Osaka Dessert Cafe Tour: Cozy Classics To Viral Eats

If you love desserts and cafe hopping, then you have to check out my Osaka Dessert Cafe Tour! Osaka is known for a wide variety of yummy foods. But, don’t sleep on their desserts either! This trip to Osaka, I discovered their love for unique desserts, from deliciously simple Japanese Cafe pudding to viral late night parfaits that look like works of art. Whether you’re an ice cream person or a cake person, Osaka has something interesting for you!

My Osaka Foodie Dessert Cafe Tour

I’m back in Japan with Dom and my mom, and we’re determined to explore every tasty thing we can find here in Japan’s food capital. Osaka isn’t just known for the world famous takoyaki in Dotonbori, there’s tons more to discover when it comes to sweets as well. This trip, we are cafe hopping through a ton of Osaka’s delicious dessert cafes. From simple outdoor stands to complete dine-in experience, every single one of these spots has quality desserts that that will satisfy any sweet tooth.

Japanese Uji Tea Desserts

Our first dessert stop in Shinsaibashi is Gion Tsujiri, the Osaka branch of the historic Uji tea company from Kyoto. It’s a great spot both to buy some tea, and to enjoy quality Japanese tea-based desserts. There’s tons of tea-based souvenirs and treats like cookies and sweets you can buy as well. Their dine-in menu includes a range of tea parfaits and traditional desserts that are perfect after a day of walking around.

We ordered a few different delicious tea treats to share for our dessert break. First, we started with the Matcha Warabimochi set (1850 yen $11.68), which is a soft, jiggly mochi packed with tons of matcha and covered in soybean flour. It comes with some kuromitsu on the side, and a cup of Uji matcha.

The Kyo Tsujiri Hojicha Parfait (1850 yen, $11.68 USD) is made with a base of hojicha soft serve, layered with different toppings from chewy rice balls to crispy streusel. It’s served with a side of hojicha condensed milk for you to drizzle on before enjoying. There’s so many fun textures packed into one dessert! Lastly, we ordered a matcha float, which is made with matcha soft serve and Uji matcha. This is a great place to enjoy some classic Japanese tea desserts, especially for matcha lovers!

Matcha Mont Blanc Ice Cream

After a little more walking around in Shinsaibashi, we couldn’t resist the fun looking desserts at the street-side stand of Koden Yakuzencha. This is a specialty herbal tea shop selling loose-leaf blends, powdered teas, herbal ingredients, and gift sets that also has a sit-down dessert cafe upstairs. Outside, they sell soft serve desserts as well.

But, what caught my eye was their Matcha Mont Blanc soft serve (800 yen, $5.05 USD). This dessert starts with matcha soft serve in a waffle cone, topped with noodle-like threads of matcha white bean paste. Then, it’s decorated with some red beans. It’s a great cooling treat after walking around Shinsaibashi, and I give it a 7/10. If you’re love red bean and matcha, you’ll really like this ice cream!

Adorable Crochet Mousse Cakes

Masahiko Ozumi Paris was a must try spot on our Osaka bucket list. This place is known for their super detailed crochet cakes that looks like little bags, pillows, and accessories. I’ve been dying to try these crochet pastries for years! They’re even more beautiful in person, almost too pretty to eat.

Here, they combine French pastry techniques with Japanese-inspired flavors. We ordered their classic Mont Blanc Noir Chocolate Mousse Cake and their Chou Chou Earl Grey Mousse Cake (930 Yen each, $5.87 USD). The crochet patterns are made with piped cream, mousse, or chestnut paste. So, it wasn’t hard like fondant at all. The texture is very soft, delicate, and actually really, really delicious.

I definitely had my suspicions, because we’ve all had those really beautiful cakes that only LOOKS amazing. This place actually lived up to the hype! There’s no seating for eating around the shop, but there’s a park 10 minutes away where you can sit and enjoy your cakes. Would I travel all the way here next time just to eat another cake? Probably not. Is it worth trying if you’re already in Osaka? 100% yes.

Basque Cheesecake and In-House Coffee Roasting

I finally understand the hype of cafe hopping after 30 years, and here’s my three criteria for a cafe work visiting: quality coffee and beans, tasty food menu that pairs well, and overall cozy atmosphere for relaxing and chatting. Sot Cafe checked all three boxes for me. This Nordic-style coffee shop roasts their own single-origin beans, focusing on light roasts that preserve acidity and fruity flavors.

We ordered a round of all their must-try’s, and loved loved loved their freshly roasted coffee. The Iced Americano (800 yen) and Cappuccino (750 yen) were not bitter at all. They were super smooth, balanced, and really easy to drink. We also ordered their Choco Nut Latte, which was just like a dessert with a rim of chocolatey crushed nuts. Another must have is their basque cheesecake (800 yen), which they’re well known for. The creaminess of the cheesecake matches super well with their slightly acidic coffee.

