Fukuoka
If you can't visit the rest of Kyūshū, try regional foods at this elegant izakaya. Look for dishes like karashi renkon (spicy, deep-fried lotus root) and…
Must-see restaurants in Asia
Bukhara
Bukhara's most charming and professional restaurant is this perennially popular place with a fantastic roof terrace overlooking the sunset-framed domes of…
Kochi (Cochin)
Set in an open-sided pavilion or at candlelit poolside tables, this outstanding restaurant at Malabar House is (almost) Bollywood-star glam. The ambitious…
West Java
Pangandaran’s terrific fish market consists of more than a dozen large, open-sided restaurants just off the east beach. Karya Bahari is considered the…
Patan
This excellent-value restaurant is a great place to start exploring Newari food. The set meals are a good choice, or combine a wo (lentil) or chatamari …
Colombo
Crabs are a major income earner for Sri Lanka’s fishing industry, but most are exported. This high-profile restaurant rectifies this loss by celebrating…
Phnom Penh
This three-storey air-conditioned cafe sets itself out as the capital's first 100% vegan restaurant, creating original homemade superfood recipes in its…
Yogyakarta
This lively French-owned kitchen is a delight in every sense and comes highly recommended by expats. Everything is homemade, including crusty baguettes…
Mumbai (Bombay)
With rangoli (elaborate designs) on the walls, servers in lungis, and sari-clad women lunching (chappals – sandals – off under the table), Dakshinayan…
Mandalay
Come hungry to this downtown spot that clocks in with over 80 varieties of meat, vegetables and side dishes, all stored in colourful bins in refrigerators…
Punjab (India)
The speciality dum-a-dum biryani (veg, chicken or mutton) in this young, friendly, 1st-floor eatery bursts with flavour, but there are also tasty dhals…
Phuket
Launched in 2017 in a sleek glassed-in space, the Cherngtalay branch of star Phuket chef Noi Tammasak's sought-after Suay is a fusion-tastic sensation…
Pune
This modern, fiercely regional South Indian restaurant champions the best of India's bottom half and isn't afraid to tell you if you are ordering the…
Flores
This open-sided Indo-Australian affair starts with local coffee, house-made soy milk and freshly baked bread; it progresses to exceptional Indonesian…
Tajikistan
Penjikent's most imaginative eatery, this eccentric wooden structure boasts timber stairways and cosy booths and is festooned with traditional artefacts…
Wan Chai & Northeast Hong Kong Island
A family feud at the venerable Yung Kee in Central created this excellent-value spin-off. Kam's Kitchen serves classic, labour-intensive Cantonese dishes…
Bangkok
Run by a passionate, hands-on Italian chef, this fabulous restaurant serves a sturdy range of northern Italian goodies in its casual yet stylish premises…
Panaji
Among the best of Panaji's burgeoning boutique restaurants, Black Sheep’s impressive pale-yellow facade gives way to a sexy dark-wood bar and loungy…
Dongdaemun & Eastern Seoul
The tteokbokki at this raucous restaurant comes in bubbling saucepans as part of a witches brew of rice cakes, fish cake, instant ramen, vegies, egg and…
Guangzhou
An esteemed name in Canton's yum cha dynasty, Tao Tao Ju packs in the over-60s for dim sum wheeled out on heated carts. There's no menu; you'll be given a…
Samarkand
Possibly the best restaurant in Samarkand, Platan has a classy interior and a summer terrace for shady al fresco dining in the summer. The menu includes…
Himachal Pradesh
Easily missed opposite the petrol station, around 2km south of central Kullu, Maitre is the most appealing Western-centric restaurant for miles around,…
Bukit Peninsula
From this triple-level cafe on its cliff-side perch, you can watch never-ending swells march across the Indian Ocean and the surfers carve it up when the…
Phuket Town
Fabulous fusion and fine wines, courtesy of top Phuket chef-owner Noi Tammasak, are the draw at this converted house just south of the Old Town. Spicy…
French Concession
Part deli, part Whole Foods–style grocery, plus pizzeria, grill, bakery and brunch...the hugely popular Barn has it all. Its motto is 'eat your way around…
Gwanghwamun & Jongno-gu
The converted hanok that houses this chic bistro in the revamped old neighbourhood of Ikseon-dong is Korean, but the dishes are contemporary European…
Singapore
Madam Ong Kim Hoi famously started out with an unnamed hawker stall (hence 'No Signboard'), but the popularity of her seafood made her a rich woman, with…
Sentosa Island
Free-flowing-alcohol Sunday brunch is huge in Singapore, and this posh, secluded spot – complete with strutting peacocks and roaming band – serves one of…
Shanghai
There's no shortage of decent Hunan restaurants in Shanghai, but you won't find much better than this one. Wooden benches and an exposed-brick effect make…
Danang
This stylish restaurant and lounge bar has led the eating and drinking charge across the Han River on the eastern shore. Innovative Asian fusion dishes,…
Madhya Pradesh & Chhattisgarh
Jehan Numa Palace’s best restaurant specialises in barbecue kebabs and tandoor dishes (including vegetarian options). Most things on the menu are top…
Traditional Foods Sales Centre
Dambulla
This government-run stand exists to preserve local traditional foods, but for travellers it's an excellent chance to do some culinary exploration. Try a…
Ho Chi Minh City
This cafe/cultural centre is a gem. It's tricky to find: off busy Ð Pasteur, along an alley and then up steep stairs in a somewhat rundown apartment…
Western Honshū
This traditional eatery, in a 200-year-old warehouse with chunky beams and long wooden tables, is famed for mamakari, the sardine-like local speciality…
Panaji
Well-known to tourists, this little side-street eatery, in an old Portuguese house and with a few tables out on the laneway, delivers tasty Goan classics…
Chinatown, Merdeka Square & Bukit Nanas
Behind the raw concrete and timber facade of the old Mah Lian Hotel is this restaurant and teashop with a plant-filled courtyard and the original hotel…
Holland Village, Dempsey Hill & the Botanic Gardens
The first and only Peranakan restaurant with a Michelin star, Candlenut is where Singaporeans head to impress out-of-towners. Chef Malcolm Lee does not…
Beijing
With modern Chinese interiors fit for an emperor, this Manchu-inspired restaurant is a regal delight, serving imperial fare such as Peking duck, braised…
Chitwan National Park
A Sauraha classic, KC’s is set in a cool, thatch-roofed bungalow with an open terrace overlooking a manicured garden, with a fire pit for winter dinners…
North Goa
North Goa's most famous Greek restaurant was forced out of its long-running Vagator location in 2018 but has found a new waterfront home at Teso in Siolim…
