Lucas is a student from San Diego, California. He is working and living in Tokyo for an internship program, aiming to learn more about Japan’s work culture and to have a better understanding of the Japanese way of life. After the internship, he will ultimately travel back home to complete his Bachelor’s Degree, but hopes to travel more in he future to have more experiences abroad.
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Kushikatsu refers to a type of deep-fried, battered, and skewered food that you typically dip in a sweet-tangy sauce. Anything can be kushikatsu: meat, vegetables, cheese, and even fruits! It is easy to love, and easy to go through a lot of skewers at once. This is quintessential Osakan working-class food, and it’s a great option if you’re planning to drink alongside it. It is most common in its hometown of Shinsekai, but you can find kushikatsu restaurants all over Osaka. There’s only one golden rule: no double-dipping in the sauce!
1. Kushikatsu Daruma
Located near the base of Tsutenkaku tower in Shinsekai, you can’t miss this restaurant with its signature “angry man” mascot holding skewers outside the front door. This mascot holding skewers in an X-shape it’s a reference to a Kushikatsu rule that you should never double-dip your skewer in the sauce. Everything is fried to order, and the panko breadcrumb batter is light and crispy when hot and fresh out of the kitchen.
2. Yakko
Shinsekai is the birthplace of Kushikatsu, and this is where you’ll find Kushikatsu Yakko. Like many other restaurants like it, Yakko is a counter-only establishment and is pretty inexpensive, with skewers going for around JPY120 to JPY280 each. What sets it apart from the rest is that it’s partially fried in tallow, or beef fat, which makes the skewers extra crispy. Be careful not to get carried away eating too many!
3. Yaekatsu
Since 1949 in Shinsekai, Yaekatsu is a standout of Kushikatsu restaurants. This one is usually pretty busy, but if you go early enough in the evening on a weekday, you should be able to beat the dinner rush. One special rule of this shop is that they are pretty strict on phones, and will probably give you a verbal warning if you start fidgeting with it while eating. Because of this, you need to stay without distractions and enjoy the great variety of items that you can find fried here.
4. Kushikatsu Benkei
This location features both counter and table seats to welcome both solo diners and groups. The varied menu offers items made with both standard ingredients and seasonal ones. One popular dish is chicken tender wrapped in plum pulp with a touch of wasabi. The sticky sauce served with their kushikatsu is handmade from scratch and tastes amazing. There’s also a great selection of alcoholic beverages and beer.
5. Sandaime Dotonbori Ikkyu
This kushikatsu restaurant was established all the way back in 1947. Their kushikatsu made with recipes passed down for over 70 years is now being served up by the 3rd generation chef. To enhance their flavors, they’re carefully prepared before being cooked, and after being coated in fine fresh panko, they’re fried until crispy and fragrant. One of the favorites here is a tuna and onion combo with a sweet dipping sauce. You should also try some of the seasonal flavors on offer, such as pike conger in the summer and ginkgo nuts in the fall.
6. Rokkakutei
The name Rokkaku is a combination of the five senses of sight, hearing, smell, taste, and touch, and the chef’s “sense” to embody them in food. This restaurant’s signature is the wide variety of ingredient options that are offered alongside a selection of wine. They don’t have a set wine list and will instead recommend something based on your personal tastes when you visit or try to match something to the skewers you choose.
7. Bon
This location is unique because it stands as a “premium” refinement of Kushikatsu. The ingredients are all top-class: your average kushikatsu restaurant is not going to be frying local free-range chicken, wagyu beef, caviar, Jamon Iberico, or sea urchin in their skewers. It even has been awarded a Michelin star. They even have a sommelier on staff to recommend and provide wine to diners throughout the lunch and dinner hours. Make sure to make a reservation for this one because it’s an experience you won’t want to miss.
8. Shichifukujin
This is a counter seat-only kushikatsu restaurant that’s super popular with the locals. Their deep-fried skewers are fabulous, the beer is cheap, and they serve simmered items to balance out all that fried food. People come in and out quickly so there is almost never a wait and service is fast. There are a lot of vegetarian options here too with many peppers and mushrooms being fried up as long as you are okay with the fact that it’s fried in the same oil as the other skewers.
9. Dashimaru
Want a little more variety of food? Dashimaru is an izakaya so they serve up more than just kushikatsu. However, oden (stewed foods) and kushikatsu is what they are primarily known for. They specialize in seasonal vegetables and they also make a homemade batter that makes their skewers fluffier than almost every other option on this list.
10. Karatto
Inside a renovated century-old warehouse with stylish decor and tasteful furniture, Karatto stands out compared to the standard affair of brightly lit counter restaurants. The regular skewers include items like pork, sausages, and beer, but you’ll also find some more unusual options, like salmon with tartar sauce, mozzarella skewers, and avocado or banana with condensed milk. They also have salt on every seat for dipping opposed to the usual communicable pots of sauce.
Are you feeling hungry yet? We’ve counted down a list of some of the best spots for Kushikatsu, but which one sounded the most interesting to you? If we missed your favorite spot, make sure to let us know because we always appreciate tips on more delicious food. Make sure to try out some of these spots if you find yourself in Osaka, just remember not to double-dip in the sauce!
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Kimono Experience
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