Speaking of Osaka, Kushiage and Kushikatsu is very popular local food and there are large number of those restaurants here and there.
Kushiage and Kushikatsu is deep-fried Skewers.
Once you get off at Namba station, you can find some Kushiage restaurants like “Kushikatsu Daruma” with easily.
So, I thought tonkatsu is not popular foods in Osaka because it’s similar to kushikatsu.
Certainly, I don’t find much tonkatsu restaurant in Osaka.
But I heard that there’s NO.1 tonkatsu restaurant in Japan that have the highest reputation in Osaka.
The restaurant’s name is Tonkatsu Manje.
Location
It takes about 5 minutes walk from the northern gate of Yao station.
Rule of waiting
They are open from 11:30 a.m.,
But at first, you have to get to earlier time because they put reservation sheet in front of the shop at 9 a.m. and visitors write own name and number of group on the paper.
At first, my friend said to me that I should arrive at 11 a.m., but when he got to there past 9 a.m., much names were already on the paper and we couldn’t take the seats just after the opening time.
So he mailed to me that I should arrived at the station at noon.
I heard he killed his time in the manga cafe and slept until I got to there.
Yao is calm town. But I was so surprised that there were too many people in front of the restaurant. Just around this restaurant !
Fortunately, as soon as we got to the restaurant, our name was called and the waitress took us to the counter seats. It was 10 minutes before noon.
Only 13 seats
They have 13 counter seats only. It’s narrow.
The chef trained at French foods restaurant in the hotel and made good use of that experience in his tonkatsu.
Special salt and sauce for tonkatsu
Salt and sauce could be chosen from two each, so we ordered everything and shared.
* Salt – Black charcoal salt, White truffle salt
* Sauce – Pork cutlet sauce, Original sauce
After we finished order, at first, our salt was served. I was so surprised because our salt was served on such a large plate. And the plate was warm.
I had no idea what to do because those dishes occupied my table.
Best Tonkatsu
After a while our tonkatsu was served.
Hyuga Aji-Buta pork tonkatsu
My tonkatsu, Hyuga Aji-Buta pork tonkatsu (日向あじ豚, 1640 yen)
Hyuga Aji-Buta pork is branded pork in Miyazaki prefecture. I didn’t know its name at all.
It is said that the meat is white and sweet.
The pork was not too fat and easy to eat. I like this degree of fat.
I ate these tonkatsu with salt, with sauce, with olive oil and with mustard.
I enjoyed many ways of eating tonkatsu !
Umm. Though it was delicious, it was hard to eat ! My tonkatsu and rice was too far ! :O
Tokyo X and deluxe fillet cutlet
He ordered Tokyo X and deluxe fillet cutlet (TOKYO Xと特上ヘレカツ, 3400 yen)
Tokyo X is mixed pork (Beijin black pork, English black pork and durock). It’s precious pork. So, the price is every high.
According to Tabelog (like Yelp in Japan), this is the most popular tonkatsu restaurant in Japan. But I didn’t think so. Certainly it was excellent and when I visit Osaka, I want to go there again. But Narikura is far the better. Of course, Tonkatsu Manje is, needless to say, the best tonkatsu restaurant in Kansai area, I think.
About Tonkatsu Manje (とんかつマンジェ)
Address / 2-3-22 Yokoen, Yao-shi, Osaka
Phone No / +81 (0)72-996-0175
Station / Yao station (JR, Kintetsu)
Open / 11:30 a.m. – 2 p.m., 5 p.m. – 9 p.m.
Closed / Mondays (In case of national holiday it is open and the next day is closed) , 2nd and 3rd Tuesdays
Reservation, credit card / Unavailable
Smoking / Not permitted