Osaka and Kyoto areas

If you are coming from Kyoto/Osaka area by bullet train, have left side seats so that you get to see mt.Fuji.
If you are going to Kyoto/Osaka area, have right side seats if you would like to see mt.Fuji.

Kyoto 
Food in Kyoto
Tenkaippin Ramen: One of the most well known tonkotsu (pork broth) ramen is originally from Kyoto. You get to choose Assari (light taste) and Kotteri (thick taste) when you order.

Osaka
Osaka Food
Okonomiyaki  and Takoyaki (Octopus balls) are everywhere.
Every 50m you see either one of them.

Zauo
This izakaya is interesting. Fishing izakaya.
There are fish in watertank and you can do fishing inside the izakaya.
After you catch fish, they can make them sashimi, or fly or sushi.
For sushi, you can even try to learn how to make it.
There are several shops located in Tokyo too.
http://www.zauo.com/index.html

Udongura
My #1 favorite in the world. I never liked udon but this changed my idea about udon. It's located in middle of nowhere so unless you really really love udon, don't go. 2000yen-3000yen.
Googlemap
Tabelog

Sightseeing Spot
Tenshinbashisuji Shotengai 
The longest local shopping street with bunch of interesting stuff that you don't see anywhere else.
Yelp

Tsutenkaku
Used to be a wacky district with bunch of weirdos when I was a kid, but now looks quite a local interesting shopping and izakaya district. They did a good job. The tower itself is not so tall and not so interesting, but the surrounding area is fun.