Japan's kitchen — a rowdier, funnier cousin to Tokyo, famous for takoyaki, okonomiyaki, kushikatsu, and the neon spectacle of Dotonbori.
An Umeda secret bar hidden behind an elevator trick — you have to figure out how the secret door opens to get in. Inside: regular seats, romantic swing sets, and an 'ominous tequila bell' that when rung brings two shots to the table. The pricing model is time-based, not drink-based, so watch the clock.
A retro-gaming bar in Amerikamura where the cocktail order unlocks the console library — everything from Famicom through PS3, plus an Atari ET cartridge for anyone with a taste for historical pain. Comfortable, funky, and genuinely fun even if you're not a gamer, since the regulars are happy to hand you a controller.
A new open green space directly beside Osaka Station — rare for central Umeda, which is otherwise wall-to-wall concrete. Grab a mix juice or konbini food from any of the surrounding buildings and sit on actual grass for an hour. Best in the warmer months.
A rescue-cat cafe with a model train layout the cats are explicitly allowed to terrorize. All the cats come from street rescues, the cafe funds the attached shelter, and you can actually adopt. One of the more wholesome animal cafes in Osaka.
A massive multi-floor onsen complex in Shinsekai, themed by continent — one floor does Asian-style baths, another does Roman, and they swap the men's and women's floors on a rotation. Open 24 hours, and you can sleep in the recliner lounges overnight, though they charge extra if you stay past 9am.
A small plaza in Amerikamura where the cheapest drink in Osaka is a FamilyMart can consumed standing up on the concrete. Looks unremarkable on a normal night — but on Halloween it's ground zero for Osaka's costume party, which is one of the only remaining Halloween street scenes in Japan (Tokyo's Shibuya has been shut down).