so...

It's been about a year since my last visit to Talo Coffee.

If you remember, it wasn't a very pleasant one.

Fast forward to Monday.

I had intended to have lunch at a Chinese restaurant, but they took an unexpected day off...boo.

The udon shop that I had bookmarked, which is next door to the Chinese restaurant already had a krazy line...boo.

So, I decided to give Talo Coffee another try which was just up the road.

Usually I don't give places another chance, because there are just too many other places to try out there...

Anyway, I went into Talo and the place was kind of packed, which I should've taken as a sign.

They did have a table reserved and a table to seat 4 open, but since I was alone, I was told I needed to wait until a table opened up.

So I did.

While I waited I was instructed to look at the menu and decide what I wanted to order.

I ordered the cheese omelette rice (omurice) topped with fried shrimp.

While I waited for my food, a couple left so their table opened up.

I was reseated there and within minutes a salad and my order came out.

As I was eating the same tension like the one during my previous visit was in the air...trying to turn tables when there really weren't people waiting for them.

In fact, as I was eating, the waitress came to clear the empty plate that my salad was on.

I had a couple more bites of omurice and she was trying to clear that plate too! WT?!

Another unpleasant experience...

Bummer because their food is delicious.

Never going back though.

catch-22

The other day, I went to Talo Coffee for lunch.

I had intended to try their thick omelette sandwich, but figured I would just miss the serving time (11:00).

When I got there, there were many seats taken and the lunch menu was displayed outside.

The waitress asked me if I was there for lunch, and I said "yes". She then asked, "You aren't here for the thick omelette sandwich?"

(I was actually there for that but figured that they weren't serving it already and said I was there for lunch...)

So I said, "no I'm here for lunch".

She again asked me about the sandwich and I again said I was there for lunch...geez!

I ordered the ladies set which was a daily special...chicken with vegetable italian yaki (which turned out to be chicken, veggies, some ketchup and cheese that was stuck under the broiler)...salad, rice and a mini dessert (which I think was a type of cheesecake) and coffee...990 yen (tax included).

As I waited for my lunch, I people watched...

There was tension in the air from the kitchen trying to fulfill orders and tension from the waitress trying to serve and wipe/wash dishes...

A table with about 3 ladies were having a nice time chatting...

As I was eating...a woman came in and asked if she could order "the sandwich"...they told her she could, but if an order for lunch came in, her order would be put aside until the lunch order was filled...eep!

Apparently in order to make "the sandwich" it takes awhile to make the omelette...still, she agreed to wait if she needed to.

Then, a group of ladies came for "the sandwich" and were told they would need to come back at 13:00 when the lunch crowd died down...

It was then that the owner told the group chatting that they needed to leave in order to turn over their table..

I was shocked to see this as it wasn't overly busy....

It's a kind of catch-22...you want to get your business out there, so you agree to be published in magazines and such...social media adds more "advertising"...the wave hits and you are krazy busy...some go out of business because they cannot keep up...most regulars are unable to visit and this usually leads to your business falling apart...

I can understand that when you are a "one man show" in the kitchen, things can get kind of krazy especially when all the tables are filled...

I notice that Japan has a hard time saying "no".

If you need to place limits it's what you need to do...

And we should respect these limits...

What I didn't really like about the whole scene was that they were shooing out customers that had just finished eating and were enjoying themselves.

If there was a line out the door waiting for tables, I would understand, but there wasn't.

For now, I'm won't be going back...

Sad because it was a really laid-back place before...

saturday

Since I usually wait while Satoshi attends his German class, I usually have a late breakfast and then I usually run errands.

This past Saturday, I had wanted to re-visit Talo Coffee to try their breakfast, so I headed to Tsuruhashi...only to find they were closed...boo!

I grabbed a curry pan at Cocoro, which is a couple doors down from Talo Coffee and ate it in the park across the street.

Then I walked to Namba and remembered I was near Westwood Bakers, so I stopped in for some iced coffee and an almond chocolate doughnut.

While their doughnut was good, their coffee was just so-so (what can I say?! I'm a coffee snob)

Satoshi and I met at Utsubo Park and had lunch at South Swell.

Instead of a burger, I tried their chili dog. The bun seemed to be nuked because it got quite gummy after the first couple of minutes...boo!

The sausage had a nice snap and the chili could've been spicier.

After lunch we went to check out the roses at Utsubo Park.

