Ramen Zundo-Ya Shinsaibashi ラー麺ずんどう屋 心齋橋店 (Osaka, JAPAN) ★★☆☆☆

Little nugget was feeling a little hungry on his way back to our hotel tonight. I didn't blame him at all as he was spending very little time at the dining table (and too much time at Namco). Fortunately, we were staying in Shinsaibashisuji so finding a late lunch snack shouldn't be a problem.

What I didn't realize was the fact that the kid was referring to a bowl of ramen noodles as his snack. Not that it was going to present a problem for daddy as I already have a list of ramen shops in Shinsaibashi that open late, including Ramen Zundo-Ya Shinsaibashi (ラー麺ずんどう屋 心齋橋店).

Tonkotsu ramen with soft-boiled egg (¥980) – Little guy's favorite pork bone-based broth ramen with fatty barbecued pork, soft-boiled egg and bamboo shoots. I thought the broth was a little flat in depth of flavors and more on the salty side. 

Fried rice (¥420) – I decided to enjoy a small bowl of fried rice myself. This came with three different sizes and I gladly chose the smallest one since it was already 9pm. Time to crash soon as we have another day trip to Kyoto planned for tomorrow morning.

This is the place to be if you're looking for a bowl of tonkotsu ramen late in the evening. Ramen Zundo-Ya Shinsaibashi opens 24 hours a day.

Food Rating: 4.2/10

Price: ￥￥

Address: 1-5-7 Shinsaibashisuji, Chuo-ku, Osaka, 542-0085 Japan

Closest Metro Station: Shinsaibashi 

Tel: +81 (0)6 6245-0883

Opening Hours: Open 24 hours

To The Herbs Namba Parks (Osaka, JAPAN) ★★★☆☆

I am glad that Jelloman is calling all the shots tonight. It's Christmas Eve, folks and I prefer taking the backseat and let others plan the celebration for me for a change.

For someone who hasn't been doing much planning for a while, she proved to be a quick learner. With just a few clicks on her iPhone, she was able to find a restaurant with online booking at Namba Parks. When a restaurant still has availability less than 2 hours before Christmas Eve dinner, it's usually not a good sign but I am going to stay at the backseat tonight.



To The Herbs, an Italian restaurant at Namba Parks, is our dinner venue tonight and we got things rolling with some bread followed by an appetizer platter consisting of some octopus, parma ham and more.

The kids loved the creamy carbonara. 

I thought the spaghetti with seafood tossed in cream sauce was equally nice.

This was the only dish I ordered tonight (for sharing) and it was a good one, spaghetti tossed in a spicy tomato sauce with snow crab.

We shared a couple of pizza together, and this one was by far the more popular one, the "Three Cheese Pizza".

Of course, the reason why we were going to Namba Parks in the first place – Namco. This was on the same floor as To The Herbs making things a lot easier for us.

Food Rating: 5.5/10

Price: ￥￥

Address: 6/F Namba Parks, 2-10-70 Nanbanaka, Naniwa-ku, Osaka, 556-0011 Japan

Closest Metro Station: Namba

Tel: +81 (0)6 6635-1590

Opening Hours: 11:00am - 10:00pm daily 

P.G.donut Namba Parks P.G.ドーナツなんばパークス店 (Osaka, JAPAN) ★★★★☆

We didn't have much planned for our Christmas Eve celebration, not after spending more than half a day in Nara (from Osaka). Jelloman was the one making the call for tonight's dinner and she decided to go to Namba Parks for this one, mainly cuz of Namco (for the kids). This turns out to be a great call since I got myself some unexpected bonus.

P.G. Donut Namba Parks (P.G.ドーナツなんばパークス店) is a renowned donut shop located on the second floor of vibrant Namba Parks complex. Originated from Tennoji, this delightful establishment is a haven for donut enthusiasts and foodies alike, offering a wide array of freshly baked donuts that are both visually appealing and incredibly delicious.

Upon entering the donut shop, I was immediately greeted by the irresistible aroma of freshly baked pastries and the sight of an impressive display of colorful and tempting donuts. There were also a small selection of bread available.

I ended up getting ourselves some doughnuts and bread for breakfast tomorrow.

Apart from the Earl Grey and Mont Blanc doughnuts I picked up from the counter, they gave me a complimentary chocolate doughnut free of charge!

Earl Grey custard doughnut (¥420) – This was really soft and fluffy, almost melt in the mouth with each bite. 

The Earl Grey custard cream was rich and delicate, just a touch more of it would have made it absolutely perfect.

