Top Kansai Prefecture Food & Drink

Take a deep-dive into Japanese culture and experience Osaka like a local on this evening walking tour. Join your Japanese-Australian guide, Andy, to explore the city’s historic districts, including the former ghetto and the Red Light district. Learn about Osaka’s history, heritage, and local traditions; venture down the backstreets to visit quirky sites often missed by travelers; and sample traditional street foods. Upgrade to include a delicious dinner of typical ‘kushikatsu’ cuisine.

If you want to party like they do in Osaka, this bar-hopping tour is perfect for you. Your local guide takes you to hidden bars that tourists often miss. If you don’t speak Japanese, don’t let language barriers get in your way. Your guide helps to explain the menus, and order for you. This is a fun tour for friends or couples, and makes a great start to a night out in Osaka.

Gain a better understanding of sake during this tour that explores the Fushimi Sake District of Kyoto. Visit Gekkeikan Okura Sake Museum, one of the largest sake breweries in Fushimi, and end your visit with a sake-tasting session. Not only will your guide be able to explain the basics of sake and introduce you to new kinds you may have never tried, but your tastings will also be paired with Japanese snacks that enhance the tasting experience. 

When visiting Osaka, it can be challenging to discover where the locals go to eat and drink. Join some Osaka residents for a night out, and come home feeling like you’ve made new friends. Your personable guides navigate a small group of eight or fewer to the izakayas and backstreet bars of Namba, Shinsaibashi, and Amemura, where you sample local food and drink throughout the evening.

Get a deeper experience of Kyoto food culture than would be possible on your own by joining this guided tour. Stroll through the districts of Gion and Pontocho, stopping in to small bars and restaurants to sample traditional drinks and food, as you explore.

If you’re visiting Japan for the first time, receive a cultural introduction to the country during a tea ceremony in traditional kimonos. During the ceremony, learn about Japanese history and sample matcha green tea, a local specialty. Plus, wearing a traditional kimono means you leave the experience with fantastic photographs to commemorate your time in Kyoto.

Our service is unique in that it is always “tourist-friendly.” The price is clear(USD 200 or JPY 22,000). We do not close bookings until 3 PM on the show day and not have a minimum number of participants. You can decide today to join the dinner without any possibility of cancellation. Also, the MC is a Kyoto-city official guide and our sophisticated program will never get you bored. This makes this dinner experience immersable. Time flies while you are enjoying the graceful dances, traditional party games, Q&A sessions, talking with Maiko in person and the Japanese set menu called “Kaiseki.” Photos and movies are ALL-YOU-CAN-SHOOT. You will have a memorable night with us!

Get an excellent introduction to the cuisine of Kyoto on this small-group guided tour of the city's best food spots. Start at the deliciously vast 400-year-old Nishiki Market, nicknamed 'Kyoto's Kitchen,' where over 130 food shops and stalls beckon your taste buds. Stroll through the market with the guide, learning about the history of food in the city and taste many dishes unique to Kyoto, including pickled vegetables, fried fish cakes, Japanese pike conger eel, mochi and Japanese omelet. After the market, visit a shrine dedicated to the god of education.

Feast your senses on Osaka — widely acknowledged as Japan’s culinary capital — on a 3-hour food tour, ideal for first-time visitors and fans of Japanese cuisine. In a small group limited to no more than 10, you’ll immerse yourself in bright and bustling Dotonbori, the city’s nightlife hub, where you’ll sample specialties such as sushi and sake. Plus, learn to prepare your own takoyaki (octopus balls) under the guidance of a chef.

- 7+ mouth-watering Kyoto-style Japanese food tastings, enough for a full dinner meal, served from locally-owned restaurants (Menu may vary every time based on the fresh ingredients at the market). - Two drinks as we taste local style dinner. You may also choose your drinks (Beer, sake & other drinks). Non-alcoholic beverages are also available. - Explore Kyoto, visiting popular spots as well as hidden gems. Enjoy the unique scenes of Nishiki Market, Pontocho, and Kiyamachi.

Take control of your Kyoto sightseeing and visit only the sights you wish to see on this private walking tour. Ideal for first-time visitors, this tour lets you customize a half-day or full-day itinerary. Opt to visit the Golden Pavilion (Kinkaku-ji), Fushimi Inari Shrine, and Nijo Castle, or to stray from the beaten path to see an alternative side of Kyoto. Hotel pickup and drop-off are included.

Spend some time getting acquainted with the food and culture of two historically important and beautiful districts of Kyoto on this guided walking tour. Stroll over the ninth-century Togetsukyo bridge and make stops to sample local snacks. After a visit to the 14th-century Tenryu-ji temple, head to a beautiful bamboo garden and indulge in some traditional Japanese sweets. This tour of Arashiyama and Sagano is a great way to get to know Kyoto.

Ramen is one of the world’s most popular meals, but few people have mastered the art of home-cooked noodles. During this hands-on workshop, you’ll learn how to prepare the perfect bowl of soupy ramen, from blending ingredients to cutting the noodles using hand-forged Japanese knives. After you’ve mastered the basics, sample your freshly prepared meal, along with ginger chicken and salad. Workshops include a complimentary craft cocktail.