There were so many people that it was hard to enjoy the roses.

We then walked to Nakanoshima Park to see their roses.

It was so hot that many people were huddled under what shade they could find.

Summer is definitely coming.

lebresso

I've had LeBresso on my "to try" list for some time now, the thing about this place is that they are only a coffee/tea and toast type of place, more of a "morning place" in my books, not a place where you could get a sandwich or something else for lunch.

So on Saturday, while I waited for Satoshi to finish his German class, I went to check them out for a late breakfast.

The place is small, only 7 seats along a counter.

When I got there, all the seats were taken and another customer was waiting in line for a seat as well.

After sitting and waiting for a bit, a group of 4 came and wanted to take out some toasts...they were told that they needed to wait until AFTER me and the other guy got our order in, then they could order take out?! WT?!

I was thinking, "you guys should just wait to be seated too" since they weren't gonna get served their "take-out" until after our orders went in...

Then a couple of seats opened up.

I ordered the peanut butter and honey toast...260 yen

With an iced coffee...330 yen

Their bread doesn't use eggs, I think this is the type of bread that is trending these days, instead of eggs, they use heavy cream.

Not toasted the bread is super soft.

When toasted, the texture of the bread is fluffy on the inside and the crust crisps up.

Overall, the flow of service here seemed a bit off.

I'm glad I tried this place but I probably won't be back.

LeBresso
1-1 Ajihara-cho
Tennoji, Osaka
Phone: 06.6765.8005
Monday-Friday 9:00-19:00
Saturday, Sunday & Holidays 8:00-19:00

standard bookstore (abeno)

Yesterday, I had an appointment near Tennoji and had lunch at Standard Bookstore.

This shop is bigger than the one I usually go to in Chayamachi.

Curious, I ordered the taco rice.

I was surprised at how much "greens" they use. Even the addition of some avocado AND dessert!

I think I prefer this version better.

For a comparison, here is Chayamachi's version.

I wouldn't mind trying other items on their menu, they have quite a few that aren't served at the Chayamachi shop...I'll be back.

Standard Bookstore (Abeno)
1-2-30 Abeno-suji, Hoop 6F
Abeno, Osaka
Phone: 06.4703.5881
Hours: 11:00-21:00

basara usagi-do

I recently tried a tiny cafe inside of the Kintetsu Department Store, called Basara Usagi-do.

They have all sorts of yoshoku (Western style) dishes.

I went with their veggie curry...972 yen (tax included).

Under that renkon (lotus root) is a slice of onion, it was so good!

All the veggies were cooked until the sweetness of them were bursting.

The curry had a slow burn. I like that they gave me just enough rice.

Your choice of coffee or tea comes with the meal. I chose coffee.

I like the atmosphere of this place...I'll be back.

Basara Usagi-do
Kintetsu Uehonmachi 12F
Tennoji, Osaka
Phone: 06.6771.0039
Hours: 10:30-22:00
Open when the department store is

wow

Along a route I walk, there are many temples.

Yesterday, I spotted an ume tree peeking out above one of the temple walls.

The gate of the temple was open...so I went in and got a couple of shots of the tree.

Wow! I'm glad I stopped to check it out.

talo coffee

Last year when I bought some bread from Cocoro, I stumbled upon Talo Coffee.

I made a note to try them and finally got a chance to yesterday.

From the outside they don't look too spacious, but when you go inside, wow! I loved the place. Huge windows at the front of the cafe gives the place lots of light.

They had 5 different plates to choose from for lunch...all 950 yen (tax included).

The plates come with salad and choice of coffee or tea.

I ordered their hamburger with teri-mayo sauce & nikujaga(literally meat and potato) croquette.

Everything is homemade.

I loved the moist hamburger patty!

For my meal, I had chosen coffee. I love that all their coffee is siphon-style.

The mug that they served it in was cool too!

This cafe is a nice find, I'll be back.

Talo Coffee (UPDATE:2021 moved to new location)
3-10 Higashi Kozu-cho
Tennoji, Osaka
Phone: 06.6765.7080
Hours: 7:00-19:00, Closed on Sundays & Holidays

cocoro

　The other day I found myself needing to kill some time, so I went looking for a new bakery to try...Cocoro.

They are a teeny shop but they had all sorts of breads to choose from.

I picked up their fruit bread...385 yen (tax included) for half a "loaf".

