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Sometimes you just can't get to sleep. Unfortunately, Seattle doesn't have many options for insomniacs, especially downtown. But there are a couple places near the W Seattle and the Sheraton Seattle Hotel if you know where to look.

Kooky Cyber-Dogs is only open until midnight, but it's a great spot for a snack. The eccentric Tatiana is the entertaining owner, preparing an eclectic menu of sausages and vegan veggie dogs.

For a classy nightcap, Vessel is your destination. The sleek bar is a scene on the weekends, but on weeknights it's a quiet respite with inventive, expertly crafted cocktails and a small but tasteful food menu. It's open 'til 2 a.m., as is the Alibi Room down in the lower levels of Pike Place Market, where you can get a more substantial meal and a locally brewed beer.

For those who really can't sleep, there's The Night Kitchen. A haven for insomniacs, third-shifters and the after-bar crowd, the doors open at 6 p.m. and don't close until 9 a.m. Get a gourmet burger, eggs benedict or just coffee by the hour. (Not that you need more help staying up.)

When the St. Regis Bahia Beach Resort opens in November, so will the latest signature restaurant by acclaimed chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten: Fern by Jean-Georges.

"I am very excited about becoming a part of the new St. Regis Resort, Bahía Beach in Puerto Rico," Chef Jean-Georges says. "I love the Caribbean, the rainforest, the beaches and the warm people."

Much as it does at Lagoon at the St. Regis Resort in Bora Bora, the menu will no doubt make the most of local fresh fish, too, such as grouper, wahoo and dorado (aka mahi-mahi). Fortunately for Jean-Georges, Puerto Rico's local agriculture is quite robust, so he and his chefs won't be forced to travel to nearby islands to forage for staples. Fern blends the chef's signature "vibrant cuisine," which draws on the flavors and culinary traditions of both France and Asia, with traditional Puerto Rican ingredients such as papaya, mango, yuca and coconut.

Despite its deep-fry and haggis reputation, Scotland is a cornucopia of fresh ingredients from land and sea — and both restaurants and the public are increasingly embracing seasonal foods as a way to eat healthy. You'll have ample opportunity to explore both sides of Scottish cuisine during your stay at the Sheraton Grand Hotel & Spa, Edinburgh, but I'm going to focus on the healthy stuff here.

The best place to see the seasonal movement in action is at the Edinburgh Farmers' Market, which takes place on Saturdays in the shadows of Edinburgh Castle year-round. Get a look at the current crop of meats and produce, sample locally made cheeses and pick up a loaf of crusty bread to slather with fresh butter and preserves.

Or perhaps let Urban Angel do the cooking for you. This cafe, now with two locations, bases its menus on what's available locally and organically at the moment, delivering some fantastic breakfast and lunch dishes that don't break the bank.

Seasonality takes drinkable form at Demijohn , a "liquid deli" that turns fresh-picked local ingredients into wines, vinegars, liqueurs and other things, and allows customers to choose the bottle each comes in, from just a taste up to a year's supply. Elderflower vinegar made from flowers picked in late June is ready now, and the store is serving blackcurrant ice cream made with fresh fruit and blackcurrant gin.

San Francisco's SoMa neighborhood (short for "South of Market") has been growing in popularity lately, garnering attention for its on-trend restaurants, fun shops and hopping lounges. Folsom Street in particular has seen a resurgence as new hot spots intermingle with the existing leatherman bar scene. And it's all just a short walk from the W San Francisco.

Start with a cup of coffee from Sightglass. The cafe, just an open counter while the full-fledged cafe is built behind curtains, roasts its own beans and crafts spectacular cappuccinos.

Zero Zero has become a major scene for its thin-crust pizzas as well its build-your-own-dessert featuring Strauss Dairy organic soft serve ice cream. It's now open for lunch, which will hopefully not boast two-hour waits for a table, like dinner.

Twin destinations Citizen's Band and Pinkie's Bakery take diner comfort food and sweets a little upscale, with modern reinterpretations of fried chicken (pictured), pot roast and "franks and beans." Pinkie's supplies the desserts, like scrumptious sour cream cheesecake and seasonal fruit cobbler. Or make a reservation for Radius, whose French-California cuisine follows a strict 100-mile radius rule for all its ingredients. End with a carefully crafted cocktail at Bloodhound, where the decor follows a rough-hewn hunting theme, or wine at cozy Terroir.

Molecular gastronomy, the science of chemistry in cooking, is a favorite intellectual topic in the Bay Area's enthusiastic culinary world. But the only place locally to experience a full tasting menu of such techniques is Baumé Restaurant in Palo Alto. Chef Bruno Chemel's extensive resume includes stints in top restaurants in Paris, Tokyo, and even at The St. Regis Monarch Beach in Southern California. He favors the use of simple and classic flavors presented in new, experimental, and whimsical ways. The menu, which changes frequently, is unlike what you'd typically encounter on the page anywhere in the world. It is essentially a list of current ingredients used in the five, 10, and 15-course tastings. Simply tell your server if you have any allergies/aversions to any of the ingredients, and then buckle up for a great and mysterious journey in eating. You won't know what ingredients are going to show up when and in what form, and what often appears to be in one state is completely different once it hits your mouth. Delightful, interactive surprises arrive at the table, some shrouded in liquid nitrogen vapor, others manipulated into new textures or shapes (including balloons and bubbles) with the use of food-friendly compounds. Optional wine and spirits pairings extend the adventure into the glass.

