Dotonbori Imai - Main Shop

Happened to stumble upon this shop when I was passing by. It's a very simple and traditional looking shop right infront of a bunch of crowded takoyaki/king crab shops. I went with my mum at around 4:30pm-5pm so there weren't any queue. If you wanna have an escape from the overcrowding at Shinsaibashi to have some peace, quiet and comfort food, this is the place to go. Perhaps not like a "wow" place for foodies or gourmets with high expectations. The waiter was fluent in English, the other elder waitresses were kind as well. I requested an English menu, price were the same as the Japanese menu, however I would say the Japanese menu had more options especially for desserts. My mum had nabeyaki udon and I ordered their 柚子あんそば。The udon was smooth and chewy and the broth was delicious. The yuzu an soba was zaru soba in a thick broth mixed with yuzu, giving it a really different special taste. I finished the soup 😋 Last but not least, their yuzu jelly 😍 found it only in the Japanese menu. A simple dessert consisting of jelly chunks and yuzu fruit, not too sweet, perfect for summer I would say. Overall a very pleasant experience, hope to revisit again in the future. 😁

Came here after doing my research and it was worth it. It was a very traditional shop that has been around for many years, serving fresh udon with an amazing dashi soup to go with it. I highly recommend getting the kitsune (sweet tofu pouch) udon as it goes really well with the noodles and soup. The duck was a bit tough for my liking. It was a heartwarming first meal in Osaka and I will definitely be coming back the next time I visit.

There could be a long wait for a table and an additional wait after placing your order, but all is very worth the time. The noodles are perfectly cooked, the texture of the udon is so smooth yet not too soft and paired nicely with the delicate broth. The sweet and icy ginger juice drink was also a good match for the hot and humid weather. So glad I stopped by for lunch.

Dec 2024. Found this restaurant for hot udon. I had the Nabe udon which came with kamu, unagi and other assortments. The soup was clean and tasty. 😋

Came m here as we wanted to have udon and the reviews were pretty good. Upon entering, you notice that it’s really quiet and nice to be away from the hustle and bustle of the very busy streets. Order the 2 of the recommended udons on the menu. The broths were light and flavorful and the udon was chewy and cooked well but neither dishes really hit the spot or were spectacular to grant a 5/5. Service was great and friendly as most Japanese staff in hospitality. We waited about 5mins prior to eating but when we left it was very busy with a long queue. Overall, we left feeling a bit underwhelmed considering the reviews. Bonus, we compared the Japanese version and English version of the menu, prices were the same.

Dotonbori Imai Honten is an udon specialist located at the heart of the very busy Dotonbori shopping area. The noodle shop stands out as a traditional Japanese country side house surrounded by a mini running stream and cobbled path. The main dining room is spacious, bright and clean. Servers are very efficient. Average dining time is about half an hour. The signature Nabeyaki-Udon (JPY 1,750) is delicious and reasonably priced; soup base is not oily and the duck meat is tender.

Very good service! Our waiter spoke fluent english and helped us. Though most of the menu was in Japanese, we managed to order great dishes and had such fun and authentic experience :)

The soba here was really good! Highly recommend trying the Oden! We also got the duck bento soba which wasn’t in the English menu, but it was so tasty! Service was great as well :-)