of meats, foie gras, and more was reasonably good, although the crust was a bit too hard for this old man with bad teeth. As usual, it came with cornichons and fruit chutney.

Bar grillé — For the main course, I went with the grilled seabass, which turned out to be an excellent choice. 

I love the rich and flavorful beurre blanc with turnip, zucchini, spinach, and shellfish. A perfect complement to the mildly flavored seabass.

Whole yellow chicken — V ordered a whole yellow chicken for us to share. The beautifully cooked yellow chicken was succulent and spot on. The vin jaune sauce equally rich and intense as the one from the grilled seabass, came with mussels, chorizo, morel mushrooms and broad beans. 

That said, I thought there was a little too much richness in the dish. The only downside from an otherwise delicious offering.

Hazelnut Mille-feuille — V and I shared one dessert together — a made-to-order Mille-Feuille with hazelnut praline cream, pear compote, and pear sorbet. The pear definitely did its job in balancing the sweetness and richness of the dessert.

I’m truly blessed to get the chance to see some of my besties during the week of my birthday. Even St Paul was in town (for family matters), and we managed to squeeze in a lovely meal at Caprice. Honestly, I couldn’t ask for more for this year's birthday.

Food Rating: 6.9/10

Price: $$$$

Address: 24/F, 16-18 Queen's Road Central, Central, Hong Kong

Closest Metro Station: Central

Tel: +852 2132-6688

Website: https://www.hkgtatownclub.com/#Dining

Opening Hours: 12:30pm - 2:30pm, 6:00pm - 10:00pm (Mon - Sat)