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Thanks to its history and unique culture, the Kansai region offers an unparalleled variety of Japanese cuisine. In addition to the local specialties of Osaka, Kobe, and Nara, Kansai has the same inexpensive chain restaurants as Tokyo and a good variety of international food. Outside tourist areas, restaurant staff may not speak English but often exhibit Kansai’s signature friendliness, going out of their way to help.
Japan's first steak house is famed for its superb, hand-fed Kobe beef from a single farm in the nearby city of Sanda. The melt-in-your-mouth sumiyaki (charcoal-broiled) steak is worth its weight in yen and is only served with mustard and pepper. (Don't even think about asking for other condiments.) The dining room's dark-wood paneling and lovely chandelier give it a European air. Be prepared to spend some yen; main courses are phenomenally expensive.
At this elegant dining room, the excellent Kobe beef is sliced thin and cooked before you on a teppanyaki grill along with fresh vegetables and served with pepper, mustard, and soy sauce for dipping. Wakkoqu uses meat from three-year-old cows that have never been bred, which is said to be the reason for its unbelievable tenderness. Lunch set menus are available until 3pm.
With a relaxed atmosphere, A-1 is known for serving thick slices of Kobe beef. The teppanyaki steak (broiled on a hot plate) is cooked in a marinade of spices, wine, and soy and served with charcoal-grilled vegetables and crisp garlic potatoes. The "small" version is enough to fill you up. Four branches are scattered about town, but the main one is conveniently west of Hankyu San-no-miya Station, across from the B-Kobe hotel.
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