Osu Street Eats – Where to Get Osu’s Best Street Food

Dec 31, 2021

Osu Street Eats – Where to Get Osu’s Best Street Food

To my surprise, upon my arrival, unlike many Asian nations, Japan does not have a street food culture. I have spent time crouching on street corners eating curry in Thailand and pho in Vietnam. I have wandered Indian streets, munching pakora and gobbled soft crabs from paper bags strolling through southern Taiwan; I had expected Japan to be the same. However, to the Japanese, eating is very much something to do in restaurants.

With that said, there are exceptions. Of course, at summer festivals, you can get all sorts of picky food to wander with, but what to do if you can’t wait until then? Well, get yourself down to Osu.

What is Osu?

Between Nagoya’s central transport area of Meieki (Nagoya Station) in the west and Sakae’s lively shopping district in the east sits Osu, one of the city’s more eclectic areas. Centered around its covered shopping arcade, Osu has an atmosphere similar to Tokyo’s Harajuku, with aging hippies, teenage Goth Lolitas, cosplayers, and hipsters all in one big melting pot.

Furthermore, many places serve excellent street food. Here are just a handful of them:

Osu Gohei Mochi

Believed to have originated as offerings to the gods (or perhaps simply invented by a man called Gohei), gohei mochi is a very simple mochi and miso snack from Gifu Prefecture.

The owner of Osu Gohei Mochi hails from this area and offers up two options of fresh mochi: the classic Gifu walnut flavor or Nagoya-inspired red miso.

Where: 2 Chome-12-12 Osu, Naka Ward, Nagoya (map)
Website: tabelog.com

Bao House

There are all manners of Chinese steamed buns out there, and there is a good chance you’ve had one or two, but you’ve probably never had anything quite like those at Bao House.

Run by a Japanese woman and her Australian husband, Bao House specializes in Taiwanese buns with a difference. Not only do they make traditional Taiwanese buns with shredded pork belly, but you can also get Nagoya-flavoured fried king prawn, spicy sauce karaage, and fried fish.

Where: 3 Chome-42-4 Osu, Naka Ward, Nagoya (map)
Website: facebook.com

Marino Pizza and Pasta

You may not consider pasta to be the best dish for eating on the go, but that’s just because you’re thinking of the wrong delivery concept. Opened in October, Marino serves its freshly homemade portions of pasta in coned cups, making it perfect for eating while wandering.

Also served in cups are french fries, fried chicken, and fruit salad. Of course, their pizza isn’t in a cup – that would be too strange – but you can get it by the slice, New York style.

Where: Osu, Naka-ku, Nagoya-shi, AichiIwanoya Building 1st floor (map)
Website: marino-net.co.jp

Fujinomiya Yakisoba Osu Ajiyoshi

Though Ajiyoshi is best known for its Fujinomiya Yakisoba, they are yet to follow Marino’s lead and dish up their fried noodles in little cups. However, that does not mean that you should skip it on your street food tour. Instead, Ajiyoshi is highly recommended for their tamasen. Essentially a rice cracker sandwich, tamasen is a grill-fried egg between two thin, savory sembei crackers, topped with lashings of sauce native to Nagoya, and is a firm festival favorite. But there’s no need to wait for summer because at Ajiyoshi, you can get one of these delicious treats all year round.

Where: 3 Chome-28-14 Osu, Naka Ward (map)
Contact: +817016441977

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Image: By eeems via flickr.com [CC BY-NC-ND 2.0]
Image: By Bao House via https://www.facebook.com/
Image: By Marino Pizza and pasta via https://www.marino-net.co.jp/shop/menu/