Gourmet Food at Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai Unveiled! Let’s go eat the food of the future!

The 2025 Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai is less than a month away!
The contents of each pavilion and information on events are being announced one after another, and the anticipation for the Expo is mounting. Kodawari Times visited one of the media presentations on one of the many ways to enjoy the Expo, the “food” at the Expo site! Here is a report on each restaurant’s concept, highlights, recommended menus, and more.

 

Eleven companies offering “food of the future” gathered

The theme for the food at Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai is “Gourmet Travel Around the World and into the Future.”
Approximately 100 restaurants will be located within the Expo site, including gourmet foods from pavilions of various countries as well as Japan. I want to eat gourmet food from all over the world! and many people are probably looking forward to the gourmet food.

On February 4, 11 companies offering the food of the future at the Expo site gathered at the “Future Food Fun Presentation – EXPO FOOD COLLECTION 2025” held in Osaka City. Companies representing Japan’s food and beverage industry gave an overview of their restaurants and recommended menus to be exhibited at Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai. Then, passionate speeches were made about each company’s vision of the food of the future.

What kind of menu is available? What is the food of the future? and those interested in gourmet food at the Expo! Let’s take a look at the highlights of each company.

 

Kura Sushi Recreates Sushitenables and World Cuisine

Kura Sushi, Inc., a conveyor-belt sushi chain headquartered in Sakai City, Osaka Prefecture, opened the “Kura Sushi Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai,” the largest restaurant in Kura Sushi’s history with 338 seats and the longest conveyor belt at approximately 135 meters.
The black-and-white exterior wall material, inspired by a typical Japanese warehouse, is made from discarded seashells! So this is a sustainable store that also plays a role in achieving the SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals) that Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai is aiming for.

The menu you are interested in is also sustainable! The “SUSHI-TAINABLE” menu realized with sushi includes low-use fish, AI-based “smart aquaculture,” and organic fish, which are not usually seen. This menu was created through efforts with fishermen, including the continuous utilization of fishery resources to protect the abundant oceans of the future.

In addition, the Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai special menu will include dishes representing the 70 countries and regions participating in the Expo 2025. As the concept of “Conveyor belt brings the world together” suggests, this is an unprecedented experience where you can taste cuisines from around the world at Kaiten Sushi!

I actually tried a local dish from the Republic of Fiji called kokonda, a marinade-like dish that matched the sweetness and richness of white fish and coconut cream, making it a perfect appetizer.

 

Suntory’s theme is “Living with Water.”

Suntory Holdings Limited (headquartered in Osaka), a beverage manufacturer with a long history of 126 years, will open its second store following the 1970 Japan World Exposition in Osaka.
Under the theme of “Living with Water,” a corporate philosophy of protecting water resources, three stores will be located in the West Wing of the Water Plaza inside Grand Roof Ring.

At the cafeteria “SUNTORY PARK CAFE,” which is designed to resemble a park living with water, visitors can enjoy a variety of drinks and food, including shaved ice using Suntory’s natural water and a store-exclusive menu of freshly ground BOSS.

The restaurant “SUIKUU,” which was created by Suntory and Daikin with the theme of “Water and Air” and will be co-created for the daily water show during the exhibition period, offers course meals that take full advantage of Japanese ingredients in the image of a comfortable highland.

The “Kinki University Fisheries Laboratory,” a restaurant specializing in cultured fish, was also opened in collaboration with Kinki University, which has long been involved in research on sustainable cultured fisheries.

In addition to “Kindai Tuna,” which Kinki University succeeded in completely cultivating for the first time in the world, you can enjoy seafood dishes made from crossbred fish, a crossbreed of two different types of fish. The restaurant’s interior is a fantastical space that evokes the image of the ocean floor, and you can feel the SDGs initiatives in action as you admire farmed eels and other fish swimming in an aquarium tank.
What a great way to enjoy a delicious meal in an aquarium-like atmosphere!

