5 Best Restaurants in Naoshima, Shikoku

Located near the Art House Project in Honmura, Aisunao is known for its healthy and predominantly vegetarian lunches, although you can also stop just for ice cream, sweets, and soft drinks. Diners sit on raised tatami mats overlooking a garden of a traditional Japanese guesthouse. It's the perfect place to recharge your batteries between exploring the various art sites of Naoshima.

Sandwiches, rice omelets, and Italian dishes are among the eclectic fare served at this café inside a traditional house. This is a good spot for a meal or just coffee and cake. One of the few restaurants in town open for dinner, Café Salon Nakaoku is about 150 meters south of the Art House Project's Minamidera installation, after going through the crossing and then taking the right-hand fork in the road.

Located in the Benesse House Museum, Restaurant Issen serves teishoku lunches and traditional kaiseki-style bentos in beautifully curated surroundings. It's a highly aesthetic experience—and one of the most elegant dining options on the island. At dinner, the menu switches to full (and far more expensive) kaiseki dinners, although those are currently offered only to guests of Benesse House. Note that children below the age of six are not allowed.

Connected to a small gallery a few doors down from the I ♥ Yu baths in Miyanoura, this rickety looking restaurant serves up traditional, simple teishoku set meals for lunch. With the classic combo of rice, miso soup, and pickles, expect super-fresh sashimi and other seafood options. When the weather is nice, enjoy your meal on the restaurant's wooden terrace. The restaurant is often closed on weekdays (except for Friday), but it sometimes opens on other days.

This 1950s-style café serves hot dogs, sandwiches, and whatever else the friendly owners feel like making that day. Next to the bathhouse in Miyanoura, it's a perfect stop for a post-bath beer. Shioya is sometimes closed for dinner, so in the evening it's wise to call before coming.