I frankly misunderstood the St. Regis brand before I flew to Japan’s second city for a stay.
It is surprising that the hundred plus year-old American hotel brand has only one property in the whole of Japan with 120 million people living inside the nation and foreign inbound tourism restarting with a vengeance.
One may expect cookie cutter style from St. Regis – faux French with grandiose lobby design and dining spaces – but the hotel’s only Japanese plot, aged 15 years in Osaka central, corrected my assumption. Here is a blend of trans-Atlantic 1900s grand Manhattan design with a subtle Japanese-ness prominent throughout the lobby. The rooms however feel more stately with an American look.
In both Japanese and five-star fashion, the hotel staff are overtly friendly. Doorman Ivan whips you up into a friendly daze welcoming guests at the property entrance. Manning indoor operations are a gaggle of cheery-eyed staff from Japan and overseas locales such as Nepal and India and Hong Kong and China.
Dining at the Regis in Osaka is saintly. The breakfast selection, split between the royal blue St. Regis Bar and Italian restaurant Le Veduta, is comprehensive. Their Western buffet spread is attuned for the tourist preferring pastries, yoghurts, fruits, and a continental spread to start their day.
A Japanese breakfast set ordered from their breakfast menu has savoury appetisers and steamed fresh fish for ample nutrition to hit the streets. As a French toast fan, their version with crystalised sugar and raisins topped with cherry jam and chantilly honey pleased me.
At their Michelin Recommended teppanyaki grill Wajo, ingredients harvested a week ago and protein sourced yesterday allows their menus to flourish in abundant flavours. The dinner’s second course of caviar-topped and lemon-dressed flounder sits on top of a potato pancake with cream that ties the plate together, each bite a soothing mix of sour and salt.
Later on, a parsley herb butter hugs the crisp shell of grunt fish, with main course A5 Wagyu soaking up flaky salt and cracked pepper and matched with freshly grilled onion, okra, and courgette.
Hosted daily at 7PM, the St. Regis champagne ritual is practiced in the lobby area, given a local twist with a champagne bottle sabered using a katana sword.
Upstairs in the room, the Grand Deluxe King Room, you will find luxury necessities of a bidet, roomy shower and bath set-up, and a generous bed that hugs you to sleep like a cushion monster. The view places you centrally in the chaotic lovable mess of Osaka. This is foremost a city hotel, flee to Kyoto if you crave quiet.
There exists remnants of the hotel’s 2010 construction, but I hear the hotel will be upgrading rooms imminently so expect modern amenities upon your visit. An old TV and physical control station are not dealbreakers. Yet, it doesn’t feel like Japan inside the hotel room, with other hotel chains localising design to blend in with the environment.
I would be remiss to not focus on Osaka’s forte in food and sightseeing. Barring cloudless days of 36-degree-heat, of which I braved through, the Osaka Castle is a shining precedent of Japan protecting its Sengoku period past. Elsewhere, Japan’s oldest Buddhist temple in Shitennō-ji, founded in 593, ushers tranquility and a moment to breathe history amidst a loud itinerary. Keitakuen Garden, next to Japan’s second tallest building Abeno Harukas, joins the trio of idyllic and kept Japanese sights.
From The St. Regis Osaka’s entrance, the shielded Shinsaibashisuji Shopping Street featuring dozens of mom-and-pop shops and izakayas; it directs visitors from the business centre of town to the cacophonous Dontonburi at its end. One visit – at night – is all that is needed for Dontonburi as the air feels heavier and more noisy than other Osaka parts. Up north, Tenjinbashi, Japan’s longest shopping street at 2.6 kilometres, is equally a joy to walk its length in search of gimmicky souvenirs.
With Osaka dining, Fukutaro comes to mind. Menu items like their okoniyamki are strong, but it is their sauce-less, spring onion-stuffed negiyaki that impresses. I opted for their beef option which included chunky, stringy, and sinewy cuts of the cow – delicious.
In the shadow of the Tsutenkaku tower in Shinsekai, kushiage proprietor Kushikatsu-Oji beats neighbouring shops on price and selection of battered sticks of meat and vegetables. Ramen Bukkoshi, north of Osaka Central, dishes out creamy beef ramen bowls made with beef bones, a broth that wraps around your tongue and coats your mouth with a fatty beef touch.
The St. Regis Osaka is where luxury visits can be had with a touch of excitement. The rooms are comfortable, breakfast plentiful, Wajo innovative, and staff intimate and friendly. The excitement arrives when you exit its doors and venture to Osaka’s sights minutes from the hotel.
The St. Regis Osaka, 3 Chome-6-12 Honmachi, Chuo Ward, Osaka, 541-0053, Japan, +81 6-6258-3333, book here, rooms start at HKD2,668/JPY53,200
This review is intended to offer an individual perspective on the hotel experience and should not be considered as a definitive judgement of the hotel’s overall quality or reputation. The views expressed in this review are solely the author’s and do not reflect the opinions of Foodie.
