It is often difficult to get one’s hands on a nice, juicy steak in most of China’s major cities (with obvious exception to Shanghai, Beijing, and Hong Kong).  With that said, Yi Zuo La Brazilian Barbecue in downtown Kunming is sure to satisfy anyone’s cravings for western meat cuts.  Brazilian barbecue restaurants are becoming popular all around Asia, and understandably so.  These restaurants feature an army of waiters that walk about the establishment cutting pieces of barbecued beef, lamb, pork, chicken, goose, fish, fruit, and much more right onto your plate. Naturally there is also a buffet with even more selections, all of which the customer is allowed to eat until his or her heart (and stomach) is content.  Patrons are given a double-sided table marker. The green side means "feed me Seymour," and the red side means "if I eat anymore I might explode and die a horrible, horrible, meat-filled death."  Your future heart attack, courtesy of Yi Zuo La will only cost you 68 RMB for dinner, or 58 RMB for lunch (lunch not recommended unless you will enjoy spending the rest of the day in a food coma).  Yi Zuo La also boasts a Brazilian dance show with scantily-clad performers beginning nightly around 7 pm. 

Yi Zuo La is located at 186 Wuyi Lu (五一路), just south of Renmin Zhong Lu (人民中路).

The imaginatively named Xinjiang Restaurant is the best eatery on a strip of restaurants that serve the Uighur minority cuisine. The Uighurs, one of China's 56 recognized minorities, hail from the northwestern region of China formerly known as Turkestan. It is also the official restaurant of the Xinjiang Uighur Minority Special Autonomous Region Government’s representative office in Shenzhen, so it must be good.

Uighur cuisine is similar to that found in Central Asian countries and relies heavily on roast mutton, noodles, naan bread and chili. Food is prepared and cooked according to Islamic custom. The Xinjiang Restaurant is as good an example of it as you will find this far from Urumqi. The food they serve is authentic, typical and tastes even better washed down with Xinjiang black beer. A meal for two will cost about RMB70 - 120. The menu is in Chinese but also has pictures.

The Xinjiang Restaurant is at the end of a strip of restaurants on Chunfeng Road, just east of the intersection with Wenjin Road. Bus nos. 5 and 14 stop near here and a taxi from the Luo Hu border crossing will cost about RMB15.

The Pancake Restaurant is located on Zhongsan St. in the suburb of Hei Shi Jiao next to the Super 8 hotel. It is easy to get there by tram (No.202), by bus (801, 23, 28, 406, or 901), or by taxi (RMB 20-30) from the city centre.

The staff at the Nobe Boat Japanese restaurant are particularly nice.  It’s a restaurant my husband and I go to regularly. The manager always welcomes us warmly, asks about our job, the kids, and stops by to chat throughout the evening. While prices are certainly higher than the average Chinese restaurant, it’s worth the extra for the ambiance, the incredibly fresh sushi, a bowl of delicate miso soup, and a bottle of sake.  Run by chef Katsu Wataru, Noble Boat serves the best Japanese food I’ve found in Hainan.  If you are not fond of sushi, you can choose from udon noodles, teriyaki, tempura vegetables, or any number of Japanese dishes.  There is an excellent choice of seating here as well.  Choose from either a typical table and chairs or traditional Japanese seating on cushions.  Private rooms are available if you spend a minimum of 200 RMB.