This bread is packed with figs, walnuts, raisins...more fruit than bread.

It was good with cream cheese and smoked salmon one morning.

I hear they also make bagels...I'll be back!

Cocoro
8-1 Higashi Kozu-cho
Tennoji, Osaka
Phone: 06.7896.1438
Closed Sundays & Mondays
Hours: 8:00-19:00

grove cafe

Tuesday, I had lunch at Grove Cafe.

It was a beautiful sunny day, I got to the cafe just before their opening time and there was already a line!

We were all soon seated. I chose a seat at their bar counter overlooking the park that is next door.

With lunch, you get all-you-can-eat salad and bread.

Some people took one of each kind of bread and lots of salad, but this is what I chose...lettuce with edamame, corn, olives, roasted pumpkin, "ham" made from chicken and quail eggs seasoned with anchovies.

The dressing I chose was a lemon onion dressing...really delicious!

I also had a slice of their garlic bread.

The park has many sakura (cherry) trees and is very popular during cherry blossom season (you have to make reservations during this time)

For my main dish I chose their eggplant meat sauce pasta. This was delicious too, lots of ground beef and diced up eggplant.

It doesn't look like a lot but was very filling.

Also with lunch came a drink which I had a glass of grapefruit juice....1180 yen (tax included).

There are other choices for lunch such as their daily fish or daily meat plates at different prices too.

The cafe's atmosphere is so relaxing and they had jazz playing in the background.

It is open-air, so I didn't get too peeved by all the smokers.

I really enjoyed this place, I showed my pics to Satoshi and he wants to eat here, so we'll definitely be back.

Grove Cafe
1-1-41 Kozu
Chuo, Osaka
Phone: 06.6765.7000
Lunch: 11:30-15:00
Cafe time: 15:00-17:00
Dinner: 17:00-23:00
Check their website or call for days that they are closed or have private events.

maison kayser

Before I start today's post, I want to tell you that we stayed indoors all day yesterday.

The weather was forecast to be snowy or rainy, well, we weren't taking any chances and just stayed put.

We woke up to white covered roof tops but it soon melted with all the rain.

I think Tokyo was supposed to get snow for the next two days?!

Stay warm everyone!

On to today's post...

Next door to A.C. Perch, is Maison Kayser.

I had heard good things about him, and learned that he had opened a shop in Osaka, so when I checked them out, I ordered their steak lunch...1300 yen.

This came with a salad, all-you-can-eat bread...this round was fig, walnut, a slice of baguette and sweet potato.

The baguette was a nice "hard type" whereas the fig, walnut & sweet potato were a "soft type" of baguette.

My problem was that they also served fries with the steak.

The fries were super crispy and delicious, but with bread?! too much carbs...

The steak was well seasoned and had a shoyu-onion-garlic sauce.

Still, when they came around with the tray of bread, I decided to try two more slices...this time turmeric (with hazelnuts & other assorted nuts) and orange peel.

I think they should vary the types of breads you are allowed to try instead of serving basically the same type of bread with different "goodies" in them.

I ended my meal with tea and a slice of lemon. Well, it was more like a slab of lemon, so thick!

A nice touch was that they serve the tea with a teeny financier.

Don't know if I'll be back to have lunch here, but I do want to try some of his other baked goods, so maybe I'll be back...

Maison Kayser
Abeno Harukas Kintetsu Department Store 1F
Abeno, Osaka
Phone: 06.6654.6190
Closed when Kintetsu Department store is
Hours: 10:00-21:00

a.c. perch thehandel

A.C. Perch is a Denmark tea brand.

They actually opened a cafe in Osaka last June, but I only I recently learned about it.

So this past Tuesday, since I was in the area, I went to check them out.

Main dishes are mostly tartines (open faced sandwiches) though they also have hot dogs and other items.

I ordered the scallop and shrimp tartine...1260 yen and also added soup and tea for 315 yen more.

The soups they had to choose from were a corn potage, clam chowder or minestrone. I went with minestrone. This was thick and sort of reminded me of portuguese bean soup, a soup we eat in Hawaii.

My tartine also came with a salad and you could choose between a citrus dressing or an olive dressing. I went with the citrus.

The dressing was really refreshing and went nicely with the seafood tartine.

The tartine also had 3 different cheeses on it (I asked...gorgonzola, parmesan and camembert) and a little broccoli...cheesy good!

The tea I chose was No. 5...Emperor Tea.

