14 Izakaya in Osaka that Serve Must-Try Nabe Dishes Discover Oishii Japan -SAVOR JAPAN -Japanese Restaurant Guide-

Update-date: Feb 21 2020

Author: SAVOR JAPAN

14 Izakaya in Osaka that Serve Must-Try Nabe Dishes

The ultimate winter Japanese dish has to be “nabe,” a hot pot dish of delicacies like sukiyaki (hot pot stew) and shabu-shabu (sliced meat parboiled with vegetables). Using the nabe set arranged on their table, customers get to cook for themselves the ingredients that they order, so that they can eat them right away. If you're in Osaka, don't miss the delicious nabe dishes of these 14 izakayas (Japanese pub).

See full listings of Izakaya and Nabe restaurants found in and around Osaka.

1. Izumida Osaka Shinsaibashi Branch

15 Izakaya in Osaka that Serve Must-Try Nabe Dishes

This restaurant allows you to taste the cuisine from Hakata, the long-standing fishing harbor of northern Kyushu, without stepping a foot outside Osaka. Hakata's famed specialty is [Karashi Mentaiko], or cod roe marinated in chili pepper and other spices. Here you can have it wrapped in an omelet with their original [Mentai Dashimaki (550 JPY)]. As for nabe, their hot spicy [Keishu Nabe (2,600 JPY for 2 people)] comes highly recommended. The flavor base is a blend of 5 different types of miso from both Korea and Japan, which give the ingredients a spicy and deep flavor that is truly addicting.

Izumida Osaka Shinsaibashi Branch

Open: 5:30 pm - 12:00 am (L.O. 11:30 pm)
Closed: Sunday, National Holidays
Average price: 4,000 JPY
Address: 6-27, Souemon-cho, Chuo-ku, Osaka-shi, Osaka

2. Le Monde Fukushima Branch

Nabe is this izakaya's signature dish, and it's served all year long. A classic menu item to order here is the [Tetsujin Nabe (1,280 JPY - 1,980 JPY)]. Instead of boiling the ingredients in the nabe, you pour soup over the ingredients and cook them on a teppan (iron plate). There are 6 delicacies to choose from Kuroge Wagyu (a type of high-quality beef), beef, pork kimchi, Awaji-dori (Awaji chicken), beef offal, and seafood. Alternatively, you can choose from a total of 10 nabe dishes, like the [Wagyu Motsu Nabe (1,480 JPY)] (Wagyu offal nabe) or the [Tsuyu Chiri Nabe (1,580 JPY)], which is a pork dish eaten in shabu-shabu style.

Le Monde Fukushima Branch

Open: 5:00 pm - 12:00 am (L.O. 11:30 pm)
Closed: None *Closed on December 31 and January 1
Average price: 4,000 JPY
Address: 1F, West Bldg., 6-4-10, Fukushima, Fukushima-ku, Osaka-shi, Osaka

3. CHAN

Head to this restaurant to enjoy yakiniku (Japanese BBQ) made with premium Kuroge Wagyu from various areas of Japan, and try their [100-year-old Nabe - Normal (2,980 JPY)], a medicinal nabe dish that uses Taiwanese kanpo. Kanpo is the Japanese word for traditional Chinese medicine and its remedies. These remedies are basically herbs and spices, which have many nutrients that can be used in food as well. Medicinal nabe dishes, made with spices that have great effects on the body, are both healthy and delicious. For instance, the soup made with beef bones and medicinal herbs is an unmissable delicacy. Also, don't forget to try the soup made with 10 different vegetables and pork meat, combining to give it an incredibly delicate flavor.

