Toyo

—The Netflix-famous Izakaya Toyo’s blowtorched tuna cheeks, which make for good TV but butane-flavored tuna; my meal is saved by chain-smoking chef-owner Toyoji Chikumoto’s zany showmanship and his chutoro maki rolled up as casually as a yoga mat with gutsy tears of shiso.

This izakaya is not your regular restaurant, but is actually known as a yatai. A yatai is a small mobile food stall in Japan selling ramen or other hot food. Toyo-san, the man who runs the restaurant has established his kitchen on the back of a pick-up trick.

Izakaya Toyo is a popular street food stand made famous by the Netflix show “Street Food: Asia”, particularly due to its chef Toyo who hand grills tuna with a flame thrower(!). As a foodie, I was intrigued to find out if it was all just Netflix hype, or if the food was actually worth it—and I would like to report back, that it’s worth it!. While the flame-thrower grilling technique does sound like a lot and definitely gets most of the attention, the food is delicious, with the star of the show being their tuna.

Izakaya Toyo is a food stand with more than 25 years of operation. Here, the Chef Toyoji Chikumoto, known as Toyo-san, not only serves some of the best street food in the city, but entertains with his theatrical cooking as well. The food is consumed standing up and guests return for the Aburi Maguro (flame-seared tuna) fatty tuna sashimi, sea urchins and salmon roe.

You’ve had a long day so what better way to end your second day in Osaka than with a cold beer at an izakaya (Japanese pub). And not just at any izakaya, but at Toyo, the izakaya made internationally famous by the Osaka episode of Street Food on Netflix. Toyo is an izakaya in Miyakojima Ward named after its owner.

3 Chome-2-26 Higashinodamachi, Miyakojima Ward, Osaka, Japan. Chef Toyoji Chikumoto, the chef made popular by Netflix Street Food, is famous for using a flamethrower to cook his signature tuna dishes. Expect a long line; we arrived five minutes before Toyo opened for lunch and had to wait almost two hours.

—The Netflix-famous Izakaya Toyo’s blowtorched tuna cheeks, which make for good TV but butane-flavoured tuna; my meal is saved by chain-smoking chef-owner Toyoji Chikumoto’s zany showmanship and his chutoro maki rolled up as casually as a yoga mat with gutsy tears of shiso.

Izakaya Toyo is a famous Osaka drinking spot, with lines forming before opening time. The menu focuses on tuna and seafood, with their signature dish being seared tuna cheek. The owner's performance of torching the tuna cheek with a powerful burner has become quite famous.