Review excerpt: Kyoto's Walden Woods — with no signs or tables — typifies the third wave coffee boom cafe.

Review excerpt: What sets Koe Lobby apart is its all-day dining. Early birds will like the baked goods and eggs at breakfast.

Review excerpt: At Craft Beer Market Osaka, the lineup runs to 30 beers, and is usually, but not exclusively, drawn from domestic brewers.

Review excerpt: If you’re in Umeda and in need of an escape from the crowds, head for Taneya’s shop at the back of the cavernous confectionery hall in the Hankyu department store.

Review excerpt: The coffee shop Saiin Roasting Factory is about a 10-minute walk from Saiin Station, plonked right in the middle of suburbia. It’s definitely a highlight in this nondescript neighborhood.

Review excerpt: 365 Nichi is an excellent little bakery that has been operating day in, day out, even at new year, ever since it opened in 2013.

Review excerpt: Mikkeller Tokyo boasts 20 taps, about half of them dispensing Japanese microbrews and the rest Mikkeller’s own distinctive custom-made range.

Review excerpt: With both of the daily lunch sets on offer you can eat as much you want, and customers do, loading up twee baskets with curry-flavored bread and more at Kyoto's Tentation d'Ange.

Review excerpt: The bar snacks at Another8 are classy, ranging from soy-sauce pickles to the addictively munchy home-cooked burdock chips.

Review excerpt: The pork at The Good Vibes oozes rich, spicy sauce and is loaded up with chili pickles and lettuce. The chicken has a crunchy genmai (brown rice) coating and comes with grated cabbage and a slather of teriyaki sauce.

Review excerpt: There are Japanese classics at Sandwich Factory, such as cream and fruit sandwiches, but also burdock root and tuna, with the crusts removed.

Review excerpt: For the locals, Path is a breakfast pit stop, a place to gear up for the day with good coffee and even better pastries. At night Path really comes into its own, transforming into a proper sit-down, spend-the-evening restaurant.