Restaurants in Western Honshū
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Zucchini
Very lively Spanish-style tapas restaurant serving all the usual ham, cheese and fish goodies and paellas from ¥1400. It's a two-storey glass-fronted affair on the corner – you can't miss it.
reviewed
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A
Okonomi-mura
Twenty-five stalls spread over three floors, all of them serving the same thing – this Hiroshima institution is a good place to get acquainted with the local speciality of okonomiyaki, and chat with the cooks over a hot griddle. It's close to the Parco department store; look for the sign jutting out into the street.
reviewed
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Hassei
The walls of this popular okonomiyaki joint are covered with the signatures of celebrity visitors. Unless you're a sumō wrestler, you'll probably find a half-order more than enough to be getting on with at lunchtime. Look for the wooden sign next to the doorway.
reviewed
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C
Cha Cha Ni Moon
Sophisticated minimalist chic prevails in this softly lit old house. There's a bar downstairs and two floors of intimate semiprivate dining rooms upstairs. The beautifully presented dishes here are based on traditional Kyoto cuisine. Look for the small orange sign out the front.
reviewed
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D
Bakudanya
Come to this simple street-corner stall to try another famous Hiroshima dish: tsukemen, a cold rāmen-like dish in which noodles and soup come separately. This is the original outlet; the chain has now spread across the country. A nami (medium-sized) serving of tsukemen is ¥750. Look for the green awning.
reviewed
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E
Tōshō
A traditional wooden building in a beautiful garden setting, Tōshō specialises in homemade tofu (the menu has some pictures), served in a surprising variety of tasty forms. It's a short walk from Danbara 1 chōme (段原一丁目) tram stop, left uphill after the Hijiyama shrine.
reviewed
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Kappo Nakao
This is a sophisticated fugu restaurant in Karato, with graceful service and splendidly prepared dishes. The presentation and relaxed atmosphere are worth it even if you don't try the fugu. The set lunches, such as the fuku kaiseki (fugu course), are decent value. Look for the stone lantern and wooden gate at the front.
reviewed
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Kōji
This busy, elegant Chinese eatery on the 7th floor of the Daimaru shopping complex claims a lineage with one of the oldest soba shops in Tokyo's Asakusa. There's a variety of tasty noodle dishes and stir-fries here like gyūniku to gurīn asupara no atamemono (beef and asparagus stir-fry). Large daily lunch specials are ¥1365.
reviewed
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F
Yabure-Kabure
There's only one thing on the menu in this boisterous spot: pick from a range of fugu set menus, such as the Ebisu course (¥5250), which features the cute little puffer in raw, seared, fried and drowned-in-sake incarnations. A lunchtime tetsuyaki setto (set meal with grilled fugu) is ¥3150. You can also order individual dishes. Look for the blue-and-white puffer fish outside.
reviewed
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Ristorante Mario
A cosy ivy-clad place serving honest Italian food with good service, and a romantic atmosphere in the evenings. Weekday lunch courses start at ¥1180. Try to reserve on weekends.
reviewed
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H
Shimonoseki Ijinkan
Tucked away in the old British Consulate courtyard, the Ijinkan coffee house has bygone European elegance and the theatrical ministrations of bow-tied 'coffee meister' Kunio Kanegae, who puts on a delightful little show if you order the café au lait.
reviewed
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Peace Pot
This alfresco soup spot is one of four new eateries along the Kyōbashi river by the Inari-ōhashi bridge. The tasty pork curry soup is like a meal; bread or rice sets are available. Oysters and beef are on the menu in the neighbouring restaurants.
reviewed
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J
Spicy Bar Lal's
This colourful Indian and Nepalese restaurant serves filling lunch specials and plain naan the size of a small African country. A range of imported beers and veg options make this a nice change, if you ever get tired of okonomiyaki.
reviewed
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Yūki
The tsuwano teishoku (a carp-themed sampler of local dishes; ¥2800) is recommended at this elegantly rustic restaurant, which has wooden tables and the sound of running water. There are koi (carp) in a pool in the floor here, and more on the menu. Look for the old-fashioned building with a brown noren and small pine tree outside.
reviewed
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Yasuhiro Sushi
Enjoy excellent local seafood in this cosy, traditional black-and-white building on the seafront, five to 10 minutes' walk from the station. Try the sashimi teishoku (¥1600) at lunchtime. Prices start from around ¥8000 in the evening.
reviewed
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Yamaneko
Retro furnishings, battered-looking walls decorated with local artwork, and a mellow playlist add up to a relaxed spot for a drink or light meal (pasta carbonara is ¥930). Find it on a corner along the waterfront road, a 15-minute walk from the station, just before Royal Hotel. Look for the cats.
reviewed
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Yakumo-an
Next door to the samurai house, this soba (buckwheat noodle) restaurant and its beautiful grounds are an excellent place to sample the local warigo soba. Try the tasty soba kamo nanban (noodles with slices of duck in broth). Look for the large gate topped by a lantern.
reviewed
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K
Yakigaki-no-hayashi
The oysters in the tank and on the barbecue outside are what everyone is eating here. Try a plate of nama-gaki (raw oysters) or kaki-furai (crumbed, fried oysters) for ¥1300. It's not all about the slimy shell-dwellers – there are other meals, such as udon sets (¥850), on offer too.
reviewed
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Tsurumaru
The smell of fish grilling over coals permeates this restaurant, which specialises in the cuisine of the Oki Islands. The menu features things like eri-yaki konabe (hot spicy soup cooked over a flame at your table; ¥630) and sashimi. You'll know it by the noren with the crane on it, and the rustic folk-singing that drifts into the street.
reviewed
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Tsurube
The speciality here is fresh wheat noodles handmade on the premises, like sansai zaru udon (noodles with wild vegetables; ¥840) and umeboshi udon (noodles with dried plum; ¥630). It's next to the graveyard.
reviewed
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Tottori-ya
This bustling yakitori (skewers of grilled chicken) place has yakikushi moriawase (grilled chicken assortments) at ¥609 for six sticks, or ¥1207 for 12. The veg five-stick option is ¥504, or select from a large menu of individual sticks and rice dishes. Look for the rope curtain hanging over the door.
reviewed
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Tori-soba Ōta
The name of this little countertop restaurant is also its trademark dish: tori-soba (steaming bowls of noodles packed with chicken and served in a tasty broth). Other options are variations on the chicken, noodle and spring onion theme and even the small serve is a decent feed. Look for the big blue sign opposite Chūgoku Bank.
reviewed
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Tabuchiya
Coffee and light meals, including hayashi raisu (beef in sauce on rice; ¥1000). Walk past the Ōta Residence away from the harbour and look for the green noren on your left.
reviewed
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Shiromi Chaya
Relax undercover on a tatami platform overlooking the river and take in great views of the castle at this perfectly placed eatery outside the south gate of Kōraku-en. As well as standard tasty udon and soba offerings, there are rice-based dishes, chirashi-zushi (sushi rice with egg and fish toppings) and teas, plus menus in various languages. It can get busy in garden-viewing high season.
reviewed
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Shanti Vegan Cafe
Eat hearty vegan and vegetarian meals at this simple cafe beneath a yoga studio. There's no English menu, but you can't really go wrong since there's a choice of two set meals up on the chalkboard. Sets feature pasta, brown rice and tasty specialities like renkon (lotus root) burger.
reviewed