Food Rating: 6.8/10

Price: ￥￥￥

Address: 2/F Namba Parks, 2-10-70 Nanbanaka, Naniwa-ku, Osaka, 556-0011 Japan

Closest Metro Station: Namba

Tel: +81 (0)6 6586-6477

Website: https://pgdonut.jp/

Opening Hours: 11:00am - 9:00pm daily

Abarotz くもり時々アバロッツ (Nara, JAPAN) ★★★☆☆

After spending nearly four hours in Nara, it was time for us to get back to Osaka. As we slowly walked our way back to Kintetsu-Nara Station (近鉄奈良駅), everybody started talking about finding a place to rest our sore feet (an excuse to sit down for a drink).

This was a scenario that was already covered in my plans and I have got a few tricks up my sleeve by now.

Abarotz (くもり時々アバロッツ) is a modern coffee shop cum dessert café, which is a spin-off from the Spanish fine-dining restaurant akordu next door.

Apparently, they are sharing the same kitchen all together.

At Abarotz, the team offers a fine selection of hand-drip coffee, tea and light beverages. 

A few of us with sweet tooth were immediately drawn to their desserts highlighted by their famous Basque cheesecake. Much to mom's disappointment, there was no Mont Blanc nor strawberry shortcake available this afternoon.

Jelloman and I shared a pear and chestnut verrine (¥726) together. The surprised combination of pear and chestnut was an interesting match.

Mom had their classic tiramisu (¥660) and it was reportedly pretty nice and foamy.

We ended up spending more than half an hour here just chilling out. Time to catch the train back to Osaka before the start of the peak hours.

Food Rating: 5.9/10

Price: ￥￥￥

Address: 70-1-3-1 Suimoncho, Nara, 630-8208, Japan

Closest Metro/Train Station: Kintetsu-Nara

Tel: +81 (0)742 77-3668

Website: https://abarotz.com/

Opening Hours: 10:30am - 6:00pm (Tue - Sun)

Tekisui at Fufu Nara 滴翠 馥府奈良度假飯店 (Nara, JAPAN) ★★★★☆

We were looking to spend the full day in Nara today and were off to a fast start. After a brief encounter with wildlife on the southern side of Nara Park (奈良公園), we eventually strolled towards our lunch venue, while pausing to capture some picturesque photos along the way.

Our lunch spot was Tekisui (滴翠), a Japanese restaurant hidden inside Fufu Nara (馥府奈良度假飯店) which came highly recommended by Jelloman.

The restaurant is a spacious 68-seater spanning over two floors.

Once we turned ourselves in at the reception counter, we were led upstairs to a private dining area.

Each of these private dining rooms have its own unique view of Nara Park and there are quite a number of them on the second floor.

This was the view in front of us while we enjoyed lunch today. 

I was craving for some Japanese hamburger steak so I went with this set that also included a small salad, chawanmushi and miso soup. Not bad for a price tag just under ¥2,000.

The succulent hamburger steak was topped with a thick and flavorful gravy.

This was beautifully done with a very juicy and tender texture.

And why not treat yourself to a nice kaiseki-style set meal, featuring a multi-course dining experience (¥5,500) ?

Little guy had the kid's menu because he wanted the deep-fried shrimp and sausages!

As much as we wanted to spend a lazy afternoon at Tekisui, we knew it was time to pick ourselves up and check out the large population of deer in the park.

And they were indeed everywhere. 

Online booking is available for Tekisui on TableCheck, which is always a huge bonus for those traveling in Japan.

Food Rating: 6.5/10

Price: ￥￥￥

Address: 1184-1 Takabatakecho, Nara, 630-8301, Japan

Closest Metro/Train Station: Kintetsu-Nara

Tel: +81 (0)742 81-8236

Website: https://www.fufunara.jp/food/

Opening Hours: 11:30am - 3:00pm daily

Nakatanidou 中谷堂 (Nara, JAPAN) ★★★☆☆

We are spending the majority of our Christmas Eve in Nara today with one of little nugget's best friends and his family. After waking up early in the morning (again!), we found ourselves on the Hanshin Namba-Nara Line (阪神本線難波奈良線). Thirty minutes later, here we are at Kintetsu-Nara Station (近鉄奈良駅).

As we emerged out of the station, we immediately hit the entrance of Higashimuki Shopping Street (東向商店街) which would quickly lead us to Sanjo-dori Street, one of the main roads in Nara. 

Following the path of Sanjo-dori Street would eventually lead us to our destination, Nara Park (奈良公園) but first thing first, it was time to check out a few of the local delicacies.