Sot Coffee Roaster is a great place for tasty coffee, yummy desserts, and a relaxed environment to rest. It’s only around a 10-minute walk from Osaka Castle, so it’s the perfect place to relax before heading off to explore the super busy Umeda district. 

Viral Pablo Brulee Cheese Tart

We had to stop by Cheese Tart Pablo Shinsaibashi to try their famous cheese tarts. This is one of Osaka’s most iconic desserts! Here at the Shinsaibashi branch, you can watch them make all of their different varieties of cheesecakes, including whole cheesecakes, slices, and mini tarts. Seeing all the sugar bubbling on top from torching makes it look SUPER tasty!

We chose their Mini Brulee Cheese Tarts (350 Yen, $2.21 USD) because they were the perfect size to get a quick taste. They’re basically small cheese tarts with caramelized sugar on top. So, you get that crispy, crackly brulee flavor on top with a soft and creamy cheese filling underneath. Their cheese cake fillings are much softer, almost like mousse. It’s an absolute must try, and an 8/10 for me! If you love a light cheesecake and creme brulee, this dessert is definitely for you. There’s quite a few branches around Osaka and around Japan, so don’t miss it!

Picture Perfect Late Night Parfaits

After an amazing omakase experience, we headed to Parfeteria Pal for the most beautiful desserts to end the night. This late night parfait cafe is another shop that serves desserts that are almost too beautiful to eat. Everything on the menu was a work of art.

We each ordered our own parfaits, and each had its own unique theme. The first is the Strawberry Ruby Flower Garland Parfait (2980 yen), with a beautiful ring of sliced strawberries and berry sorbet on top. It’s layered with fermented milk bergamot cream, rose jelly, and rhubarb jam for a bright, refreshing berry flavor.

The next one is the Strawberry Milk Lady Parfait (2880 yen, $18.18 USD), which is topped with a lady shaped cookie with a berry creamy skirt. Inside, there’s milk and pistachio gelato, strawberry and lychee jelly, and creamy bites of mascarpone and vanilla mouse. Lastly, the Pistachio and Chocolate Parfait (1980 yen, $12 USD), a pistachio themed parfait with notes chocolate and hazelnut. It was the right amount of creamy and nutty without being too sweet.

Parfeteria Pal is 3 minutes walking away from Shinsaibashi station, on the 3rd floor of the Marukiyo Building. It feels just like a hidden cocktail bar! Walk-ins are accepted, but it’s better to have a reservation if you’d really like a spot especially on weekends. For a treat-yourself dessert after dinner, this is a picture-perfect spot.

Cozy Pudding Cafe

After hours of shopping around, we needed a little coffee break. So, we stopped by Osaru Coffee in Namba. This place was so cute and cozy. It’s a small coffee shop tucked away in the busy street, so it felt like a little perfect reset from the chaos of Osaka. It’s another spot that roasts their beans in-house using single-origin beans. Their menu has everything from espresso lattes, matcha lattes to coffee, banana shakes. They also have sweet treats like French toast, pudding, and cheesecake.

We each got our own drinks, including the classic Cafe Latte (650 yen, $4.10 USD) and my favorite Matcha Latte (650 yen, $4 USD). Dom ordered a Coffee Banana Shake (700 yen, $4.42 USD), which satisfied both his love for coffee and sweeter drinks. But, our favorite part was their pudding (800 yen, $5.05 USD). It’s just the right amount of bouncy, topped with fresh cream. You can also add 150 yen to add a scoop of gelato on top.

I feel like this is exactly the kind of cafe that I love finding when I’m traveling. It’s not too fancy, not too overwhelming, just really good coffee, cozy vibes, and something sweet to enjoy on the side. We wanted to slow down a little, enjoy our drinks, and recharge, because we have some special plans tonight. This cafe gets an 8/10, and is a great break spot to pause before more exploring in the Namba area.

Super Fruity Crepe Cakes

We stopped by Harbs in Namba Park for another quick coffee break, and to try their famous cakes. This cafe is well known for their fruity cream cakes and their fresh mille crepe cakes packed with fruit. But, they also have some light meals in their dine-in menu.

We ordered a few, including their Strawberry Crepe Cake (1350 yen, $8 USD), which is packed with so much strawberries in between the crepe layers. Their Marrón Cake (930 yen) was creamy, and had chunks of rich chestnuts mixing inside the fresh cream. This cafe gets a 7.5/10 from us, with yummy cakes and plenty of drink options. It is on the 3rd floor of Namba Parks. Since it’s connected to the Namba station area, it’s super convenient to get to. There’s tons of seating, so it’s never a super long wait!

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