The bar in this late-night izakaya is lined with action figures and scribbled with white graffiti and Hello Kitty faces. But Kanazawa's version of an American dive bar serves up tasty (and often unexpectedly original) dishes. If you start with Kabocha's crisp and juicy kara-age (fried chicken) and end with a cup of creamy pumpkin pudding your taste buds will be happy. But this might be your only chance to sample a local delicacy: an egg yolk "cooked" with miso until it's sufficiently firm and steeped with umami.

A bowl of rich pork broth, braised pork and poached egg made us squeal like the pig it was carved from; those craving something lighter might try the refreshing avocado and maguro salad served in an avocado half. Mugs of draft beer cost less than Y400 and go down easy with a basket of fried lotus-root chips.

by Rachel Krampfner