Osaka is home to many delicious Japanese restaurants. While it may not be as renowned as Tokyo, it is a "food city" where high-quality ingredients from all over the country come together, allowing you to enjoy exquisite cuisine. Unlike Kyoto, Osaka has many high-cost-performance restaurants, making it a city I love as a foodie dad. However, as someone who often drives, I find it to be the most challenging city to navigate in Japan ('◇')ゞ. Because of this, I tend to overlook it a bit... (;^ω^)Amidst all this, there is one restaurant that has caught my attention... That is "Fushimi Cho Kakoi Yama." A place where you can truly experience the wonderful Japanese cuisine of Osaka! I heard such great reviews about it (@_@).I absolutely had to go! After some effort, I managed to make a reservation, but... I had a pretty packed schedule this time. I was in Osaka one day and then off to Shizuoka the next. It was about a 5-hour drive... (*_*; That said, it was the only free day I had in a year, so I had to make it work!In the end... I’m so glad I went~ (^0_0^) As rumored, the Japanese cuisine here reflects the history and culture of Osaka. It’s definitely a place where you can taste the unique flavors of Osaka! What a wonderful restaurant it was! (^^♪While there are many delicious restaurants in Osaka, I feel there are surprisingly few that truly reflect "Osaka's food culture and history." I love places where you can only eat the local specialties, and for that reason, I’ve been somewhat distanced from urban restaurants that source ingredients from all over the country. That was a big misunderstanding! It seems I just didn’t know better (;・∀・). Even in the city, there are restaurants that offer dishes unique to the area... of course there are!This encounter with the restaurant has reignited my Osaka tour plans... it’s a definite yes! (^^)/ However... the reservation wait time here is over a year... that’s the problem... ('◇')ゞThe location is Fushimi-cho, Senba in Osaka. It seems to be an area that was called "the kitchen of the nation" during the Edo period. I had no idea about this. It was a central place for food back then!Upon arrival, a young staff member greeted me at the entrance (;^ω^). After stating my name, I was led inside...There are 8 counter seats, and it seems there are private rooms, but on this day, only the counter was in use.The atmosphere is dignified and reminiscent of a sports club. Including the owner, there are four apprentices. All of them have shaved heads. There’s also the proprietress and one other woman. Everyone has a loud voice (~_~;). You can feel a considerable tension in the air.We started with herbal tea, followed by an aperitif.◆Ise Lobster Sushi Styled as Armor With White SauceWe began with Ise lobster. The taste is, of course, excellent. It’s delicious and truly impressive.◆Live Sweetfish SoupA soup dish styled as a "koinobori" (carp streamer). They really value the seasonal aspect. The flavor is exquisite, as expected.◆Flounder and Bonito with Three Dipping SaucesThe flounder is crunchy, and the bonito is chewy.◆Shabu-shabu of Surf ClamThe owner himself shabu-shabu’s the live surf clam right in front of us. Sweet and delicious.◆Grilled Surf ClamFull of umami, whether it’s the quality of the ingredients or the preparation, there’s absolutely no fishy smell. It’s rare to encounter such delicious surf clam.◆Fresh Bottarga, Mountain Vegetables, and SobaIs soba really this delicious? It was that shocking.◆Hassun (Trout, Smoked Firefly Squid, Hairy Crab, and Koshi) All the dishes are top-notch.◆Whiting and Thin BeansDelicately prepared.◆Water Shield and Shaved Ice ◆Sea Urchin Chawanmushi ◆Abalone, Bamboo Shoots, and Butterfly Ray Steamed with Spicy SauceI was left speechless by the incredible flavors!◆Mountain Vegetables and Bear DumplingsThese dumplings are incredibly delicious!◆Simmered Vegetables and Fermented TofuI’m not sure about the fermented tofu (~_~;)◆Baba Eggplant and Conger Eel Simmered TogetherBaba eggplant is said to be a rare water eggplant that can only be harvested in the Baba area. The conger eel is also exceptional—amazing!◆Isaki, Freshly Cooked Rice, and Pickles◆TonkatsuThis is also delicious! It’s better than the tonkatsu from specialty shops that have long lines. For top Japanese chefs, is tonkatsu considered an easy dish? (;・∀・)◆Senba Soup ChazukeA local dish from Senba, Osaka. It seems to be made with dashi broth from the day’s ingredients.◆Warabi ManjuThis is also delicious.◆Matcha◆Fermented Ice Cream with MelonThis is also an unexpectedly amazing dessert! You’ll understand once you taste it. The technique of using every ingredient without waste. All of it is delicious and crafted with care. It’s just my style!I felt that every dish was a notch above those from other top Japanese restaurants that are hard to book. To put it in terms of my favorite sport, boxing, while Nakata is also top-notch, Inoue slightly surpasses him in every aspect. That’s the feeling I got. I apologize to those who don’t know boxing (sorry).Moreover, the tableware is wonderful and enhances the dishes. The attentiveness of the owner and proprietress is also remarkable.The total price for this day was JPY 47,000. For my lifestyle, that’s in the red zone, but I’d love to visit this renowned restaurant at least once a year.Once again, I was deeply moved in Osaka!!! Osaka’s food culture is truly amazing!(Note: The restaurant has a rule of only allowing three photos, so I’ve adhered to that and included only three.)In any case, everything was so wonderful that I was left in awe!It was a great meal.