A Keemun, dark and smoky.

I'm glad I tried this place and will definitely be back when I'm in the area.

A.C. Perch TheHandel (UPDATE: 2018 closed)
Abeno Harukas Kintetsu Department Store 1F
Abeno, Osaka
Phone: 06.6625.2120
Open 10:00-21:00, Closed when Kintetsu Department store is

nakatani-tei

It had been six years since my last visit to Nakatani-tei, which I wrote about here.

These days I find myself in this area more often, so I'm trying to re-connect with some of the places I've visited when I first started this blog.

Anyway, I ordered the tarte salée set...1680 yen. This came with a tarte made from scallops, zucchini, tomato. A salad, a slice of homemade bread and some potato salad.

Everything was delicious. I liked that the tarte didn't skimp on ingredients, there were huge pieces of scallop in there.

Dessert was from the showcase and I chose something called "Fraisier", Japanese style strawberry shortcake.

I loved how there was strawberry in every bite.

And what amazed me was how my slice never toppled over...the secret?! A little neat slather of chocolate on the plate to hold the slice in place...brilliant!

I'm glad I got a chance to go back and hope to bring Satoshi here soon!

Nakatani-tei (UPDATE: 2024 out of business)
6-6-27 Uehonmachi, Nakagawa Bldg 1F
Tennoji, Osaka
Phone: 06.6773.5240
Closed: Mondays and the 3rd Tuesday
Hours: 10:00-19:00 (Lunch from 11:30-14:00)

anne shirley

While on my way to an appointment, there was a tiny bakery I happened to pass by called Anne Shirley.

Satoshi and I shared the milk bread...so soft! A brioche type dough, so good.

We also halved this an france. Baguette outside filled with sweet bean paste. Toasted, the baguette got crispy and also warmed up the sweet bean paste, heavenly!

I had this one for lunch, a chorizo cheese and curry bread...meh! This one was dry! There was also too much bread.

Two out of three isn't bad, I'll be back.

Anne Shirley
8-8-11 Uehonmachi
Tennoji, Osaka
Phone: 06.6773.4850
Closed Sundays & Holidays
Hours: 7:30-19:00

p.s. It's the start of Golden Week, we're laying low and trying to avoid any crowds...

coq blanc

Whenever I am in the Momodani area, I've passed this tiny chocolate & cake shop called Coq Blanc. In the shop window there are many hollow chocolate animals as well as really huge chocolate sculptures.

Finally, I went in to check it out.

On my first visit, I picked up some orangette to try.

These aren't cut like match sticks but into triangles, I liked the tartness of the peel. The chocolate is semi-sweet.

A nice balance.

I went back again recently and the owner has started getting ready for Boy's Day with these kabuto (samurai helmets)

Check out the detail!

I also tried this chocolate stick. When I asked what was in the chocolate, the wife said "chocolate"...then added, "nuts"...actually there was a chewy nougat center with nuts and chocolate in it....so good!

I'll be back.

Coq Blanc
7-1 Shinpoin-cho
Tennoji, Osaka
Phone: 06.6779.8468

boulangerie parigot

Tried a bakery called Boulangerie Parigot recently.

Their canelé wasn't as good as Canelé du Japon, but it was bigger.

I really liked their assorted nut danish.

It definitely didn't skimp on the amount of nuts.

From the photo, the fig walnut bread looks skimpy but it wasn't. I liked this one.

I also liked their apple walnut, though Satoshi thought it was a little too sweet.

They also sell sandwiches, but too bad they don't have an area to eat at. Still, we'll be back.

Boulangerie Parigot
9-3-4 Uehonmachi
Tennoji, Osaka
Phone: 06.6774.5087
Hours: 7:30-20:00
Closed Mondays and every 1st and 3rd Tuesday

kikkodo

It is amazing what you come upon while walking around.

I recently found this tiny senbei (wafer/cookie) shop called Kikkodo.

Apparently they have been around for more than 100 years! And they do everything by hand. Amazing.

These ginger senbei caught my eye...700 yen for a package of 12. (I counted them, there are more than 12 in the package, more like 18)

Delicious, crispy with a lot of ginger flavor. Perfect with a cup of green tea.

Kikkodo (UPDATE: no longer in business)
4-6-9 Katsuyama
Tennoji, Osaka
Phone: 06.6772.4168

p.s. It's Friday here, I hope you have a great weekend!