Tenjinbashisuji Shotengai ［天神橋筋商店街］

Tenjinbashisuji Shotengai

The Tenjinbashisuji Shotengai is the longest covered shopping arcade in Japan extending 2.6 kilometers, starting from Tenjin Bridge over the Okawa River in the north and extending 2.6 kilometers in a southward direction.
From stores selling food products, prepared meals, general merchandise, and clothes to inexpensive restaurants and well-established teahouses, more than 600 various establishments can be found here. Indeed, it is a shopping arcade that the local residents cannot do without.
Back in the old days, stores began appearing one after another along the path leading to the Osaka Tenmangu (shrine) and this area turned into a shrine town which is said to be the beginning of the Tenjinbashisuji Shotengai.
With many popular restaurants always crowded with people, you can also enjoy many of Osaka's specialties such as Okonomiyaki (pan-fried dish with various ingredients) and Takoyaki (octopus balls).
Every July, many people come to one of Japan's three most famous festivals held here called the Tenjin Festival where they enjoy watching the parade of floats and miniature shrines and checking out the food stalls selling a variety of edible delights.