Discover the beauty, art and ritual of the Japanese tea ceremony during this private workshop in Kyoto. Experience true ‘omotenashi’ (hospitality) during your visit to the Tea Ceremony Room of Ju-An, observing as your tea is methodically, painstakingly, boiled, poured and mixed with matcha powder using a bamboo whisk. Enjoy your warm drink accompanied by Japanese sweets as you learn about the intricacies of this timeless custom.

Discover the culture behind ‘Izakaya’ Japanese dining which is similar to pub food in the other countries during a 3 to 3.5-hour cooking class with dinner in Kyoto. Learn five or six of the popular home dishes during a session with a master chef before preparing and eating your own izakaya-style creations. It’s the perfect chance to explore the country’s cuisine beyond the typical sushi and teriyaki offerings. Your izakaya cooking session also includes all ingredients, an instructor and an apron.

Discover the culinary traditions of Japan in Osaka, one of Japan’s best food cities, during this small-group cooking lesson. Learn the preparation methods for popular Japanese dishes including green tea, takoyaki (fried balls of wheat flour and octopus), okonomiyaki (savoury pancakes), and miso soup. Expand your Japanese cuisine knowledge, and best of all, you get to eat your creations when you’re finished. This small-group course, limited to just eight participants, also includes a guide, a cooking instructor, and an optional sake and beer tasting.

Bike tours and food crawls are two much-loved traveler favorites—here’s your chance to combine both. Hop your own set of wheels and follow a private guide on the trail of Osaka’s most delectable food specialties. Stop to take in classic attractions, including Japan’s oldest temple, as you cruise between multiple stops, from a locally-run sushi shop to a bustling market for a bite of grilled wagyu beef.

Enjoy a night out in Osaka without stressing over where to go with this nightlife tour of the city. With visits to at least three bars and one club included, the crawl showcases the city’s most happening venues and introduces you to like-minded travelers at the same time. Enjoy discounted drinks and free shots, and explore Osaka after dark with a group of up to 50 people, aged mostly between 21 and 38 years old. Drinkers must be at least 20 years old, and ID is required.

Sake—traditional rice wine—is Japan’s most famous drink and Kyoto’s Fushimi District is renowned for its sake production, home to over 30 breweries. On this tour, find out how sake is made, discover the many varieties, and learn which sake suits each occasion. Sample seven different sakes, accompanied by tasty Japanese snacks, and leave with a cheat sheet to help you order your favorite sakes while in Japan.

Initia Japanese Cooking Class is a great way to learn how to make traditional Japanese dishes in English. We are teaching Japanese cooking at our home in Kyoto, near Kyoto station. We focus on what local Japanese people really cook and eat, including our family! Our another goal is to share local experience with you by talking, by inviting you to a local's home. Our home isn't fancy but ordinary home. Instead, you can feel how Japanese house is.

Learn to create your own bento box, the iconic (and tasty) convenience meal enjoyed daily by millions of Japanese, during this 3- to 3.5-hour cooking class in Kyoto. Uncover the origins of this uniquely-Japanese foodstuff, and watch master chefs as they demonstrate key cooking techniques, before learning to make your own. Finish your course by enjoying your handmade bento box which may includes items like an egg roll, pickled vegetables, rice, breaded chicken and miso soup. Your course also includes use of an apron, an instructor and all ingredients.

-Feel the nostalgia of the past in Shinsekai with your palate with local foods such as Kushikatsu. This 3-hour food journey will start with visiting the Shinto shine in Shinsekai. You will see an old busy commercial district with the Tsutenkaku Tower as the symbol of this area. -Step in time as your guide takes you through a food alley from the past. You wouldn't believe how much you can explore in this narrow alley which is only 1.2m in width. -Stuff yourself like you mean it at Dotonbori, the "nation's kitchen" with local foods like okonomiyaki and takoyaki. Dotonbori has been the symbol of Osaka for a long time! Historically a merchant city and during the Edo period, it served as a center for the rice trade. Magical Trip is a local tour operator with the TripAdvisor certificate of excellence that offers various types of small-group tours throughout Japan! Check out our Trip Advisor Page for more tours and our reviews!

Andy, your half Japanese/half Australian tour guide, has extensive knowledge of the food, history and culture of the Osaka region after living in here for 12 years. He will offer you a very unique pespective where you will discover 5 authentic, delicious eateries on this tour… food from a hidden restaurants, backstreet stall & markets whilst walking through arcades and plazas rarely visited or known by foreigners. We will dive into some very traditional Osakan eateries. Also Andy strives to show you the real and deep Osaka giving you an understanding of the inner workings of this amazing area visiting some vintage, real, architecture so rich in history while interacting with the locals.

-Stroll around Kyoto's classic district, Gion, before enjoying breakfast Start out the tour by enjoying morning air while walking through Gion. A local tour guide will take you around the serene and quaint morning town of Kyoto. -Experience Kyoto's "one-of-a-kind" breakfast at Nishiki Market known as the "Kitchen of Kyoto." Nishiki market has over 400 years worth of history which has been loved and recognized by locals as the "Kitchen of Kyoto" for a long time. According to the name, "Kitchen of Kyoto," it implies that Nishiki Market is rich with famous gourmet cuisine of Kyoto. -A passionate guide will teach you fun facts about Kyoto A local and knowledgeable guide will provide you with valuable information that you cannot gain from an ordinary sightseeing tour. Magical Trip is a local tour operator with the TripAdvisor certificate of excellence that offers various types of small-group tours throughout Japan! Check out our Trip Advisor Page for more tours and our reviews!