CHAN

Open: [Sunday, National Holidays] 5:00 pm - 12:00 am (L.O. 11:00 pm)
[Tuesday - Friday] 6:00 pm - 1:00 am (L.O. 12:00 am)
[Saturday] 5:00 pm - 1:00 am (L.O. 12:00 am)
Closed: Monday
Average price: 6,500 JPY
Address: 1-1-11, Saiwai-cho, Naniwa-ku, Osaka-shi, Osaka
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4. Imafukuhiroya

"Chiritori nabe" is a type of nabe born in Osaka. It consists of beef, innards, and a large portion of vegetables stewed together in a square dustpan-shaped pot with a thin bottom. This restaurant serves [Special Niku Nabe (1,480 JPY for 1 person, minimum 2 persons)], an original dish based on chiritori nabe. The spicy and sweet soup is made with the dashi (broth) taken from beef bones and is used to stew fresh offal, beef, and vegetables. If you're not that into meat, order the [Special Gyokai Nabe (1,480 JPY for 1 person, minimum 2 persons)] made with an assortment of seafood, vegetables, and tofu.

Imafukuhiroya

Open: [Tuesday - Saturday, Day before National Holidays] 5:30 pm - 12:30 am (L.O. 12:00 am)
[Sunday, National Holidays] 5:00 pm - 10:30 pm (L.O. 10:00 pm)
Closed: Monday (if it's a national holiday, it will be closed on Tuesday instead)
Average price: 3,000 JPY
Address: 1-8-26, Imafuku Higashi, Joto-ku, Osaka-shi, Osaka
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5. Okamoto Hommachi Branch

Here you can have yakinabe, a traditional dish from Taiwan. Yakinabe is a delicacy made in a unique pot with a bulging dome in the center. The dome is used to grill meat, while the surrounding is filled with a pork bone-based soup where you can stew the vegetables. While you cook the meat in the center, its juice flows into the soup instead of being wasted, giving it a new rich umami (Japanese savory taste) flavor your taste buds will thank you for! When you're finished eating, you can enjoy the remaining soup with noodles or rice. Let the staff in their traditional costumes prepare this final part for you.

Okamoto Hommachi Branch

Open: 5:00 pm - 12:00 am (L.O. 11:00 pm)
Closed: Sunday, National Holidays
Average price: 5,500 JPY
Address: B1, Nishijima Bldg., 3-3-1, Bingo-machi, Chuo-ku, Osaka-shi, Osaka
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6. Hokkai Shabu-Shabu Umeda Branch

A restaurant renowned for its all-you-can-eat shabu-shabu. Shabu-shabu consists of cooking thin slices of meat by quickly dipping them into dashi and then seasoning them with a sauce before eating. Here, you can enjoy it with top-quality lamb and pork belly. The regular shabu-shabu costs 1,950 JPY, but you can have it in an all-you-can-eat plan for 3,900 JPY. For parties, you may prefer their 4,900 JPY course including an all-you-can-drink plan, or the [Hokkai Course All-you-can-eat / All-you-can-drink (6,000 JPY)] where you can have some shrimp, salmon, and maguro (bluefin tuna) sashimi as well. (All prices are per person).

Hokkai Shabu-Shabu Umeda Branch

Open: 5:00 pm - 11:30 pm (L.O. 11:00 pm)
Closed: Monday *if it's a national holiday, it will be closed on Tuesday instead *Closed on January 1-2
Average price: 3,500 JPY
Address: 1F, Tsubaki Bldg., 3-22, Togano-cho, Kita-ku, Osaka-shi, Osaka
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7. Baniku Dining Pony Tail

This is a restaurant specializing in horse meat. Their flagship dish is the [Basashi 4-kind Assortment (1,850 JPY)], which will allow you to taste and compare 4 different cuts of raw horse meat. They also have a huge variety of nabe dishes, like [Curry Nabe] and [Motsu Nabe]. The most recommended one is the [Dashi Shabu (1,850 JPY for 1 person)]. It's a dish that comes with "shiro (white) dashi" - a refined soup where seasonings such as light shoyu (soy sauce) have been added to the dashi - in which the meat is parboiled as in shabu-shabu. Their goal is to offer you the freshest meat possible, so they'll slice the meat only after you order it.