 

Sushiro, land-farmed and fully cultured sushi

FOOD&LIFE COMPANIES (headquartered in Suita City, Osaka Prefecture), which operates Sushiro-brand conveyor-belt sushi restaurants, will open the “Sushiro Future Expo Store.”

The concept is “Mawaru Sushi ha Tuzuku Sushi e (Conveyor belt sushi to be continued): The Future of Sushi-ya 2050-.” We aim for a future where sushi is available everywhere. By providing all sushi items 100% farm-raised, we realize abundant marine resources that will continue into the future. Among them, about 10 items from the “Ashita no Sakana (Tomorrow’s Fish)” series, which are raised using environmentally friendly, cutting-edge technologies such as land-based aquaculture and complete aquaculture, will be offered.

The recommended item in the “Ashita no Sakana” series is the “Land-Born Isomamori Uni (Sea Urchin) Wrapper.” I actually tried it, and it was just as delicious as the sea urchin I usually eat, and melted in my mouth the moment I put it in! Also, the “Land-bred ShimeSaba (vinegared mackerel)” was so delicious you would not believe it was farm-raised, so I highly recommend you try it.

 

Osaka specialty “Tsukigesho” x Hamanako specialty “Unagi pie”

Next, two famous confectionaries representing Japan opened a store in collaboration!

▲Tsukiro-kun, the Tukigesho fairy, also made an appearance at the presentation!

The first is Aoki Shofuan, a confectionery manufacturer celebrating 40 years in business and headquartered in Misaki Town, Sennan County, Osaka Prefecture. Its standard product is “Tsukigesho,” a famous Osaka souvenir of miruku manju, which has sold a total of 18.5 million units.

The concept behind the opening of the Expo store is “good medicine tastes Wagashi (Japanese Sweets)”. They presented Japan’s first functional food, “Golden Tukigesho”. It is the world’s first manjuu that reduces fatigue, so it will surely heal your body after a long day of walking at the Expo site!

The second is Shunkado Ltd., which sells “Unagi pie,” a famous confectionary representative of Hamamatsu City, Shizuoka Prefecture, where the tourist attraction Lake Hamana is located. The Unagi Pie, which has been on the market for 64 years, is, as the name suggests, a crispy pie with the flavor of high-quality butter with eel extract.

At Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai, visitors can enjoy “Unagi Pie Gelato,” which is made by placing an eel pie, which was chipped during the production process, on top of ice cream. The sweetness of the ice cream and the texture of the eel pie are perfect.

 

La Poppo Futuristic sixth industrialization Farm Cafe

La Poppo, a store specializing in sweet potato sweets operated by Shirohato Food Industry Co., Ltd., headquartered in Moriguchi City, Osaka Prefecture, has opened “La Poppo Farm – Farm to the Table of Sweet Potatoes, Strawberries and Apples”.
This futuristic farm café handles everything from production to sales, allowing customers to taste sweets made from sweet potatoes and strawberries grown in steel containers using movable cultivation.

The containerized cultivation method was invented in response to the problem that farmers in Kyushu were unable to harvest sweet potatoes due to a disease called ex-rot that was prevalent a few years ago. This method is a futuristic form of agriculture, as only the diseased parts need to be replaced, thus reducing the amount of damage. In fact, the movable container will be exhibited at the Expo store in La Poppo.

The lineup includes “Oimo Choco Dome Premium Pie,” “Mochimochi Oimo Pizza,” and “Oimo Bouquet Soft Ice Cream,” all of which look cute and bring out the flavor of oimono. It is hard to decide which one to choose!

 

MANEKI FOODS Co.,Ltd., famous for its Ekiben and Eki soba

Founded in 1888, MANEKI FOODS Co.,Ltd. of Himeji City, Hyogo Prefecture, is a manufacturer and distributor of Ekiben (boxed meals sold at train stations and other locations). Based on the concept of “Be Ambitious,” the company aims to promote Japanese food culture and hospitality to the world.

