Osaka is famously known for its okonomiyaki and takoyaki but apparently, there’s also one other gem in this city: kushi katsu 串カツ; breaded and deep fried stuff on a skewer. Met up with Rob the American Salaryman again before the end of the year and this is where he showed me this time.
Their “mascot” reminds me of the dummy from the Goosebumps book…
The place is called Daruma, hidden inside one of those alley streets that have hundreds of other restaurants built on top of each other. Since this is a chain restaurant, you can find this shop at places such as Shinsaibashi/Dotonbori as well. But even if you can’t find this particular shop, there are plenty more out there. (Yes, this…mascot of sorts… can actually talk but it wasn’t plugged in at the time).
The shop has quite a “local” feel to it. I wouldn’t think this place is a chain restaurant if it weren’t for the logo-marked plates and corporate-looking menus. Oh yea, all you can eat cabbage. See that rectangular silver can? that’s a bucket of sauce to dip your kushi in. Yes, it has been sitting there and has been dunk in by every customer before us. The rule here is that you’re not supposed to double dip but I wouldn’t be surprised if that happens at least once a day ^^;.
All the stuff you can order is on the wall right there.
“Please refrain from double dipping in the sauce” – This label is all over the shop. Continuing my practice of Japanese drinking culture ^^;. Once again, I am no match for Rob.
Kimchi and doteyaki どて焼き, which is some unfamiliar part of beef stewed in miso and mirin. It was delicious!
Here comes the kushi katsu! Mm… it’s only been a few weeks since this event but I already forgot what is what besides the obvious ^^; There was shrimp (obvious), quail eggs, pepper, sweet potato, oysters, shiitake, chicken, pork, cheese chikuwa, lotus root, tsukune (chicken meatball) and… probably some other stuff that I missed. Basically, anything you can think of, they will bread it and deep fry it for you.
And more katsu!
And more katsu!
And more katsu!
Lastly, more katsu! oh, and an odd fellow in the mix.
Okay the food was pretty bomb but at the end, I was rather stuffed from all that breading. Great night, great eat, great fun. Add kushi katsu to the list of things to eat while in Osaka.
ごちそうさまでした！
2013/01/09 at 12:00 PM
Is there anything special to the breading of the fried stuff or is it just your regular flavour?
I guess it would easier to eat the things without the skewers, especially if you’re going to eat so much. ^^; But I suppose the skewers make them more appetizing.
Hmm… won’t there be a lot of the crumbs inside the sauce?
2013/01/09 at 2:00 PM
It’s the same as tonkatsu. So egg, flour and panko. I think the skewers make them easier to deep fry and quicker to pull out. Just my guess. The hardest part about eating so much breading was we didn’t ordered rice to go with it xD
mmm… the pot was certainly oily but didn’t notice much crumbs. Or they probably all sank down to the bottom XD
2013/01/09 at 9:06 PM
one more info for my next trip to Japan, thank you.. ^_^ how about kobe? have u ever been there before? do u have any unique recommendation for Kyoto, Osaka, and Nara besides those temple, shrine, and palace sightseeing? thank you before.
2013/01/10 at 2:06 AM
Yea I’ve been to Kobe twice and will go back again before winter break is over. There’s a lot I want to see and do there. I’ll actually cover Kobe in a bit too.
For Kyoto and especially Nara, temples and shrines are their main forte. Nara’s todaiji are are full of deer everywhere that you can pet or feed which is pretty cool. Osaka is the big city so you can check out stuff like the cup noodle museum where you can make your own instant ramen, and the kaiyukan, one of the world’s biggest aquariums. Of course, there is USJ as well (check out a couple of posts down).
2013/01/10 at 8:48 AM
yup, i already check it, thank you for ur kind explanation
:)