This beautifully appointed wine bar-restaurant offers an impressive list of around 400 wines by the bottle, focusing on Italy and France. Wines by the glass start at around Y1200, or Y8,000 by the bottle. The food menu features Italian- and Mediterranean-inspired fare like oxtail stew, roast duck with balsamic sauce, and tagliatelle with boar-meat ragu. Budget around Y2500-3500 for dinner before drinks. [Restaurant data]

Located atop the H&M department store, this 24-hour-a-day shop serves good Peking Duck at just Y3680 for a portion big enough for three or four people. They also serve dumplings and small-plate dishes at even cheaper prices. [Restaurant data]

We're always happy when our waiter asks "Would you like that spicy?", and at Rajastan they don't pull their punches if you answer in the affirmative. Owner-chef Osto presents a full menu of fiery curries, spicy stir-fried "deviled" dishes, roast chicken, salads and original dishes like his rice roll made with stir-fried pork and vegetables. The decor is quite festive, with rattan chairs, a wooden floor and two outdoor decks. [Restaurant data]

Despite its small size, Qbrick plays an important part in Osaka's beer scene as a host location for various craft-beer and real-ale events. The regular menu features more than 200 brews from Japan and around the world. [Restaurant data]

A branch of the long-established, highly regarded sushi shop in Ginza that invented gunkan-maki (sushi wrapped in nori strips, "battleship" style). Set menus at dinnertime are priced Y6,825-24,150. A lunchtime donburi starts at Y1890, and lunchtime sushi kaiseki service is Y12,600-18,900. [Restaurant data]

Kobe restaurants tend to be more architecturally restrained, more traditionally oriented than their counterparts in Tokyo or Osaka, but "Dynamic Kitchen Sun" is a rare exception. It's a stunning example of contemporary restaurant design, and an exciting space to experience as a diner. The food here is creative but not over-aggressively so, with some intriguing local culinary touches that may be of interest to Kobe visitors.

Starting at the dramatically lit entrance, diners here walk through a succession of visually distinct spaces - there's a partially screened off bar area to the right of the entrance pathway, then further along is a room full of dimly lit tables arranged to take advantage of the 10th-floor view over central Kobe. Then there's a small area of zashiki seating along the far glass wall. To the left is a huge, warmly lit L-shaped counter that's instantly recognizable as the heart of the place, providing a balance for the hard design edges and adding a warmer, human element. Large earthenware pots and sprawling arrangements of dried flowers and branches also serve to set off the different spaces, and reinforce the earth-toned color scheme. Kobe restaurants tend to be more architecturally restrained, more traditionally oriented than their counterparts in Tokyo or Osaka, but "Dynamic Kitchen Sun" is a rare exception. It's a stunning example of contemporary restaurant design, and an exciting space to experience as a diner. The food here is creative but not over-aggressively so, with some intriguing local culinary touches that may be of interest to Kobe visitors.

Starting at the dramatically lit entrance, diners here walk through a succession of visually distinct spaces - there's a partially screened off bar area to the right of the entrance pathway, then further along is a room full of dimly lit tables arranged to take advantage of the 10th-floor view over central Kobe. Then there's a small area of zashiki seating along the far glass wall. To the left is a huge, warmly lit L-shaped counter that's instantly recognizable as the heart of the place, providing a balance for the hard design edges and adding a warmer, human element. Large earthenware pots and sprawling arrangements of dried flowers and branches also serve to set off the different spaces, and reinforce the earth-toned color scheme.

The food menu is organized around tofu, seasonal fish, and high-quality brand-name meats. (The last category is listed more specifically on the menu as Mitsuse chicken, Yamato beef and Kagoshima pork.) The dishes tend to be relatively simple (grilled chicken, stewed pork kakuni-style) and they're all well executed. There's often an unexpected ingredient that sets the dish apart - for example the tsukune meatballs (here wrapped around a wooden stick) came with an interesting garnish of shredded scallions and a spicy mayonnaise-like sauce that worked much better than the typical tare sauce. The omelette comes with a bit of thick, sweet sauce and a delicate filling of yuba (tofu skin) and fragrant mitsuba.

One interesting regional item is the grilled eel sushi, prepared in the Kansai style by pressing the fish topping over rice in a rectangular box, then cutting it into rectangular pieces. Kobe is also famous for its Chinatown neighborhood, and another locally influenced dish is the excellent assorted dim sum platter. This is definitely a cross-cultural interpretation of dim sum - the dipping sauce has a distinctive yuzu component, and one of the dim sum varieties looks like a typical crab ball but seems to be made from polenta instead. Another dumpling is filled with delicate slivers of various seafood ingredients along with tiny green peas.

Excellent, creative cooking, friendly service and some of the nicest modern decor in Kobe make this restaurant worth a stopover if you're in town. Budget around Y4000-7000 per person with drinks. Sun is conveniently located in the Kobe Kyotsu Center, which is attached to the south side of JR Sannomiya station. [Show more] [Show less]

Chef Yamashita is the head of the local Kansai slow-food organization, and he takes his cooking seriously. It's international-style fusion with a lot of creative recipes - dishes like grilled Australian scampi with spicy yuzu-garlic sauce; Tasmanian salmon confit with salmon roe; and grilled Kagoshima chicken with Calvados. Chef Yamashita is the head of the local Kansai slow-food organization, and he takes his cooking seriously. It's international-style fusion with a lot of creative recipes - dishes like grilled Australian scampi with spicy yuzu-garlic sauce; Tasmanian salmon confit with salmon roe; and grilled Kagoshima chicken with Calvados.

The menu also offers a big charcoal-grill section, sashimi, pastas, great salads and interesting rice dishes. Drinks here include budget-priced Australian wines and several mineral waters. The small sake list is well-chosen, and four out of the five selections are local Kobe brews.

The dining room is small but stylish (with seating for around 30); big wrap-around windows look out over the south side of Kobe and Motomachi station directly below. Service is friendly and the atmosphere is casual and laid-back. Dinner runs around Y3000 without drinks, and the full-course lunches (from Y1900) are very impressive. [Show more] [Show less]