Baniku Dining Pony Tail

Open: 5:00 pm - 12:00 am (Food L.O. 11:00 pm, Drinks L.O. 11:30 pm)
Closed: Monday
Average price: 4,000 JPY
Address: 427-4, Murodo-cho, Izumi-shi, Osaka

8. Kita Shinchi O Nabeya Main Branch

The counter seats of this restaurant surround 3 large nabes, each with a diameter of 1m. In this case, you don't cook the ingredients but are served the food cooked in these big hot pots. Their classic menu items are [Nikomi] (stew) and [Oden] (Japanese one-pot winter dish). The [Motsu Niku Tofu (480 JPY)] is made with stewed Wagyu (a type of high-quality beef) offal, melty and tender, combined with delicious tofu that enhances its umami to the fullest. If you order the [Oden (5-kind Assortment 650 JPY)], you'll get to taste 5 of the 20 items from among their processed seafood and vegetables that have been cooking all day in dashi and shoyu. You will surely enjoy it, as the flavors have soaked right through the ingredients, giving it a strong and deep flavor.

Kita Shinchi O Nabeya Main Branch

Open: [Weekdays, Day before National Holidays] 5:00 pm - 5:00 am (L.O. 4:00 am)
[National Holidays] 5:00 pm - 11:00 pm (L.O. 10:00 pm)
[Saturday] 5:00 pm - 12:00 am (L.O. 11:00 pm)
Closed: Sunday
Average price: 4,000 JPY
Address: 1-9-24, Sonezaki Shinchi, Kita-ku, Osaka-shi, Osaka

9. Kani Don-ya

This restaurant specializes in crab. Their products vary according to the season: from April to late September you'll find snow crab, while from October to late March they use red king crab. Snow crabs have a sweet meat that makes them ideal for those who want to enjoy the umami of crab. Red king crabs, on the other hand, are meatier due to the bigger legs. You can choose from 3 different courses (7,020 JPY, 7,560 JPY, 9,180 JPY) to indulge in crab cuisine, cooked by different methods, like charcoal grilled and in tempura. All 3 courses come with Kani nabe.

Kani Don-ya

Open: Lunch 11:30 am - 3:00 pm / Dinner 5:00 pm - 11:00 pm
Closed: Wednesday *No holidays on December but closed on New Year's Eve and New Year's Day
Average price: [Dinner] 8,000 JPY
Access: 8 minutes walk from Takojizo Station
Address: 2-23-1, Minamiue-machi, Kishiwada, Osaka Map
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10. Akakara Umeda Higashi-dori Branch

Aka-miso is a reddish flavoring and is a famous condiment of Nagoya, a city between Tokyo and Osaka. By combining this Nagoya aka-miso with red pepper, this restaurant invented its special [Akakara Nabe (990 JPY)], a nabe dish with “a spicy hot soup characterized by a strong red color” (aka means red; kara means spicy). You can choose from 10 degrees of spiciness, so if you're not into spicy food, order the "Aka no. 1". When you're done eating all the ingredients, you can finish off the remaining soup with rice and cheese by ordering the [Cheese Risotto (390 JPY)].

Akakara Umeda Higashi-dori Branch

Open: 5:00 pm - 12:00 am (Food L.O. 11:00 pm, Drinks L.O. 11:30 pm)
Closed: None *Closed on December 31 and January 1
Average price: 2,800 JPY
Address: 4F, Kakuso Bldg., 7-7, Doyama-cho, Kita-ku, Osaka-shi, Osaka
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11. Chayamachi Koshitsu Robata Rakube

Enjoy this restaurant's authentic Japanese cuisine that will give you an awareness of the passing of the seasons, thanks to its dishes made with seasonal products. From November to February, it's possible to have Japanese amberjack, a migratory fish. This is when its meat is the fattiest and tasty. Between February and March, you'll get to order the popular winter limited edition [Buri Shabu Nabe], made with Japanese amberjack. Order this and you can steep your Japanese amberjack sashimi in hot dashi, made with a generous amount of grated radish and yuzu (citrus fruit) zest, and enjoy it half-raw. With your remaining soup, it is recommended to make a Zosui (rice soup) with spicy mentaiko(seasoned cod roe) and rice.

