Mister Donut Ito Yokado Abeno Q's Mall (Osaka, JAPAN) ★★★☆☆

We have a boat load of stuff to take care of, following our Michelin starred meal at Enye. But before we started talking about our adventure this afternoon, let’s talk about my little nugget’s Pokemon donuts first. I wasn’t supposed to get him anything from Mister Donut because he had his doughnut fix from Krispy Kreme last night but I got a ping from Jelloman while I was wandering around Abeno Q’s Mall (They were having fun with the crawling machines upstairs).

This branch of Mister Donut is hidden inside Ito-Yokado Abeno (イトーヨーカドー あべの店) supermarket.

 

I got exactly what little one wanted, two of his favorite Pokemon donuts here. He was the happiest guy on earth when he saw his favorites.

 

Flash back to our journey before going to Q’s Mall. We had quite a bit of fun at Shinsekai (新世界). This kid was experiencing archery for the first time and I thought he’s primed for the 2028 Olympic games.

 

We were a little surprised to catch a bit of autumn leaves next to Kawazokoike (河底池).

 

One of the reasons we were in Tennoji was a visit to Tennoji Park (天王寺公園).

 

It was hosting one of the largest Christmas markets in Osaka. It was nice to come and soak up the vibe and Christmas spirit.

 

And of course, what else? There was a Gigo at Q’s Mall and little guy has been looking forward to this since he woke up!

Food Rating: 5/10

Price: ￥￥

Address: Ito-Yokado Abeno, B1F Abeno Q's Mall, 1-6-1 Abenosuji, Abeno-ku, Osaka, 545-0052 Japan

Closest Metro Station: Tennoji / Abeno

Tel: +81 (0)6 6645-0085

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

Shinsaibashi Sand 心斎橋サンド (Osaka, JAPAN) ★★★☆☆

One of the best things about staying in Shinsaibashi is that we get access to all sorts of late-night snacks (including ramen) at very late hours. Eateries that open late are never in short supply. Tonight, I am going to check out one of these eateries, Shinsaibashi Sand (心斎橋サンド), an upscale sandwich shop which is very popular among the locals.

Shinsaibashi Sand offers a small selection of Japanese-style sandwiches which are all made to offer.

Their best seller (and the most expensive one) is their prime wagyu beef cutlet sandwich that set me back 3,200yen. 

This came in a very small package.

We took our time taking pictures before finally sinking our teeth into this sandwich and I guess since the toasted bread was trapped inside the box for a while, it's not as crispy anymore. Same goes for the batter from the beef fillet. 

One thing I noticed while standing in front of Shinsaibashi Sand (waiting for my sandwich) was the significant number of people working around the area at such late hours. My gut feeling was that it must be one of the city's night entertainment districts. 

Believe it or not, this popular sandwich shop opens until 5am in the morning. 😱😱

Food Rating: 5.2/10

Price: ￥￥￥￥

Address: 2-8-8 Higashishinsaibashi, Chuo-ku, Osaka 542-0083, Japan

Closest Metro Station: Shinsaibashi

Tel: +81 (0)6 6211-1545

Website: http://kitashinchisand.com/

Opening Hours: 6:00pm - 5:00am (Mon - Sat)

Sukiyaki Shabu Shabu Tsukada KITTE すき焼 しゃぶしゃぶつかだ (Osaka, JAPAN) ★★★★☆

We started this trip the same way we typically do on any visit to Japan, with a shabu shabu dinner on our first night. Our dinner venue tonight is Sukiyaki Shabu Shabu Tsukada KITTE (すき焼 しゃぶしゃぶつかだ), a popular solo hotpot restaurant where each person gets his or her own pot.

The restaurant is conveniently located inside KITTE shopping complex which is directly connected to the train station and other major shopping malls in Umeda. To ensure that we have ourselves a table, I have already made an online reservation via TableCheck with just a few clicks.

I would love to sit at the bar tables but with the amount of clothes and personal items we were carrying around, the private room was the easy choice.

Our dinner set started off with a small tomato salad. 

It was immediately followed by a Japanese monaka filled with minced black beef and pate.

The main event tonight, sliced Kobe beef shoulder loin (神戶牛肩) and Matsusaka beef sirloin (松阪牛) were next. We are talking about two of Japan's "top three" wagyu brands — Matsusaka, Kobe and Ohmi beef. 

Of course, some seasonal vegetables with one set per person. We also get to choose between udon noodles and steamed rice.

Most of us have chosen shabu shabu and got off to a fast start.

I was the only person picking sukiyaki and before I could get started, I was asked to read over this detailed instruction. 😅😅

I didn't realize it but I was supposed to prepare the sweet soy sauce based broth myself.

When the sugar was nearly melted, I placed a couple of these thinly sliced beef on top before pouring the broth on top. This broth was a mixture of soy sauce, sake, sugar and dashi.

After all the hard work, I was finally ready to taste these beautifully cooked beef!

Dessert was a couple scoops of ice-cream for little guy.

For me, I elected to go with this matcha creme brulee. 

This guy was so happy about the shabu shabu dinner tonight, he couldn't stop talking about it (until he found his phone).

Sukiyaki Shabu Shabu Tsukada was only a handful of restaurants inside KITTE with a lineup when we were ready to leave. That speaks volume about its popularity.

Food Rating: 6.4/10

Price: ￥￥￥

Address: Shop 501, 5/F, KITTE Osaka, 3-2-2 Umeda, Kita Ward, Osaka 530-0001, Japan

Closest Metro Station: Umeda 

Tel: +81 (0)6 6867-9479

Website: https://lit.link/sukitsukaosaka

Opening Hours: 11:00am - 3:00pm, 5:00pm - 11:00pm daily

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)