Located in the Ten-Shiba area in Tennoji, Osaka, "Yottette Ten-Shiba-ten" is a market that sells fresh produce and operates as a cafe. They offer a variety of specialty drinks and a food menu featuring items like tuna menchi-katsu and croquettes. It's a great place to relax in Tennoji Park on a leisurely day. I visited on a weekday afternoon and decided to grab an iced coffee to cool off in the warm spring sun. The coffee was decent, with a hint of bitterness from the charcoal-roasted beans. Overall, it was a good place to take a coffee break. The location is convenient and the cafe is a nice spot to visit in the Ten-Shiba area. I would recommend stopping by when you're in the area. (Visited on: 3.13, according to Tabelog)

I always thought that if there was a managed red pine forest, matsutake mushrooms could be found in any prefecture, but they don't seem to be readily available near the production areas. I visited a direct sales supermarket that mainly handles matsutake mushrooms from Wakayama Prefecture, and they were selling matsutake mushrooms from Wakayama! The price was quite high, so they were displayed at the checkout counter instead of the mushroom section. I went in the evening on a weekday and was shocked to see them priced at 2 for 2300 yen. They had cut the price in half from the previous day, but even at the original price of 4600 yen, it was much cheaper than matsutake mushrooms from famous production areas! Without the name value, it's a great deal! On that day, I had already bought anglerfish at Takashimaya, so I decided to make anglerfish hot pot with matsutake mushrooms. The onions were from Awaji Island, which they also sell at the supermarket. There's no way it won't be delicious! Being frugal, I saved one mushroom and made matsutake rice the next day. The matsutake mushrooms sold at a discount (harvested two days before?) were slightly wet on the surface and in a familiar state. The matsutake mushrooms in the rice had a familiar texture. I realized that the matsutake mushrooms in the matsutake rice I had in Nagano, which felt tough, must have been because they were extremely fresh.

JR, Osaka Metro Tennoji Station, right next to "Ten-Shiba". I usually come to Ten-Shiba but end up leaving without stopping by. Today, I stopped by for the first time. I bought oranges, spring chrysanthemum, lettuce, cherry tomatoes, and other vegetables, as well as orange ale at the register. I also got an orange soft serve for ¥380 from the vending machine near the entrance. The vegetables were fresh and reasonably priced, which made me happy. The orange ale had a slight bitterness and prickly sensation of beer reduced by the oranges, making it suitable even for those who don't like beer.

It's Sunday morning, and I'm heading towards Abeno Harukas after enjoying the Tennoji Zoo. I came across a small park with some grass where families with children seem to gather. In one corner, I found what looked like a farmers' market. Feeling a bit thirsty, I decided to go in, and there was an ice cream shop with a raccoon beckoning customers. They seemed to be promoting peach soft serve. Without hesitation, I bought a ticket and took a bite. Wow, what a sensation. The peach essence, or rather the milk fat, spread throughout my body, reaching every corner of my slightly high body fat percentage. As you may know, milk fat carries oxygen through the blood vessels. So, it's important to consume it regularly to avoid oxygen deficiency and anemia. Be careful not to imitate or trust good dads too much. It's the root of lifestyle diseases, after all. And that's the end of my meal.

I use Yotte Yotte once a week or more, and my favorite is the yuzu mayonnaise dressing (*⁰▿⁰*). Unusual dressings can be risky, but since it's only up to 500 yen, I thought, "Even if it fails, it's okay!" and bought it, and it turned out to be super delicious! Made by a manufacturer in Tanabe City, Wakayama. Miso + mayonnaise + sugar + vinegar + other ingredients. Genius!! When I buy a failed dressing, I recover by consuming it with mayonnaise. It's invincible when mayonnaise is already included from the beginning. It tastes great even with regular salad vegetables. When drizzled over the mini tomatoes called "Carole Seven" that are currently available, it feels like a dessert. Sweet mini tomatoes and Carole Seven are also sold at Yotte Yotte. I threw away the receipt, but I think it was in the 400 yen range.