Chayamachi Koshitsu Robata Rakube

Open: [Weekdays] Lunch 11:30 am - 3:00 pm, Dinner 5:00 pm - 12:00 am
[Day before National Holidays] Dinner 5:00 pm - 12:00 am
[Sunday, National Holidays] 11:30 am - 11:00 pm
[Saturday] 11:30 am - 12:00 am
Closed: None
Average price: [Dinner] 3,150 JPY / [Lunch] 900 JPY
Address: 2F, Kaisei Chaya-machi Bldg., 6-18, Chaya-machi, Kita-ku, Osaka-shi, Osaka

12. Nobishiro Shokudo

This izakaya offers a non-smoking and clean space for you to enjoy sake and teppanyaki (ingredients grilled on an iron griddle) dishes. Their [Shio Motsu Nabe (980 JPY for 1 person)] is a delicacy you must absolutely try. It's made with fresh offal from Kuroge Wagyu directly delivered from the production area. The soup has a simple salty taste and is made with beef bones carefully stewed for half a day. Alternatively, the [Taiwan Motsu Nabe (1,180 JPY for 1 person)] is a creative blend of the [Shio Motsu Nabe] and Nagoya's typical [Taiwan Ramen], topped with minced pork meat simmered with red pepper, Chinese chives and bean sprouts and some other ingredients. Enjoy the spiciness combined with the umami-rich soup!

Nobishiro Shokudo

Open: 5:00 pm - 11:00 pm (L.O. 10:30 pm)
Closed: Sunday, National Holidays
Average price: 3,000 JPY
Address: 102, 2-4-1, Senrioka, Settsu-shi, Osaka
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13. Kotoya

A shabu-shabu and sukiyaki specialty restaurant. In their various nabe dishes, they mainly use domestic first-class Kuroge Wagyu from Kyushu. As for vegetables, they only use the best and safest local products available. Their prices depend on the beef quality, so, for example, the [Tokujo-sen Kokusan Kuroge Wagyu Sukiyaki Course], which includes an aperitif, 2-3 dishes, rice, and fruit, is available for 11,340 JPY. You'll be able to sample their top-class A5-rank beef. If you like pork, try the [Tokujo-sen Buta Kimchi Nabe Course (3,990 JPY)]. It's a super popular dish that will allow you to enjoy the sweetness of pork meat combined with the spiciness of kimchi.

Kotoya

Open: 5:00 pm - 1:00 am
Closed: Irregular *Closed on Sunday and National Holidays
Average price: 7,000 JPY
Address: 2-3-21, Higashi Shinsaibashi, Chuo-ku, Osaka-shi, Osaka
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14. Banshu Jidori Genki

The "Banshu Jidori" (local chicken of Banshu) in the restaurant name refers to a brand of chicken raised in Hyogo Prefecture, next to Osaka to the west. Come to this restaurant to enjoy several types of yakitori (grilled chicken skewer) made with this delicious chicken raised healthily in a wide open space. If you're in the mood for nabe, don't miss the [Shiroi Soup no Jidori Nabe (3,800 JPY)], whose white soup is made by stewing Banshu Jidori for 3 days. You can enjoy it as mizutaki (mild flavored nabe), and cook the chicken and vegetables in the soup. Banshu Jidori's main feature is its moderately chewy texture, combined here with fresh and umami-rich vegetables directly delivered from the contract farmer, resulting in a must-try item. This is ideal not only in winter, but also in summer to soothe heat fatigue.

Banshu Jidori Genki

Open: [Weekdays] 5:30 pm - 12:00 am (L.O. 11:30 pm)
[Saturday] 5:30 pm - 10:00 pm (L.O. 9:00 pm)
Closed: Sunday, National Holidays
Average price: 5,000 JPY
Address: 1F, Umeshizu Bldg., 1-8-7, Sonezaki Shinchi, Kita-ku, Osaka-shi, Osaka

In nabe dishes, the soup flavor changes according to the juices from the various ingredients. The different flavors and soups are what make nabe dishes amazing! Plus, you can sit around the hot pot and enjoy a convivial night with your friends, which is always sure to be a good time. Definitely worth a try!

Disclaimer: All information is accurate at time of publication.