Basque cuisine is the unusual specialty at Etxola and sister shop Gastroteka Bimendi. Etxola is the slightly fancier of the two, and they turn out beautifully presented prix-fixe menus based on top-quality seasonal ingredients. Some highlights from an autumn five-course lunch were excellent roast seasonal vegetables in tximitxuri sauce, grilled isaki (grunt), and an earthy risotto-style shirasu (whitebait) rice dish. Creamy Basque cheesecake... [Continue reading]

First-class pizzas are the big draw at this highly rated Italian restaurant, along with an eye-popping selection of more than 500 wines. At lunchtime you can get a whole pizza, salad and coffee starting at around Y2,000, which is very good cost performance for this level of quality. There are around two dozen varieties to choose from, and most pizzas are available for take-out... [Continue reading]

No visit to Nagoya is complete without an order of ebi-fry - deep-fried prawns - and Ebidote is a great place to experience this beloved local dish. Plump jumbo prawns with a thick, crunchy coating arrive fresh from the deep fryer here, ready to be slathered with home-made tartar sauce or dipped into the shop's special dote-miso sauce. Their secret sauce recipe is based on locally.... [Continue reading]

Cafe Tales serves only coffee made from Colombian beans, and it's a great place to explore the differences in flavors among that country's various coffee-growing regions. You can usually find four or five different drip coffees to choose from, either hot or iced, as well as espresso drinks and pastries. They also serve a breakfast/brunch menu until around 2pm featuring French toast (sweet or savory) and big salads. The cafe is furnished with... [Continue reading]

In Fukuoka "yakitori" means more than just chicken, and popular items here at the city's most famous yakitoriya include everything from beef skirt steak to pig's feet. Hachibei's grilled butabara (pork belly) is especially good, with just the right amount of fat to yield maximum flavor during grilling, In fact they're so proud of this dish that the restaurant's staff wear t-shirts.... [Continue reading]

Classic hearty Uzbeki dishes are the draw at this hidden jewel in Nihonbashi. Along with a few Turkish and Russian staples, and even some Georgian wine! You walk through a dark corridor in an office building on a back street and come out into an exotic Central Asian room, a crimson box decorated with tapestries and images of the architectural wonders of Samarkand. On any given day, the.... [Continue reading]