Dotonbori 道頓堀

Osaka’s most famous food street is basically Las Vegas if it mated with a seafood market and gave birth to a canal.

Dotonbori is a sensory overload wonderland where gigantic 3D signs fight for your attention while your nostrils are assaulted by the aromas of a thousand kitchens. Come for the food, stay for the bizarre mechanical displays of crabs that wave at you from building facades.

Dotonbori began in 1612 when an entrepreneurial merchant decided to dig a canal, which apparently is how urban planning worked in the 17th century. Now it’s the epicenter of Osaka’s food culture, where the city motto 食い倒れ kuidaore (eat until you drop) isn’t a suggestion but an inevitability.

Getting there:

• Namba Station (various lines)
• 5-minute walk from Nipponbashi Station

When to visit: Best after dark when the neon explodes to life, but restaurants are open throughout the day. Many places serve food until late night or even 24 hours.

Admission: Free to wander, not free to eat (but worth every yen).

Must-sees: Take your obligatory photo with the Glico Running Man sign (Japan’s oldest neon advertisement, running in place since 1935). Then visit the giant mechanical crab at Kani Doraku restaurant, which has been haunting tourists’ dreams since 1960.

Bonus tip! 蛸焼き takoyaki (octopus balls) is Osaka’s soul food. Try them here where they were invented. Your taste buds will never forgive you otherwise!