In September 2019, at the entrance area of Tennoji Park called "Tenshiba", we found this adorable panda-shaped fish cake at the direct market "Yottette". It was so cute that we couldn't resist buying it! We purchased the panda fish cake from Hamatatsu, a specialty of Wakaura. The black part is made using powder from Kishu Binchotan charcoal. The fish cake tasted delicious, especially when dipped in wasabi soy sauce. The panda fish cake had a dense texture with a rich flavor of the ingredients. "Yottette" sells locally produced vegetables, fruits, pickled plums, eggs, sweets, seasonings, and bento boxes from Osaka, Wakayama, and Nara. It's like a roadside station with high-quality and affordable fresh products. If you are near Tennoji Park, be sure to check it out!

After having lunch at "Spoonville Tennoji," I decided to stop by this shop called "Yottette"! Yottette is a direct sales store for agricultural products located in Nara, Wakayama, Osaka, and other areas. I always thought it was more of a countryside thing, but to my surprise, they have one in Tennoji too! I was worried it might be pricey in Tennoji, but the prices were actually similar to other Yottette stores. They sell fresh vegetables at reasonable prices. I didn't plan on buying too much since I was heading to the "Daikita Hokkaido Exhibition" at Abeno Harukas Kintetsu, but I ended up getting the following items: Gaccho's fried chicken (60g) for 550 yen, strawberries for 550 yen, Tsurigane manju for 300 yen, and tomatoes for 260 yen. The Gaccho fried chicken is crispy and delicious, I've had it before from other stores. The strawberries are small but cute with a mix of red and white. The Tsurigane manju is a delicious Osaka-made manju. The tomatoes are for snacking, I always keep them cut in the fridge for a quick bite. I enjoyed them at home with the "Hokkaido beef steak bowl" I bought from the "Daikita Hokkaido Exhibition" at Abeno Harukas Kintetsu. It was a delicious meal. Thank you for the meal!

I visited in April 2019. It is located inside Tennoji Park, about a 5-minute walk from Tennoji Station. I stopped by after seeing the Vermeer exhibition. Surprisingly, they sell cut flowers for only 100 yen. Inside, they had items from Okinawa even though we are in Osaka. They also sell products from Nara and Wakayama. I bought Nara's strawberries, Maruhime, for 400 yen including tax. I ate them at home right away, and they were delicious. It's great to find everything at low prices in Osaka. I recommend stopping by after visiting the art museum.

Finally, I have overcome the tumultuous week and it's time for some food log. Even though I check it during a late lunch break and see the new followers who have liked my posts (;^_^ I will go read the reviews of those who I haven't heard from in a while after this. From Tennoji Station towards the zoo direction, it used to be a bit rough in the past, but now there are trendy shops and even a dog park. This time, I drove for about an hour to visit this place. I visited here at the Osaka City Museum of Fine Arts, where they are holding the "Louvre Museum Exhibition" (until January 14, 2019). The theme is "Portraiture - How people have portrayed each other." It's quite a deep theme, isn't it? The first thing that amazed me was the "Mask Derived from a Coffin" from 1391-1353 BC. What were Japanese people doing in 1000 BC? Of course, there were no characters in Japan at that time. This is a sophisticated face made of wood, stone, and glass. It is said to be the ideal face to live in the afterlife. It looks like a modern face too, which is mysterious. Next, I was shocked by the "Portrait of a Young Girl Represented as the Huntress Diana" from 150-170 AD. It is made of marble. The photo is from a book I bought, but the actual piece is shining with the original marble stone. The realism from the expression to the fingernails is amazing. It's amazing that it was excavated in this shape. This is said to be a young girl who died young and is likened to Diana. The virgin goddess Diana is a Roman god, similar to Artemis in Greek mythology. The dog she is with is cute too. It was a continuous series of excitement and admiration from start to finish. What a stroke of luck to be able to see the Louvre Museum exhibition while in Japan. Please be sure to check it out. Now, onto the food log. There was no cafe in the Osaka City Museum of Fine Arts, so I stopped by a cafe in the Ten-Shiba Farmers' Market. I had the Osaka specialty, chilled ame for 220 yen (tax included). Surprisingly sweet at first bite... with a gentle ginger flavor in the aftertaste. It is made from water candy extracted from rice or malt and added ginger for finishing. The color is also beautiful amber. Viewing art exhibitions surprisingly consumes stamina. I was at my physical limit, so I was happy to have something sweet.

