J-Word Play: March ’11

Kobe has a lot of nice restaurants, especially in Kitanozaka. Between the city’s huge international population and the local branch of Le Cordon Bleu cooking school, the slopes of Mt. Rokko are practically layered with good eats. Expensive, but good. From that perspective, then, Vieni still stands out from the pack. Located across from Sone, a Kitanozaka Jazz club with an unearned reputation, Vieni is sitting on some prime real estate, so you know the place has to measure up.