Baumé Restaurant is a short drive from your stay at The Westin Palo Alto, a stellar choice for celebrating a special personal or professional occasion. Have you experienced any wonderful feats of molecular gastronomy? Please do share your thoughts in the comments section.

Taste the best of Istanbul...then learn how to make it, by way of Cooking Alaturka's hands-on classes.

The "fulfilling cultural experience," located near the W Istanbul, is a tasty way to spend a morning or afternoon. The half-day English-language class kicks off with a quick lesson in the history of the recipes you'll be making. Your group of 6 to 10 will then spend about two hours preparing a five-course menu of Ottoman classics, regional specialties, and home-cooking favorites under the direction of owner Eveline Zoutendijk, a graduate of the Cordon Bleu in Paris. In a typical class, you may make lentil and bulgur soup, braised eggplant, zucchini pancakes, minced meat and rice-stuffed vine leaves, and syrupy sponge cakes with hazelnuts. After the cooking is done comes the best part - lunch or dinner, paired with local wine. The kitchen flows into a 25-seat restaurant, outfitted with soothing green walls and food-themed art painted by Eveline. Then post-dining, browse Cooking Alaturka's small shop, where you can pick up Turkish ingredients like ground Antep pistachios and pomegranate vinegar to bring home. Note: vegetarians, and those with gluten-intolerance or allergies can be accommodated.

[image via Cooking Alaturka]

If dining by candlelight is more romantic than eating in a fully lit room, imagine how romantic dining in the dark must be! Uh, right. Actually, there are several restaurants scattered around the world that give diners a taste of what it's like to eat blind. Rather than a romantic thing, it's meant to show how much your other senses come into play when your eyes are out of the picture.

The trend started in Zurich, Switzerland, at Blindekuh, where much of the staff is blind and you enter the pitch-black dining room in a conga line behind your server, so as not to bump into anything. Dinner is accompanied by an unseen a cappella group. make your way there from the Sheraton Zurich Neues Schloss.

Blindkuh inspired Montreal's O.NOIR, a couple blocks from Le Meridien Versailles, remains a popular date night destination and boasts the biggest menu of those I've come across.

After watching the sunset in Santa Monica, head over to the stylish Opaque, a few minutes from the Sheraton Delfina Santa Monica. Not everyone loves the experience - or the prices -- but many love the sensory deprivation experience. And this may be the only restaurant in LA where you won't see a single cell phone.

The newly opened Aloft Bengaluru Whitefield puts you in the heart of a burgeoning tech community in what was once a sleepy Bangalore suburb. Which isn't to say the culinary scene is sleepy &mdash it's keeping pace with the times in some interesting ways.

Picturesque Herbs & Spices bridges Continental and Subcontinent on its menu, where a meal might begin with bruschetta or pakoda. It might put you in the mood for some espresso, in which case The Barista Lavazza café in the International Tech Park has you covered.

Lumiere brings the corporate social responsibility movement to India with an all-organic menu of Indian favorites, with appreciable results.

Interestingly, one of the city's highest rated restaurants is part of a chain: Oh! Calcutta, featuring food from the Kolkata region of India, appeals to the many workers from that area now working in Bangalore. Its overwhelmingly positive reviews are tempered only by complaints about the relatively high cost.

Would you like a side of early American history with your cheesesteak? If so, be sure to pass an evening at the Golden Fleece Tavern next time you're staying at the Sheraton Dover Hotel.

The pub has what has to be one of the richer histories of any drinking-and-dining establishment in the country. Once a hotbed of revolutionary activity, it later became the "statehouse" where the Constitution and Bill of Rights were voted on by the state's legislators, officially making Delaware the first state. It served dual functions for some 60 years, until the state's politicians wised up in 1791 and moved to a building that wasn't so awash in beer. The original location was demolished in 1830, and the history was all but lost - until this new version opened last year in historic downtown Dover. Bits of history permeate: The tavern serves Dover's own Fordham Beer (legend says it was served back in 1733 at the original tavern), and a copy of a bill those early pols skipped out on hangs on the wall. There are also a few modern twists: plenty of pizza and burgers, an outdoor deck, darts, and thoroughly modern specialty drinks that bear thoroughly historic monikers - try the British Tory, Boston Tea Party, or the Loose Liberal, a mix of vodka, rum, sour apple pucker, orange curacao, pineapple, and cranberry.

Modern China is quickly gaining a taste for the finer things in life, and sometimes that results in restaurants that can only be described as over-the-top. Indulge your own culinary fantasies during your stay at the St. Regis Beijing — starting with the hotel's own extravagant champagne and caviar Sunday brunch.

The Philippe Starck-designed Lan in the LG Twin Towers feels a little like the set of a music video: DJs spin, Renaissance-style paintings hang down from the ceiling, and the mirrored bathrooms feature an armchair alongside the toilet. Service unfortunately appears to be slipping, but the food and drinks are still good.

Walking into the Whampoa Club feels more like a dream, as you find yourself surrounded by dozens of birdcages and avant garde furniture. The upper dining room overlooks a lotus pond, while the basement dining room's ceiling is glass, with thousands of crystals dangling from it, creating an endless chandelier. Restaurateur Jerem Leung's menu produces haute versions of traditional Chinese dishes.

Bin Feng Tang restaurant at the Beijing Zoo offers a different sort of fantasy. Despite its setting (or perhaps because of it) you can order dishes made with such exotic animals as hippopotamus, kangaroo and crocodile. None of the animals are endangered, but it has plenty of people upset — and probably a lot of other people salivating at the thought. (I haven't seen any articles lately about it, so the zoo may have bowed to pressure. Check before you go.)