Kitashinchi Harami Hozenji

The primary draw of the Kitashinchi Harami restaurants is the fact that they are the first restaurant franchise in the country to specialize in wagyu harami, or wagyu skirt steak. The restaurants' specialty is “maboroshi no harami,” which literally translates to “phantom skirt steak.” Only a few kilograms' worth of harami can be sourced from each cow, making each piece of steak a rarity — so rare it's certainly earned its moniker. At Kitashinchi Harami, the phantom wagyu is most certainly a reality, though. The chefs at the restaurant utilize their extensive network of connections to source some of the finest wagyu beef from all over Japan, and serve it in the most luxurious of ways, such as with caviar or truffle dressing. Of course, the title of phantom wagyu is still very appropriate in a somewhat different sense: the meat is said to be so delicious — cooked to perfection by expert staff assigned to each table — that it disappears almost immediately, snapped up by hungry guests. Due to its location on Hozenji Yokocho, one of Namba’s major cultural attractions, Kitashinchi Harami’s Hozenji outlet is one of the area’s most popular dining options for visitors making a pilgrimage to Hozenji Temple — but visitors to Osaka also line up outside the restaurant’s distinctive wooden doors, drawn by the promise of phantasmal wagyu. Due to the restaurant’s popularity among overseas visitors, menus are also available in English, Mandarin and Korean, among others, so those with no knowledge of Japanese can still place additional orders with full confidence. Have some of the country's finest beef while luxuriating in the warmth of the Hozenji outlet's natural wood interiors.