Visited the Louvre Museum exhibition at the Osaka City Museum of Fine Arts. Feeling refined in body and mind, decided to head to Ten-Shiba. Inside Ten-Shiba, there is a direct market called "Yotte Yotte." I had never been there before, so I decided to stop by. At the entrance, there was a cafe called Yotte Yotte Cafe. I came across a photo of something that looked delicious - a soft serve ice cream made with Arita mandarin juice from Wakayama. I was immediately drawn to it and purchased a ticket for "Mandarin Soft Serve for 380 yen" from the ticket machine. I handed the ticket to the staff and received the mandarin soft serve. It was a beautiful mandarin color. I wondered what it would taste like as I took a bite. It had a subtle mandarin flavor, not overpowering at all. It was very easy to eat and perfect for the hot weather that day. The cream was packed all the way to the tip of the cone, and I was completely satisfied. This cafe also offers various drinks, such as Nankou Ume juice. I realized they were really promoting Wakayama products, and it turns out the direct market is located in Wakayama. I see, I see. They also had "Tuna Menchi Katsu" - could it be made with Kinki University tuna? Next time, I might try the tuna menchi katsu and Nankou Ume soda. Thank you for the delicious treat.

There are so many things for sale, and I always end up buying something.

"Maguro menchi katsu"

Tennoji Park Market is a direct market mainly focusing on Wakayama, Osaka, and Nara. The selection of vegetables and fruits varies depending on the season, but they are often cheaper than supermarkets in Osaka. The dried fish is from Wakayama. The meat is domestic, but not from Wakayama. Besides vegetables, I often buy Green Soft. They have it available in the freezer all year round. It's not soft-serve ice cream made to order, but pre-made and frozen with a monaka shell, so it can withstand heat and direct sunlight to some extent. The matcha flavor is strong, but the ice cream itself is light and refreshing. It's not too rich that it makes your throat dry. With the monaka shell, you can enjoy it more affordably by cutting it in half.

This is the only store where I can shop as an adult! It's all vegetables, but... haha. This is my third time buying bamboo shoots this year. One shoot costs 500 yen! They are big, but they are starting to get hard, so this might be the last time. This time, I bought Asuka Rubies because my daughter's eyes were sparkling with excitement. It was a bit over budget, but they were really sweet and tender! They were tastier than the Pearl Whites. It's a nice day, so there are people having BBQs around, waiting in line at restaurants, and here we are, walking back home with our shopping bags. This store charges for bags, but they provide free ice packs. I joked with the cashier about it, saying "Why is that!" haha.

I tried to resist but ended up going back because I couldn't stop thinking about the Arita orange soft serve ice cream. I also tried a sample of the roasted sweet potato, which was delicious! The orange soft serve ice cream had a hint of acidity and a refreshing sweetness. I initially planned to eat it indoors, but the sunshine looked inviting, so I moved to a bench outside. The warm spot in the sun made the orange soft serve ice cream taste even more delicious.

