At Cafe Y, "Toast Lady" Chisato Kijima has been serving airline personnel, students and local families massive, homestyle meals for 43 years and counting.

Located in Osaka's vibrant, working-class district of Nishinari, this restaurant serves up authentic local dishes at affordable prices.

Rock stars Haruko Sakuragawa and Yasuhiro Ando serve up innovative kushikatsu skewers — Osakan soul food — in a blues-themed environment.

Don't let Doner Kebab Chao's nondescript "take-out joint" decor fool you: It serves some of the most innovative chicken and beef doner kebabs in Osaka.

Steeped in local history, Osaka Ikuno Koreatown's 120 shops are a mecca for locals or visitors hankering for some Korean, Japanese or fusion cuisine, as well as shops selling contemporary K-pop merchandise.

A desire to promote self-expression and creative endeavors inspired Haruki Kumagai to open the Imagination Pika Space performance venue and bar in Osaka's Shinsekai neighborhood.

With a seemingly endless menu of hearty and tasty options, Daimon Okonomiyaki Dojo has made a name for itself as a must-visit okonomiyaki restaurant.

After surviving as a prisoner of war in Krasnoyarsk, Eastern Siberia, Toyokazu Matsubara taught himself to cook and opened up an izakaya bar-restaurant, Kurasuno, which has become a multigenerational family enterprise and beloved neighborhood treasure.

Jigokudani (Hell Valley) is a hidden labyrinth of about two-dozen small bars and restaurants near Noda Station in Osaka's Fukushima Ward.

At Calayer, a curry restaurant that pays homage to thrash metal band Slayer, chef Takahiro Kubo prepares innovative, constantly changing curries for meat-lovers and vegans alike.