Dinner at Endo Hankyu Prime in Osaka, Umeda. [This Visit] Date: September 2023 Meal: Course + a la carte Sparkling wine bottle: 8,400 yen ++ Arashiyama course: 10,000 yen A la carte tempura (eel and sillago): 1,100 yen + 720 yen Small bottle of beer: 880 yen Total: 21,070 yen per person [Review] - The Arashiyama course for 10,000 yen lacked charm in both the tempura and other dishes, with neither the sashimi nor tempura being satisfying. The tempura batter was too thick; I prefer a thinner coating. The selling point of Kyoto-style tempura is its thin batter. - Additional tempura a la carte was good, with thick fish pieces providing a satisfying texture. - Eel and sillago tempura: 1,100 yen and 720 yen, respectively Thank you for the meal. [Revisit] Added photos to the review.

I entered the restaurant at 1:00 PM on a Saturday in August 2023. I ordered the vegetable tempura rice bowl from the lunch menu. While other shops in the department store had long lines, I was able to enter without waiting. As expected, the tempura rice bowl was delicious and I was very satisfied.

I went to a restaurant in Umeda, which was the only one not crowded, so I entered at 2 pm. It wasn't busy, but the service was slow. I had to wait to be seated, and even after sitting down, I had to ask for water. They also didn't take our order until we called for them. However, once we ordered, the food came out quickly and at the right timing. The tempura was delicious and hot. I deducted points for the mediocre service. We had the tempura bowl and the kakiage.

I went to this restaurant for a quick lunch meeting. The place I originally planned to go to was full, so I ended up here. I ordered the "Healthy Tenpura Set Meal" which was reasonably priced. The food was served one dish at a time, but it kept coming out quickly without considering our pace. I wish they would have brought everything on one plate or at least timed it better. It seemed like the staff were not concerned about this issue. Overall, it was disappointing. Thank you for the meal.

I haven't been to the shop in Kyoto yet, but one opened in Umeda, so I got excited. I don't eat tempura often, so I was looking forward to it. I was hungry and ended up ordering a lot. It's located inside a department store, so maybe the atmosphere isn't that authentic, but personally, I thought the frying was just okay. But tempura is always delicious, so I left feeling satisfied!

I visited Hankyu Department Store Umeda Main Store 12th floor for the first time, where I tried the tempura course at Kyoto Gion Tempura Enfu Hankyu Prime. I ordered the Matsuo course for 8,000 yen, and added sea urchin tempura. The menu included a variety of dishes such as tofu, corn croquette, shrimp toast, shrimp head, red snapper with shiso, shiitake mushroom, and more. I also had a special salad and grapefruit sherbet for dessert. I enjoyed the experience and would like to come back again, maybe for lunch next time.

The restaurant opened on 5/20. I had been saving up to go to the main store in Yasaka, but unfortunately, it turned out to be worse than expected. It's lower in quality compared to the store in Daimaru Shinsaibashi. The service was good and the tempura was delicious, but there were some drawbacks. It's good for casual dining. 1. The oil doesn't drain well. 2. The pace of serving tempura is too fast (prioritizing turnover). 3. There are no additional single item menu options. 4. The granita is just a solid block of ice. 5. They forgot the truffle mushroom that Hashimoto messed up. The menu included items like Kyoto Uji Gyokuro tea, sparkling water from Yamasaki, and a lunch set from Meitentomura. The meal consisted of various tempura dishes, including shrimp tempura, sea urchin, shrimp and shiitake mushroom rolls, truffle mushrooms, sesame tofu, and more. It also included a salad, tempura rice bowl, red miso soup, pickles, grapefruit granita, and water.

Today, the quality of the oil was very poor and I felt it was a waste. I might have used too much. It feels very heavy. I heard that you should change the oil when it goes bad, not at a specific time. Tempura also depends on the person frying it. However, the light-coated ayu and my favorite truffle mushroom were still delicious and satisfying. This time, it wasn't the same manager as the one in the Kyoto branch last time. The previous manager would always recommend how to eat each dish. This time, there was no explanation at all. Although I am a fan of salt, having an explanation does make a difference.

In Kansai, compared to Tokyo, there are very few tempura restaurants, right? Or is it that Tokyo has an abnormal number of them? This place just opened, so the head chef from the original Kyoto branch was frying for us. Can you believe he's only 31 years old? But he has been a tempura chef for 11 years! He was very friendly. When it comes to sushi or tempura, people talk about Kanto-style, Kansai-style, or Edomae-style, but I think those distinctions are becoming less important these days. However, you can still find the traditional goodness of each region in various aspects. Even in Tokyo, tempura with plenty of sesame oil is decreasing, and there are many with a nice aroma from a balanced blend of oils. The first tempura I had in Kansai at an old Osaka establishment was fried in pure white oil and seasoned only with salt. It was quite a shock. Personally, I prefer the thin, white batter with just salt, even in Kanto. I'm not a big fan of the thick batter with lots of sesame oil like for tempura rice bowls. Here, they start with corn and shrimp bread, the signature items of the shop, rather than shrimp heads. Shrimp bread. That's so Kansai. The shrimp had a thick batter and was cooked thoroughly. I prefer it a bit less cooked. There are two shrimp, so it would be nice to have one less cooked and one fully cooked for a contrast in flavors. Apparently, the shrimp varies between lunch and dinner menus, so I added the evening shrimp as well. It's nice to have the heads too. You can tell a lot about a tempura restaurant by how they fry the heads. I had it last since it was an addition. The young ayu fish was cooked perfectly, with a delicious moist texture and umami flavor. The million yen pepper was also delicious. The truffle mushroom was tasty too. The truffle aroma was fully captured and intensified when warmed up. That's the beauty of tempura. This time in Osaka, I enjoyed experiencing elements of tempura that you don't find in Tokyo. Overall, I prefer a slightly thinner batter. The oil could be of better quality and a bit heavy. The most important thing is the timing of frying and lifting the ingredients. The ability to bring out the quality of the ingredients. When compared to outstanding shops in Tokyo, this place falls a bit short. The staff member who came from the main branch was very attentive and made the experience very pleasant. People are indeed important. A rare tempura restaurant in Osaka. The location is great too. I hope they continue to work hard to attract more tempura lovers in Kansai. Looking forward to visiting again.

The shop in Kyoto's Yasaka is different in some way. The special tempura bowl for 3800 yen includes shrimp, eel, and sandfish, all generously topped with salmon roe and gold flakes. It was a feast!

I have been there many times already ☺︎ It was delicious!

I changed from vegetable tempura bowl to shrimp tempura bowl.

First visit, had the vegetable tempura rice bowl for lunch.

Three people excluding Fuuka. Course only starting from 8000 yen.

Umehan 12th floor casual tempura =========== Umehan 12th floor casual tempura