CONTRIBUTED BY DASHA GARIEPY

  Craving a mixed-fruit parfait (above), or a freshly squeezed mango juice (below)? Have I got a place for you!

Investigating an eatery tip from Okinawa Hai reader Penelope,  I car-napped a travel buddy last week and headed North to Motobu. From the recommended web site, it appeared to be a restaurant inside a hotel, possibly a resort, with a beautiful view of the ocean. Of course, being a navigational wizard, I scoffed at the idea of printing out directions. I don't need no stinkin' map. "We can't miss it!" I assured my companion.  "It's a huge resort on the 449." A quick glance at the info before departure was enough to permanently sear all pertinent information into my brain.

A note to the overconfident: When you swear you're not lost, but pull into a Lawson's to casually ask directions to the restaurant you're trying to reach, make sure you have the correct restaurant name!

I speak Japanese about as well as I remember directions. All my halting  "Diamonte, doku deska?" got was raised eyebrows. Travel buddy is much more fluent:  "Res-tu-ran-te, ho-tel" she clarified.

Ahhh! It worked! "Hotel?" one repeated. Gesturing for a pen, I wrote  "d-i-a-m-o-n-t-e" on a piece of paper. They immediately leaped into action. Okinawans are the most helpful, friendly people I've ever come across. It's fantastically amazing. There were two girls behind the counter; one immediately pulled out a phone book, another left for a moment, returning with reinforcements. Between them, they referenced local maps, searched the phone book, and even called someone! Unfortunately, no one knew anything about it.

Determined to keep looking, we climbed back into the car.  Suddenly I remembered a detail. "The logo on the web site was a cartoon cat!" I shouted excitedly. We kept our eyes peeled, and sure enough, less than a mile down the road I recognized this sign:

Okay, so it's not a cat. You do have to admit that if you saw this logo once you'd know it when you saw it again!

Following the arrow, we took a turn and sure enough, there was the cafe! Only, it wasn't called "Diamonte"... its name is BRILLIANTE! 

"WHAT?!" I asked innocently, dodging a blow from my passenger. "It was an honest mistake! Diamonds are brilliant, so, you know, diamonte, brilliante..."

It's a good thing this place had delicious food and a relaxing view. It totally made up for the fact that I had the name, the logo and the venue all wrong! Delicious and relaxing are just two of many, many positive adjectives one may use to describe cafe Brilliante. 

The building and decor are best described as "industrial chic" - gray concrete walls and bare hanging light bulbs are the perfect minimalist background that offsets the brilliantly colored fruit dishes. 

To-die-for fruity soup set

Delectable dragon fruit and papaya salad. 

This amazing salad included both fruits and vegetables, embellished with sea-grapes and mouth watering garlic toast sticks. Because there were so many different types of food in one bowl, no two bites were the same. Each mouthful was a unique blend of flavors which combined to magically make new flavors! At one point I would have sworn I was tasting cheese, even though that was not an ingredient in this salad. It was heaven.

I do want to emphasize that Brilliante is a specialized cafe, not a restaurant. It's a "topper offer" more  than a "filler upper". Fresh fruit is their thing. The menu lists page after page of fresh fruit drinks and parfaits, with only a bit of space at the end for a sandwich or salad. I wouldn't recommend bringing the whole family here for a meal. Rather, use it as a refreshment stop on your way to or from the aquarium. Or pop in with a friend for a special treat on a road trip. Your taste buds will be glad you did!

Directions: North (58 or use the Expressway till it ends and blends into the 58) to Nago. Take the 449 and follow the signs towards Ocean Expo Park. At one point, 449 comes to a "T" - take a LEFT at this "T" intersection and continue for 9.1 Kilometers. This will bring you to a side street on your right with signs for Brilliante. You can see the cafe from the road, up on the hill. It will be on your right.

Hours:10:00 am - 8:00 pm; last order at 7:30

Phone: 0980-47-4457

Odds-N-Ends: Prices range from Y700 - Y1200; yen only, no American dollars or credit cards. Also, will one of you dear readers-of-Japanese please tell me what kind of sandwich is pictured in the menu below?

The waitress tried to tell us, but knew I wasn't understanding when I gasped, "Neko? CAT? Neko?" and she laughed, saying "No, no," and then repeated something-that-sounds-like-neko. Man. I really need to work on my Japanese.