Bento (boxed meals) have become known around the world from Japanese anime and the Japanese food boom. A wide variety of bento bento, including original bento and vegetarian bento, will be available at the Expo. The first bento to be announced is “Takeda no Anagomeshi.” The plump, meaty conger eel intertwined with the secret sauce makes this the pinnacle of bento lunches that will keep your chopsticks going from one dish to the next.

And speaking of MANEKI FOODS Co.,Ltd., you cannot miss the famous “Ekisoba” as a gourmet dish of Himeji. Soba is not buckwheat noodles made from buckwheat flour, but rather Chinese noodles in a Japanese-style broth. The nostalgic and comforting taste of Ekisoba is now available as a limited Expo menu item in the form of “Ultimate Ekisoba,” a sukiyaki-flavored dish made with Kobe beef! The dish is served in Japan’s oldest lacquerware, Wajima-nuri from Ishikawa Prefecture. Try this luxurious looking and tasting dish.

 

Gluten-free Ramen from Kenmin Foods

Headquartered in Kobe City, Hyogo Prefecture, Kenmin Foods co., ltd is a food manufacturer focusing on beef noodle. The company will offer gluten-free ramen as a food of the future to be proposed at Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai.

While regular ramen noodles are made with wheat flour, gluten-free ramen is made without any wheat flour, either in the noodles or in the soup. The concept is “Delicious ramen for everyone. is the concept behind the menu, which is not a menu item for wheat allergy sufferers, but rather a future form of ramen that they hope will become a part of a new genre of ramen.

There is a wide variety of ramen flavors, including “Golden Chiyu Shoyu Ramen,” which is based on the royal Shoyu (Soy Sauce) Ramen with a broth made exclusively from Miyazaki Prefecture’s Jittokko chicken, “Plant-Based Tonkotsu Ramen,” which uses no animal products, “Tori Chintan no Sukkiri Yuzu Shio Ramen” and “Tori Paitan Shoyu Ramen.” In addition, “Yaki Bihun” made with 100% rice, which is typical of Kenmin Foods, is also available.
Please come to the Expo site to try this new type of ramen with the slippery and glutinous texture that only rice can provide.

 

A photo-worthy product for sure! Osaka churros from Takeshita Seika

Takeshita Seika Co., Ltd. is a rice cracker and confectionery manufacturer in Saga Prefecture. Although not well known in Osaka and Kansai, it is a manufacturer famous for its “Black MonBlanc” crunch bar ice cream. The Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai store will offer “EARTH SWEETS ~Presented by Takeshita Seika~,” a plant-based ice cream that combines 100% gluten-free churros made of domestic rice flour and plant-derived ingredients.

The rice-flour churros have a great visual impact! It comes as a text churro with the word “Osaka” written on it, and when you hold it in your hand, you can clearly see how big it is. It is sure to be the talk of the town when it looks good in photos!

We are particular about rice flour as well, blending rice flour from the Kyoto Tamanohikari Sake BREWING Co.,Ltd after polishing at least 40% of the rice used to make sake rice. Furthermore, by using rice flour that would otherwise be discarded, the company contributes to the reduction of food loss.
The new crunchy, chewy texture is very satisfying, making this sweet treat suitable for everyone from children to adults.

 

Tonkatsu Noguchi, Evolutionary Tonkatsu from Osaka

Founded in November 2021 in Nakatsu, Osaka City, Tonkatsu Noguchi is the only private restaurant in this presentation. Former Italian chef Yoshiaki Noguchi, the owner of this popular restaurant, has discovered the delicious taste of Japanese pork and serves tonkatsu by the piece, just like sushi, by reservation only.
The restaurant’s appeal lies in its high-quality, evolutionary tonkatsu, in which brand-name pork from various regions of Japan is served in the most delicious way for each part of the pork.

