There's an overwhelming amount of things to see and do in Osaka.

Known as Japan's foodie capital, you'll want to eat everything you see, from sweets to bread, to Japanese pasta and Okonomiyaki (Osaka's specialty savoury grilled pancakes), and all-you-can-eat yakiniku.

There's also a lot of shopping in the key shopping epicentres of the city: Umeda and Shinsaibashi. Are you ready? Here's a list of where to shop, eat, and sightsee. For those who intend on bringing back an entire wardrobe, remember to bring your passport everywhere with you to enjoy tax-free shopping!

*Shopping in Japan is often an overwhelming experience. Just trying to take in all the signage could take some time.*

SHOP | HEP 5

When I lived in Osaka during university, each weekend was an outing to Umeda to shop for the latest trends. With 170 stores in the iconic HEP 5 shopping mall and a giant red Ferris wheel attached to it, there's something for everyone in the family (if you can stand the crowds!) The fashion is probably best suited for teenagers and those in their twenties, but moms will want to head over to the Hankyuu and Daimuru department stores.

SHOP | Umeda EST

EST is right next door to HEP 5 and usually less crowded. This shopping mall has around 100 shops, and the target shopper is also teenage and young adult females. While there are fashion items for men, BEAMS in HEP 5 is your best bet if the men in your travel party want to do some shopping.

You’ll find street-style brands here, like X-Girl, Milkfed, and feminine styles like LAGUNAMOON and SNIDEL. There are also some beauty favourites like Etude House for their eyeshadow palettes and Korean beauty brand Innisfree for their natural skincare items.

SHOP | Hankyu Sanban Gai

One thing that will never cease to fascinate me is how a trip to the train station in Japan could turn into a shopping trip. In any other city, train stations are just throughways for people to get home quickly. Enter a Japan train station, and you can feasibly spend hours there. Everything from socks to makeup, trendy fashion, shoes and more. You'll also find cake shops and cafes where you can sit down to take a break when the shopping becomes overwhelming.

SHOP | Umeda LOFT

I could easily spend a few hours here looking at beauty products, lifestyle and home decor items, funky jewelry and accessories, homeware, and, most of all, creative Japanese stationery. If you love stationery, I guarantee it will take you more than an hour just to try and pick which pens you want to take home. You'll also discover that you never knew there could be THAT many different shades of the same colour for pens!

For those who love Japanese beauty items, you’ll find mainstream and up-and coming-brands you can try. I love trying new beauty products from Japan because they always come up with innovations we would never have thought of in North America. For example, a nose clip that claims to make your nose ridge taller and straighter.

*A Game Taito Station has five or more floors filled with Gachapon and arcade games.*

SHOP | Den Den Town

Find one of the gaming complexes with Gachapon and arcade games, and your little ones can spend a few hours there. You might have to pry them from their favourite game or machine. Parents, if you need somewhere for your kids to use up all their energy so they can sleep soundly at night (and so can you!), then Den Den Town would be a great choice.

For those who love anime, retro collectibles, and electronics, Den Den Town is the spot to visit. You'll also see long lineups for maid cafes because enjoying a meal at one of these cafes is a unique travel experience not just reserved for men; you'll see couples, girls, single men and even groups in the lineup.

SIGHTSEE | Tennoji Zoo

We spent Christmas Day here, and it was a relaxing way to stay away from the crowds we encountered in Umeda on Christmas Eve. There were many other families there, likely also with the same strategy to enjoy a quiet Christmas Day in the company of cute red pandas, Orangutans, lions, wolves, and other animals.

SIGHTSEE | DoUtoNburi

Dotomburi is a whole stretch of shops under a covered pedestrian walkway connecting Shinsaibashi with Namba Station. I categorize it under sightseeing because there is much to see. From people watching to the plethora of neon signs covering entire buildings, tourists are snapping photos everywhere. The most iconic stop for a photo op is with the famous Glico Running Man on the bridge spanning the Dotomburi canal.

You'll find brand names from the low to mid-price range along the many blocks of Dotomburi. Similar to shopping in other neighbourhoods, you'll find it easy to spend an entire day in the Shinsaibashi and Namba areas.

SHOP | Amemura

If you're into more American-style clothing, then you'll want to head to Amemura (Amerika-mura, aka America Village) on the west side of Shinsaibashi Station. You'll want to eat the Takoyaki at Triangle Park. I remember I always used to have Octopus balls (Takoyaki) here whenever I came here to shop because this is one of Osaka's most well-known snacks, and the shop at the plaza here is famous for them.

Two tips for you: eat a scrumptious roast beef bowl at Red Rock and shop at Big Step.

*Sakimoto Coffee Shop on the ground floor.*

EAT | Sakimoto Bakery & Cafe

I stumbled across this Bakery & Cafe on my morning walk with my camera. I was out to take candid shots of the city, and a sign caught my eye. Truffle croissants. SOLD. I knew I had to come back for lunch and experience the shop's unique setup. On the ground floor, you have the coffee shop and the bakery, on the second floor, you have the restaurant. Read our full review here.

EAT | Gyukatsu Tomita

The crispy beef katsu here is perfection. Even though we arrived just 10 minutes after they opened at 11AM, the lineup was already up to the second floor, where the small restaurant is located. There were probably 20 seats in total in the tiny shop, so it was a forty-five-minute wait before we got a table for five. The shop is known for its delicious beef Katsu, so that is the only choice you have; you could choose if you want an extra large portion or a regular portion.

Tomita Katsu by Pendulum Magazine — *Tomita Katsu.*

Each person gets a hot plate to cook their beef katsu to the desired level (rare, medium rare, etc.) The crispy exterior and the soft, melt-in-your-mouth beef are the perfect texture pairing. Plus, their rice is actually really good. We wanted another bowl even though we usually don't eat that much rice.

EAT | Kuromon Market

You can eat your way through this seafood market. We guarantee you'll be full. Seafood skewers, crab legs, grilled fish, sashimi, and more. If I had more days in Osaka, I would eat here more than once. Read our full experience here.

To canvass all the sights and eats in Osaka would be an impossible feat in a few days’ time, which is why you should plan several trips to Japan’s foodie capital to experience something new each time. Even though I call Osaka my third home, there’s still much to explore!