In October 2017, I went on a lunch hopping spree at Jan Jan Yokocho, then headed to the Disney Art Exhibition at the Osaka City Museum of Fine Arts, and finally made my way to the Tennoji Park entrance area called "Tenshiba". I used to hang out in Tennoji a lot during my student days, but it has changed a lot now, especially around Tennoji Park (was it this beautiful before?). Inside Tenshiba, there were various shops, and this time I visited the Satoyama Market. The shop sold local agricultural products and specialty items, with a café inside as well. This time, I bought the "tuna menchi katsu" from the café for 250 yen. By the way, the tuna used in the menchi katsu is caught at the Nachi Katsuura Port. They also had other items like Kishu Umadori fried chicken skewers, Nankou Ume juice & soda, Arita Mikan juice, and in the specialty products corner, there were pickled plums and Koyasan sesame tofu, giving off a strong Wakayama vibe. I quickly dug into the tuna menchi katsu. It was crispy on the outside and filled with plenty of tuna inside. It was quite filling and had a satisfying taste. I ate it without any sauce, but I felt like having ketchup (I'm the type who always goes for ketchup as the first choice for condiments). It was a delicious meal - Bon appétit!

On October 14, 2017, I enjoyed some grilled hormone and nigiri sushi at "Janjan Yokocho" and had a relaxing cafe time with a smoothie. After satisfying my autumn appetite, I decided to experience the art of autumn by taking a 5-minute walk from Tennoji Zoo to the "Osaka City Museum of Fine Arts." To my surprise, there was a "Disney Art Exhibition" being held on its opening day. It was a lucky coincidence! Although I could only take photos at the entrance and the Disney-related shop, I was excited to see around 500 original drawings and concept art from 90 years of Disney films, from Mickey Mouse's debut to the latest movie "Moana." The shop was selling a 200g pure gold figure of Mickey from "Steamboat Willie" for 3.5 million yen, and ceramic Mickey and Minnie figures for around 10,000 yen each. I then visited Tennoji Park right next to the museum. The entrance area, now called "Tenshiba," is filled with trendy shops, quite different from the area I first visited 20 years ago. I remember being shocked by the sight of homeless people sleeping on the streets and strange characters singing karaoke loudly. Now, it's a popular spot for families and couples. I stopped by the "Sanchoku Ichiba Yottette Tenshiba-ten," a direct sales market opened in April, where I bought fresh produce and processed goods from local farmers. I purchased ingredients for tonight's dinner, including daikon miso soup, grilled saury, miso eggplant, pork belly stir-fry, cucumber with chili oil, and yam and okra ponzu vinegar. With these, I prepared a balanced meal with plenty of vegetables, fish, and meat. I had some daikon left, so I decided to make "torisuki" with it later. It turned out surprisingly good! Enjoy your meal!

Let's go to Tennoji Park. Oh, it seems like they changed the name to Tenshiba. While strolling around, we headed to the Osaka City Museum of Fine Arts. On the way, we noticed some new shops. Perhaps it's a pilot shop from the Kansai region? Before going to the exhibition, we did some preliminary exploration. They had local one-cup sake, local soy sauce, Kinzanji miso, local bread, and fresh shirasu (whitebait). They also had bento boxes available. We'll stop by on our way back. The exhibition "Wood x Buddha Statues" was enjoyable. The earphone guide by the rakugo storyteller was a nice touch. After feeling satisfied, we did some shopping. However, we had lunch plans in Shinsekai. We passed on the bento and shirasu since they needed to be refrigerated. We ended up buying various items. Lately, my wife hasn't been making chu-hi (shochu highball) herself, but the yuzu extract was nice. We bought some one-cup sake and bread. This adds to the excitement of going to Tenshiba. An old man from Izumisano mentioned, "It's a chain from Wakayama. They're expanding to Tennoji." Indeed, according to the pamphlet, it's their 20th store. It's great to see a chain from Wakayama focusing on local products. Let's support them. Although we haven't been to every store, I thought I'd share this review.

After the beer festival, I came here. I always end up buying soft serve ice cream when I see it at places like this! I wonder if they only have Arita mandarin flavor. There was also a mixed flavor for the same price, but I went with Arita mandarin only! If only the cone was a delicious cone... If the soft serve ice cream had one more swirl like in the picture, I wouldn't have anything to say. The finished product is like a mini soft serve... This is expensive for 400 yen.