Located on Sanjo-dori Street not too far from the clock tower, Nakatanidou (中谷堂) is a renowned Japanese sweets shop celebrated for its exquisite mochi and traditional confections. Founded in 1868, this charming shop has become a beloved destination for both locals and tourists alike. 

Nakatanidou is particularly famous for its freshly made yomogi mochi made with a Japanese wild plant known as mugwort.

The yomogi mochi (or otherwise known as the mugwort mochi) is a delicate rice cake that is skillfully pounded and shaped often served with fillings of red bean paste. 

The result of the powerful pounding was this soft and slightly chewy yomogi mochi, which has been finished off with a nice sprinkle of kinako (roasted soybean flour).

The skin of this mochi was pretty thin but full of herbal flavors from the mugwort infused rice flour.

Food Rating: 5.2/10

Price: ￥

Address: 29 Hashimotocho, Nara, 630-8217, Japan

Closest Metro/Train Station: Kintetsu-Nara

Tel: +81 (0)742 23-0141

Website: www.nakatanidou.jp

Opening Hours: 10:00am - 6:00pm (Wed - Mon)

 

Strawberry Mania (Osaka, JAPAN) ★★★☆☆

Little guy wanted to end the day on a sweet note and since there was a Strawberry Mania just around the corner on our way back to the hotel, it was the easy choice for everyone.

During this trip, I spotted at least three different outposts of Strawberry Mania in Shinsaibashi and Namba so they must be pretty popular around here.

Little one's favorite is their strawberry milk twist cone.

Not sure if I wanted something so frosty on a chilly night like tonight but he's all smiles now (at least before the photo).

Food Rating: 4.6/10

Price: ￥￥

Address: 2-7-26 Shinsaibashisuji, Chuo-ku, Osaka, 542-0085 Japan

Closest Metro Station: Shinsaibashi

Tel: +81 (0)6 6226-7975

Opening Hours: 11:00am - 10:00pm daily

 

Jinrui Mina Menrui & Fried Rice Restaurant 人類みな麺類と焼き飯店 (Osaka, JAPAN) ★★★☆☆

Instead of having dinner in Kyoto and heading back to Osaka late, we decided to take off early before dinner time. That plan had worked out perfectly for us as we managed to arrive back in Osaka at around 6:30pm-ish. Still plenty of time to do some shopping before most shops close at 8pm.

Since we all woke up early this morning for our journey to Kyoto, nobody was in the mood for a fancy dinner tonight. Just a simple meal to allow us to retire early. With that in mind, I decided to bring us to Jinrui Mina Menrui & Fried Rice Restaurant (人類みな麺類と焼き飯店)’s pop-up at PARCO Shinsaibashi after shopping.

Since opening in 2012, Jinrui Mina Menrui has been a local sensation with its usually lengthy queues outside the ramen shop. Best known for its generous servings of Japanese braised pork belly, homemade thick noodles and flavorful soy sauce broth, the popular shoyu ramen specialist has become a staple in Tabelog's top ramen shops in Osaka. They are currently doing a year-long pop-up at PARCO Shinsaibashi and I thought with its location so close to our hotel, it would be the ideal choice for tonight's dinner destination. 👍🏻👍🏻

This location is offering a special fried rice dish on top of their signature shoyu ramen.

“All mankind’s noodles Yanihan” soy sauce ramen – Jinrui Mina Menrui's soy sauce ramen offers a few different versions including one infused with butter and pepper, garlic black, and sesame but for a purist like me, I would like nothing better than the original flavor.

The thick noodles were clogging up the intensely rich broth very nicely.

My ramen-loving son is a huge fan of shoyu ramen and it looks like that he has found his favorite shoyu ramen in Osaka tonight.

Yamaha Fried rice – I thought this was even better than the ramen. The rice had wonderful “wok hei” (鑊氣) and the ingredients including scrambled eggs, diced char siu and fresh chives had provided the rice with a lot of bite. 👍🏻 (although it was a little too salty).

Since both dishes were exceptionally flavorful, it came with little surprise that we kept reaching for iced water throughout the meal to quench our thirst.

The early dinner really provided us with the opportunity to unwind and crash early tonight. And that’s so important considering that we have another road trip to Nara tomorrow. This one starts early too…..

Food Rating: 6.6/10

Price: ￥￥

Address: B1F Shinsaibashi PARCO, 1-8-3 Shinsaibashisuji, Chuo-ku, Osaka, 542-0085 Japan

Closest Metro Station: Shinsaibashi

Opening Hours: 10:00am - 9:00pm daily