At the tasting, tonkatsu made with “Minami no shimabuta” pork from Miyazaki Prefecture, Kyushu, was served as today’s brand in a single-skewer style. Minami no shimabuta is a brand of pork that is a crossbreed of Okinawa’s native Agu pork and Duroc red pork. The sweetness and flavor of the pork was concentrated in the pork cutlet, and the moist and tender meat was unlike any other pork cutlet I have ever had. Moreover, I was surprised that the pork cutlet did not become hard even after being cooled down!

Mr. Noguchi said that tonkatsu, which originated in Japan, has been loved for 80 years using the same production method and is a highly skilled dish that can be proudly enjoyed around the world, and he was enthusiastic about using Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai as an opportunity to show the world the appeal of tonkatsu!

 

Nichirei Foods offers customizable frozen fried rice

Nichirei Foods Inc., headquartered in Tsukiji, Chuo-ku, Tokyo, is a manufacturer and distributor of frozen foods. It has been about 100 years since the frozen food business began in Japan, and this is the second time Nichirei Foods has opened a store at the Expo, following the 1970 Japan World Expo held in Osaka, which triggered the spread of frozen foods. At Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai, under the same name “Terrace Nichirei,” the company will present not only its preservation technology and convenience, but also a new dining experience using frozen foods.

The highlight of the menu is the “Special Fried Rice” made with Nichirei’s unique technology and automatic cooker. Customers can choose from a total of 20 different types of fried rice, which can be customized at the time of order. Fried rice is a standard frozen food, but what will it taste like if you customize it? I would like to actually try it at the Expo site!

Other offerings include Imagawa-yaki, which can be eaten hot or cold, and acerola mix smoothies, a super fruit.

 

Sustainable Food Court Osaka Noren Meguri – Food and Festival EXPO

Lastly, we would like to introduce a sustainable food court operated by Shirohato Food Industry Co., Ltd. in Moriguchi City, Osaka Prefecture. This is a dreamlike food court where you can experience Osaka as a city of gourmet foodies, with a variety of famous Osaka gourmet restaurants all gathered in one place. Thirteen stores offering a rich variety of food will be open, and in addition, visitors can enjoy gourmet foods from each municipality of Osaka Prefecture at event booths held on a fortnightly basis.

They aim to secure approximately 1,000 seats for the indoor food and beverage booths, the largest at the Expo site! At the main entrance, a giant Nebuta from Aomori, the home of the Nebuta Festival, will be displayed by the first female Nebuta artist. Original Nebuta will also be displayed at each restaurant as a signboard, allowing visitors to enjoy a fun time eating with family and friends in a lively Japanese festival atmosphere.
The restaurant will also be the focus of attention as a model for future restaurants where people and robots will work together, utilizing catering robots.

[List of 13 restaurants]
Takoyaki “Takoya Dotonbori Kukuru”
Oimo sweets “La Popo Farm”
Thai Cuisine “Krungthep”
Kushikatsu “Osaka Shinsekai Ganso Kushikatsu Daruma”
Yakiniku “Kuroge Wagyu Marugoto Ittogai Sumibi Yakiniku Dotonbori Mitsuru”
Tonkatsu “Pork Cutlet and Beef Cutlet CREO-RU”
Ramen “Dotonbori Kamukura”
Negi-yaki “Negi-yaki Yamamoto”
Teppan-yaki “Dotonbori Teppan Steak Toyoshimake”
Fried rice and gyoza “Osaka Ohsho”
Sushi “Daikki Suisan Conveyor-belt Sushi”
Bakery “The best bakery in the world -Shirankedo”

 

Expo2025 gourmet food is all you can choose!

I introduced the gourmet foods that will be available at the Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai. All of the companies are working on and developing menus for the food of the future, and I could sense their expectations and enthusiasm for the Expo. When I actually tasted the food, I found that it was all delicious and I would like to try it again at the Expo site!

You will be able to choose from not only Japanese Japanese cuisine, but also Osaka gourmet food and a wide variety of cuisines from all over the world, so please try all kinds of food when you visit Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai.
So, with only a few days left until the opening of Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai, we will be sending out more and more information, so please look forward to it!