2025 Osaka Expo: Cuisine From Around the World Found at Osaka-Kansai Expo; Company from Hyogo Pref. Offers Soba With Kobe Beef at 2025 Expo

The Yomiuri Shimbun

20:00 JST, April 26, 2025

One of the reasons for the popularity of the 2025 Osaka-Kansai Expo can be attributed to the fact that visitors can try authentic cuisine from different countries.

On the first Saturday of the Expo, which is being held on the artificial island of Yumeshima in Osaka City, admission tickets for the 9 a.m. slot were completely sold out.

Maneki Inc., a food company in Himeji, Hyogo Prefecture, sells a special dish at the Expo based on Eki Soba (train station noodles), which is a city specialty that is usually served at train stations.

For the Expo, Maneki developed the Ultimate Kobe Beef Sukiyaki Eki Soba, which incorporates 100 grams of thinly sliced Kobe beef with noodles and Japanese dashi broth and is served in a Wajima lacquerware bowl.

The Ultimate Kobe Beef Sukiyaki Eki Soba costs ¥3,850, more than seven times the price of a regular Eki Soba, which is usually served with tempura.

“We developed the special dish because we wanted visitors to eat something memorable,” said Maneki President Noritaka Takeda.

The company’s restaurant at the Expo also offers dishes that are less than ¥2,000.

Japanese visitors can also find many dishes they might not be familiar with at the Expo.

The Malta Pavilion sells the Mediterranean country’s traditional bread called Il-Ftira, which is made with such ingredients as tuna and olives, for ¥1,400. The Kuwait Pavilion offers Lamb Machboos, the country’s delicacy of cooked lamb with saffron rice, for ¥3,850.

A 47-year-old company employee from Izumiotsu, Osaka Prefecture, ate Sayadieh, a dish using fish seasoned with spices, at a restaurant attached to the Saudi Arabia Pavilion on April 14. The bill for him and his wife amounted to ¥9,900.

“If you think about [how much it would cost] to go to Saudi Arabia, I think the price is reasonable,” he said. “I feel like I’ve become more familiar with Saudi Arabia.”

High prices criticized

However, there are some on social media criticizing the cost of some of the dishes, saying, “They are too expensive” and “They are overpriced.”

Motoo Kawabata, professor emeritus at Kwansei Gakuin University who is knowledgeable about the restaurant industry, said, “Nothing can be done about the high prices considering such costs as participation fees, transportation fees and labor costs.”