There are many unique curry shops in the Shinsaibashi and Namba area. You can enjoy a wide variety of curry styles, from the specialty curry of long-established shops to authentic spice curry and creative curry. This time, we will pick out the most popular shops and introduce the characteristics and reputation of each one.
1. Jiyuken Namba Main Branch
It’s a popular restaurant that attracts tourists looking for the flavor of a long-established restaurant, and it’s considered a local specialty that all Osaka residents should try at least once.
This long-established Western restaurant was founded in 1910. It serves Japanese-style mixed curry, which has been loved for over 100 years since the heyday of Western food culture. Its distinctive style is to top its famous curry, which is made by mixing rice and roux, with a raw egg. Adding Worcestershire sauce makes it even more flavorful.
Genre: Famous curry from a long-established Western restaurant
Access: 2 minutes walk from Exit 11 of Namba Station
Business hours: 11:00-20:00 (closed on Mondays)
Popular menu: Famous curry (with raw egg)
A raw egg is dropped into a light dashi-based roux, and you can add Worcestershire sauce to taste. It is said that Jiyuken was the first in Japan to start topping the raw egg and sauce.
Customer reviews: It has been praised for its “nostalgic taste” and “a dish that really evokes Osaka.” It continues to be loved by locals and tourists alike.
Address: 3-1-34 Namba, Chuo-ku, Osaka City, Osaka Prefecture, 542-0076
Phone number: 0666315564
2. Curryya Madras Nihonbashi Main Branch
A restaurant that serves sweet and spicy European-style curry to suit Japanese tastes, rather than Indian curry.
It has a unique taste that starts off sweet, followed by a spiciness. It comes in a generous portion and is reasonably priced.
Genre: European-style curry
Access: About 7 minutes on foot from Ebisucho Station
Business hours: 11:00-20:00 (until 19:00 on Mondays and Thursdays)
Popular menu item: Madras curry (characterized by a sweet and spicy roux)
The basic “Madras curry” is a simple style of rice topped with a generous amount of sweet and spicy roux. You can choose from small (600 yen), medium (700 yen), and large (800 yen) sizes, but even the medium size is as filling as a large serving at other restaurants.
Customer reviews: “Sweet and spicy, addictive” and “Very filling, great value for money.” Also selected as one of Tabelog’s “Top 100 Curry Restaurants.”
Address: 4-3-12 Nihonbashi, Naniwa-ku, Osaka City, Osaka Prefecture, 556-0005
Phone number: 0666449020
3. ALI’S KITCHEN
This is an authentic ethnic restaurant that offers Halal-friendly Pakistani cuisine. The dishes, made with authentic cooking methods and spices, are said to be something you can’t find anywhere else.
An authentic Pakistani restaurant that is rare in Japan. The spice-packed “Brain Masala” is a special dish that can only be enjoyed here.
Genre: Pakistani cuisine, Halal curry
Access: Shinsaibashi Station, Exit 2 Located on the first basement floor of a building just outside of Osaka Metro Shinsaibashi Station, Exit 2, it is conveniently located near the station.
Business hours: 11:00-15:00 / 17:00-22:00 (closed on Thursdays)
Popular dishes: Brain masala (sheep brain curry), biryani
Reviews: Selected as a Michelin Bib Gourmand. The highly aromatic spice dishes are popular, and there are many foreign customers. Biryani, a rice dish cooked with multiple spices, is also a specialty, and the biryani set for lunch is highly acclaimed as being delicious.
Address: 1-10-12 Shinsaibashisuji, Chuo-ku, Osaka City, Osaka Prefecture, 542-0085
Phone number: 0647085745
4. Labyrynth
Located in the Shinmachi area of Nishi-ku, Osaka, this restaurant is known for its unique style of serving authentic mapo tofu along with curry. It is a famous and popular restaurant among curry lovers.
This restaurant is famous for its unique curry that combines spicy curry with authentic mapo tofu.
Genre: Spicy curry x Chinese cuisine
Access: 3 minutes walk from Yotsubashi Station
Business hours: 11:30-14:00 / 18:00-21:00 (dinner reservations required)
Popular menu: Keema curry covered in green onions + Mapo tofu
Reviews: “The combination of curry and mapo is exquisite” and “It has a taste like no other”. Many enthusiastic fans say that dinner requires a reservation, making it a famous restaurant frequented by enthusiastic fans as the “maze of the curry world”.
Address: 1-20-1 Shinmachi, Nishi-ku, Osaka City, Osaka Prefecture, 550-0013
Phone number: 0665780015
5. Wareya Minamisenba Goyakura
A pioneer of “Ware”, a fusion of Japanese dashi culture and spice curry, this restaurant serves original curry.
A pioneer of spicy curry using Japanese-style broth, this curry restaurant offers an excellent balance of spiciness and flavor.
Genre: Japanese-style soup stock x spice curry
Access: 8 minutes on foot from Nagahoribashi Station
Business hours: 11:30-15:00 (12:00- on Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays) *No evening service (closed Wednesdays and Thursdays)
Popular menu items: Super spicy chicken keema + beef curry
Customer reviews: Highly rated by curry lovers, with comments such as “The spiciness and numbness are the best” and “A new frontier for Japanese-style curry.” Regularly listed on Tabelog’s “Top 100 Curry Restaurants.”
There are many enthusiastic fans who say, “I’m addicted to the spicy, numbing curry” and “It’s a spiciness like no other.” In fact, the restaurant is often full immediately after opening, and there have been reports of people waiting for more than 30 minutes from 11:00.
Address: 1-7-8 Minamisenba, Chuo-ku, Osaka City, Osaka Prefecture, 542-0081
6. NOMSON CURRY
In addition to the classic “Nomura-san’s Chicken Curry,” they also offer different curries made with meat, keema, and seafood every day.
A different curry is served every day, and you can enjoy a combination of up to three different curries.
Genre: Daily spice curry
Access: 7-8 minutes on foot from Nihonbashi Station or Shitennoji-mae Yuhigaoka Station
It is a 7-8 minute walk from Nihonbashi Station on the Osaka Metro Sakaisuji Line or Sennichimae Line, or a 7-8 minute walk from Shitennoji-mae Yuhigaoka Station on the Tanimachi Line.
Business hours: 11:30-16:00 (closed on Mondays)
Popular menu: Nomura-san’s chicken curry + mixed curry (love triangle curry)
Reviews: This popular restaurant in Ura-Namba (Ura Ponbashi) is sure to have a line, and at lunchtime, a line forms in front of the store in no time. It is talked about as being “a different taste every time” and “the spices and meat are amazing.” It was also selected as one of Tabelog’s “100 Best Curry Restaurants.”
Address: 1-11-2 Nihonbashi Higashi, Naniwa-ku, Osaka City, Osaka Prefecture, 556-0006
Phone number: 0643938605
summary
The Shinsaibashi and Namba area is home to a variety of curry restaurants, from long-established restaurants that preserve traditional flavors to creative curry dishes that use spices to their fullest. Each restaurant offers a unique and flavorful dish. If you like curry, be sure to try a few and find your favorite!
