I’m sliding in right before the end of the year for part 2 of our Japan travel recommendations – this time all about our second stop, Osaka! We decided to spend 4 days of our trip in Osaka (with 1 day set aside for a day trip to neighboring Kyoto) because we heard that it has the best food in Japan, and we were certainly not disappointed! Osaka is known as the “nation’s kitchen” and is famous for its incredibly high-caliber street food. I am so glad we spent a few days in Osaka and really got to explore the city because it was just so different from Tokyo – much more casual, a little grittier, and full of new-to-us foods and the friendliest people. In Osaka, we ate much more casually than in Tokyo – more street food and casual gastropubs than fine dining and restaurants – and nearly everything we ate was just so, so good. I highly recommend including a few days in Osaka on any Japan trip. Read on for our eating and drinking highlights!