Skip Dotonbori. Try Fukushima.

A short Osaka food film: it starts in Dotonbori, then heads to Fukushima. Watch before choosing where to spend your evening.

Osaka 1:26

Skip the scramble. Go to Kamata instead.

Take a look around Kamata in Tokyo’s Ota ward. A short film for when you want to get off the usual tourist route.

Shibuya, Tokyo 1:25

A Quiet Moment at Yonge and Eglinton

A quiet 80 seconds at Yonge and Eglinton in Toronto.

Toronto, Yonge-Eglinton 1:20

Shibamata: Walk to Taishakuten

Walk the street leading up to Taishakuten temple in Shibamata, in Tokyo’s Katsushika ward. A short look at the neighbourhood and its temple street.

Kappabashi, Tokyo 1:30

One Tokyo Evening, in 90 Seconds

Trains, neon, and alleyways from a Tokyo evening. 90 seconds of an ordinary Tokyo night.

Meguro Ward, Tokyo 1:30

Skip the hotel buffet. Try Ameyoko.

A quick food walk through Ameyoko market in Ueno, Tokyo.

Ueno, Tokyo 1:30

One Full Turn at a Tokyo Intersection

I stood at one Tokyo intersection and turned all the way around. 32 seconds.

Chidori-cho, Tokyo 0:32

Meguro River: Take the Early Walk

An early-morning walk along the Meguro River in Tokyo, on the stretch south of the station.

Jiyugaoka, Tokyo 1:30

NOTES FROM STEVIE

Skip Dotonbori. Try Fukushima.

The Tourist Trap Is the Point

Dotonbori was built to be photographed. The Glico man, the running crab, the seven-storey ramen sign — they’re all functional in the way a movie set is functional. The food works too, but the food works the same way the food at every airport works. It’s fine. It’s not why you came.

Where the Locals Actually Eat

Walk five blocks west. Get to Fukushima. Same trains, same canals, but now the queues are made of office workers instead of tourists with selfie sticks. The izakayas are eight seats wide. The okonomiyaki is being made by a guy who’s been making it for forty years and doesn’t care if you’re watching.

The 9 PM Shift

I shot this at 9:14 PM, after the dinner rush had thinned. That window — late dinner, before last train — is when Dotonbori itself is actually worth seeing. The neon stays on, the food stalls are still open, but the postcard scrum has gone to bed.

The One Thing

If you only do one Dotonbori thing, do this: walk the Ebisu-bashi bridge at 11 PM, then turn right and walk into the side street where the lanterns hang two-feet apart. That’s the eating Osaka. The bridge is the photo. The alley is the meal.

Getting There

Namba Station, exit 14. From there you can stand on the bridge in three minutes. Walk west along Dotonbori-gawa toward Fukushima for the better food. Cash works. Most places don’t take cards.

Read the transcript

Dotonbori looks like the food capital, but the real eating happens five blocks west. Skip the queue at Ichiran. Walk to Fukushima — the locals eat there.

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