Takoyasu

We felt completely ripped off at this restaurant. We invited our local friend, a chef, for a special meal with wild fugu fish. In the end, we were very disappointed. The presentation was poor, the food was tasteless, and overall it felt like a scam. On top of that, the fried fugu dish — which is usually part of the menu — was charged separately. We still don’t understand how this restaurant managed to get a star, while so many other places that do a much better job still don’t have one.

Reservation required. We got super lucky w last minute cancelation that allowed us to dine with only 30 minute notice. The experience was top notch. Food is tasty and well presented. Hostess was attentive and explained the courses. If you want to eat fugu, best to hit a top rated place like Takoyasu. Would not be sorry. Best part of the course was the rice porridge. Really captured the flavors.

The experience of finishing a WILD pufferfish hot pot is truly unforgettable! The delicious pufferfish has a delicate texture, and with the steaming hot broth, each bite feels like a taste of the ocean. The aromatic broth and the sweet flavor of the pufferfish blend together, creating a feast for the taste buds. The pufferfish slices cooked in the pot are tender and melt-in-your-mouth, making it an indulgent experience. The accompanying ingredients, such as mushrooms, tofu, and various vegetables, add rich texture, making it hard to stop at just one bite. Finally, the rich flavor of the broth leaves you feeling satisfied, as if you’re enveloped in warmth. In summary, pufferfish hot pot is not just a culinary delight but also a warm gathering experience that leaves you content and reluctant to leave!

Great service and food quality. The waitress was so friendly and spoke great English, and they explain how to eat every dish in English as well. It’s my first time trying Fugu and the fish they have are the large ones that are extra chewy, so the texture is kind of unexpected and interesting. The after meal dessert is crown melon from Shizuoka, worth usually 200-300 usually dollars for a whole melon, and is the softest and juiciest I’ve have ever.

If you are going to try Fugu definitely try it at a Michelin Star restaurant. However, I did not think this was worth the price of $500 ish for two people. It was an experience to say I had fugu but it wasn’t anything out of this world. I like how progression of the meal professed but it just didn’t taste like anything wow.

Not cheap for sure, but worth a try. To be honest, sashimi tastes so so, but the hot-pot soup and porridge are really awesome.

We have chosen a 1 star Michelin restaurant experience for eating fugu as we were very keen to discover thia dish with the service level we find with a star Michelin. But some aspect were not worth paying €145 cad person: - at the question "which kind of sake you are serving us between daijinjo or junmai daijinjo etc" the answer has been "it's sake"... ... - no explanation of what to expect and the different dishes they were about to serve - not having explained..(see point above) they asked us if we wanted extra dishes in advance.. .. - bills came without being asked and while we were finishing our tea, not even asking if we would like some more (no time constraints have been warned, so we had planty of time) - we didn't cross or greet the chef

Very bad experience. They may good for the fugu but the conger didn't have any taste. There is no preparation (except face to you), no sauce, the vegetables aren't good. Until the end it was shamy. We finished in a supermarket for eating something. We have eaten in others Michelin restaurant and we never see that.

During my stay in Japan, I went to 5 3-Michelin star restaurants and many other top rated restaurants in the country. I would rank Takoyasu as one of my top 3. This restaurant is currently ranked as one of the top 10 restaurants and the best Fugu restaurant in the entire Japan on Tabelog (the Japanese equivalent of Yelp with much harsher critics). Overall, I paid $260 for their shabu shabu course + additional fried fugu + grilled fugu fin sake. I think this is a very reasonable price for the quality of food I got. Below is my review of each individual dish/drink. Fugu skin (cold dish) - Fugu skin with a quail egg yolk on top. I find it a bit too salty for me by itself, but the texture was fantastic and it went well with the fugu sake I got. Grilled Fugu fin sake - Now this drink was very interesting. They put 2 pieces of grilled fugu fins inside of a glass of warm sake, then lit it on fire. The sake was warm with a hint of smokey fish flavor. I liked it a lot. Fugu sashimi - A plate of fugu sashimi with Japanese scallions and this red-colored wasabi (at least I thought it was wasabi). Fugu sashimi was prepared in a similar fashion as geoduck sashimi (given that you had geoducks before)- very thinly sliced. The texture of the sashimi was also similar to that of geoduck: very very crunchy. To eat it, you were supposed to take a slice of sashimi, wrap it in scallions and wasabi, then dip it in soy sauce. This tasted divine and was probably my favorite sashimi, ever. Fried fugu - When you fry fugu, the texture changes. This dish had the texture of chicken/swordfish but not stringy like chicken. This was like a premium version of fried chicken IMO. Fugu shabu shabu - Our shabu shabu came with vegies, tofu, fried-tofu skin, 2 different types of mushrooms, 4 cuts of fugu (Bone, spine, mouth, and face) and 4 slices of fugu. I will review the fugu cuts individually. Fugu slices (shabu shabu) - the slices were supposed to boil for only 3 seconds and not longer. You must eat them half-raw. Flavor-wise they tasted nothing like the fugu sashimi (they were richer), yet texture-wise they were still crunchy. The sauce that came with the shabu shabu was some soy based scallion sauce (a different sauce from the sashimi sauce) that complemented the fugu slices perfectly. Fugu bone/spine/face/mouth (shabu shabu) - These were fully cooked. Now, if you never had fugu, I don't think I can explain in words nor in pictures of how they tasted like, because they tasted nothing like any of the fish I have ever tasted. Texture-wise, they tasted like a firmer version of mushroom, the meat was firmer than other fish and it seemed like the texture won't change even if you overcook them a little. Flavor-wise they were similar to that of a river fish, very rich, earthy, and savory. My favorite cut would be the mouth because it also came with some skins attached. Fugu porridge - Most traditional Japanese kaiseki concludes with a rice dish. This fugu course concluded with rice porridge. Basically, they used the left-over broth from my fugu shabu shabu along with some other ingredients to make this shabu shabu. Keep in mind that my shabu shabu broth was already infused with tofu, mushrooms, and Japanese vegetables. The additional ingredients added were Japanese scallions, porridge soup, rice and egg. This porridge was so good that it tasted like it was meant to be consumed by gods. Fugu gelatin - Along with the porridge, they gave me some fugu gelatin that was made with fugu and a savory gelatin with a hint of sweetness (from ponzu sauce maybe). This gelatin took the porridge to a whole different level, because the porridge was light in flavor while this gelatin was very rich and savory. The combination was godlike. Crown melon from Shizuoka (desert) - This was one of the most expensive and tasty melon in Japan. Each melon came with a certificate when you purchase it and they won't let it to be exported out of Japan. The melon itself was incredible juicy, sweet melon juices "exploded" in my mouth as I chewed through it. It also had a soft, creamy texture that seemed like it could melt in your mouth like icecream. Overall, if you want to have the best fugu experience in Osaka (or even in Japan), eat here.