Top 10 Restaurants in the Craziest Locations

#10: Ali Barbour's Cave Restaurant

Kenya

You may not be able to travel back in time, but this comes pretty close. At Ali Barbour’s Cave Restaurant in Kenya, customers enjoy their meals nearly three dozen feet below ground inside a vast cavern. The fine dining set-up juxtaposes with the ancient cave; a contrast that draws in locals and visitors alike. Although the business opened in 1983, its location is believed to be over 100,000 years old. There are whispers of it being connected to a larger system, adding a layer of intrigue to the experience. Whether one is gazing up at the sky from the open-top roof or wondering about the secrets beyond the stone walls, it’s the perfect place to feel at one with nature and history.

#9: Grotta Palazzese

Italy

Ali Barbour’s isn’t the only place where high-end dining meets natural erosion. Italy’s Grotta Palazzese has its own take on the concept: an eatery nestled within the side of a cave high above the Adriatic Sea. It’s been utilized as a luxurious gathering space since the 1700s, and has maintained those roots by evolving into a globally-adored restaurant. Guests come to enjoy the breath-taking sight of the water below, all while sitting in the very limestone cavern the water helped to form. Whether you come at high tide or sunset, the view is bound to be gorgeous (and slightly different each time)! This establishment is a testament to the limitless power of nature and the importance of preserving it.

#8: Sirocco

Bangkok

This is any thrill-seeker’s dream, and every acrophobic’s worst nightmare. The city of Bangkok boasts a truly impressive sight: one of the tallest open-air eateries in the entire world. Sirocco stands at just over 800 feet tall, allowing for an unobstructed view of the metropolis below them. Should guests feel brave enough, then they can head up to the rooftop on the 64th floor to have a meal at what feels like the very top of the world. As if the gorgeous, 360-degree sights weren’t enough, the building itself is a lavish architectural accomplishment that’s bound to make anyone feel like royalty (or a character from “The Hangover Part II” if you remember that movie!) during their night out.

#7: Chillout Ice Lounge

Dubai

A winter wonderland nestled within a perpetually warm city sounds like a myth. However, at Dubai’s Chillout Ice Lounge, guests can beat the heat in the best way possible. It maintains a temperature of -6 degrees Celsius, allowing it to constantly showcase a variety of beautifully crafted ice sculptures and furniture. Many patrons can be seen wearing expensive, branded jackets and other wintertime accessories, ensuring that they’ll stay warm even while surrounded by the frozen décor around them. It’s the first restaurant of its kind in the area, and offers a variety of hot food and drinks, ensuring that no visitor will leave hungry, cold, or dissatisfied. The experience is so immersive that just for a moment, you may forget about the arid climate just outside.

#6: The Rock Restaurant, Zanzibar

Tanzania

For over a decade, this venue has provided a stunning yet slightly elusive experience that simply can’t be replicated. The Rock Restaurant, in Zanzibar, is perched on the end of Unguja Island, and depending on the time of day may seem unassuming to the unfamiliar onlooker. When high tide rolls around, however, the water rises enough to make it look as though the eatery is on an island of its own. During these periods, diners can only access it by boat. They’re taken across the vibrant blue waves of the Indian Ocean, helping them get acquainted with the water before dining just above it. In an already picturesque location, it’s a sliver of pure paradise that will leave visitors feeling like they’ve stepped straight into a postcard.

#5: Labassin Waterfall Restaurant

Philippines

If you can handle eating above the water, then why not go one step further and eat within it? At Labasin, that concept isn’t so far-fetched. Not only is the Philippines-based restaurant located outside, the tables sit in a river at the base of a man-made waterfall. Should you try it for yourself, don’t bother packing shoes. Guests remove them before heading down to splash around as they please, before settling in for a meal. Their feast is then accompanied by the sight and sound of rushing water cascading down from above them. Besides creating a perfect way for a traveler to push themselves out of their usual comfort zone, it also provides a perfect opportunity for reconnecting with nature.

#4: Soneva Kiri’s Treepod Dining

Thailand

If you looked up serenity in the dictionary, we’re almost positive this is what you’d see. Ready to be discovered on the island Ko Kut in Thailand is the Soneva Kiri resort, which gives visitors the opportunity to enjoy their meals in the most breathtaking of circumstances. They offer an amenity known as Treepod Dining, where guests are loaded into a small pod made of bamboo and hoisted high into the air. Once the diners are secured three dozen feet high, their servers swoop in via zip-line to take their orders. From there, they can enjoy the lush greenery of the tree tops around them, observe the wildlife climbing or flying around, and view the world in a way they never had before.

#3: El Diablo

Spain

Who needs an oven when you have lava? At Spain’s El Diablo, the chefs let the Earth handle the cooking for them. The eatery can be found in the Fire Mountains of Timanfaya National Park, right on top of a slumbering volcano. With the help of a basal pit and the planet’s geothermal energy, the furnaces can reach over 1,000 degrees Fahrenheit. While it hasn’t erupted since 1824, that doesn’t mean it’s laying low. Some employees even conduct demonstrations where they stoke the flames in random sections of the landform, making it clear that it could reawaken at any moment. If you’re feeling brave, you can try it for yourself; just know you’re much closer to the fires of hell than most may be comfortable with.

#2: Ithaa Undersea Restaurant

The Maldives

This may be the final boss of water-based eateries. In 2004, the Maldives’ Rangali Island opened Ithaa’s doors and offered a never-before-seen experience: a chance to eat sixteen feet below the surface of the Indian Ocean. Patrons sit inside a glass room, where they gaze at marine life swimming by and the endless blue depths surrounding them. It’s a sight few can say they’ve seen in person, much less while staying dry the entire time. While it may not be as large as Hurawalhi’s 5.8 Undersea Restaurant or have as many windows as Kihavah’s Sea Underwater Restaurant, Ithaa proves that you don’t need to add bells and whistles when the sea provides them for you. We guarantee it’ll be a meal you never forget.

Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions.

Easey's, Melbourne

While Dining In a Train Car Balancing on a Rooftop, Patrons Get a Perfect View of Melbourne

Supperclub.Tube, London

Diners Are Whisked Back in Time as They Feast Inside Vintage Tube Carriages from 1967

El Avión, Costa Rica

Visitors Step Into History & Eat Inside a Hollowed Out Cold War Era Jet Shot Down in 1986

Giraffe Manor, Kenya

Here, Guests Enjoy Their Meals with One Another & a Gaggle of Curious, Hungry Giraffes

#1: Dinner in the Sky

Various

At multiple locations around the world, the bravest foodies have embarked on the most intense meal of their lives. Using a steel structure and crane mechanism, people enjoying a night out at Dinner in the Sky are lifted 150 feet into the air and suspended there. Mixologists and chefs prepare world-class meals and drinks from a platform in the center, while the guests themselves are strapped into chairs dangling over the edges of the bar. It offers them a perfect bird’s eye view of the city below them, and that combined with the stellar food is bound to leave a lasting impression. With spots in dozens of countries around the globe, each one offers a unique view of the world that’s rarely been seen before.

Which crazy place from around the world would you like to dine at the most? Let us know in the comments below!