Tired of the same old Applebee's and Cracker Barrel fare? Well, fortunately, you're living in the 21st century, where choice reigns. We've pulled together some suggestions for places that offer novel dining experiences.

In the era of ever-larger serving dishes and Hooters, I suppose Hadaka Sushi was the inevitable fusion, especially in Hollywood. So if you've ever had the urge to have your meal served on the body of a (presumably) attractive naked woman, this is your place.

From the moment you enter the restaurant, the theme of merging the sensual pleasures of sex and food is apparent. Décor is heavy on suggestive accoutrements. The menu features dishes such as G-Spot rolls.

The hook, though, is nyotaimori, or female body arrangement, aka a banquet on a bun. At over $1,000 for serving dish (heh heh), food extra, the experience is not for the faint of wallet. But for the jaded, it could be the dining experience of a lifetime.

Tired of the same old Applebee's and Cracker Barrel fare? Well, fortunately, you're living in the 21st century, where choice reigns. We've pulled together some suggestions for places that offer novel dining experiences.

Concept restaurants come in all flavors, some of which leave me shaking my head. Among those include the DS Music Restaurant in Taipei, Taiwan, where hospital is the motif.

The décor is straight out of ER -- crutches, x-rays, wheelchairs, tables resembling hospital beds, all those items that apparently, serve to whet the Chinese appetite. The wait staff is garbed in medical gear, too, as nurses (sporting rabbit ears, a bit of a break in the theme,) and doctors.

The menu is not so much hospital-inspired, though, I didn't see any Jello side dish offered with the "Pretty good XO sauce stir-fry prawn ball." Vodka punch is served in an IV bottle. Groups can be seated in the separate Intensive Care Unit.

Somehow, when I hear the word hospital, I don't think of good food, attentive service or reasonable prices. Things must be different in Taipei.

Tired of the same old Applebee's and Cracker Barrel fare? Well, fortunately, you're living in the 21st century, where choice reigns. We've pulled together some suggestions for places that offer novel dining experiences.

Live long and prosper. If, on reading that phrase, you automatically raise your hand in a Vulcan salute, middle and ring fingers spread to form a V, you are the target audience for the restaurant at the Star Trek Experience.

The Las Vegas attraction features interactive adventures, a museum, gift shop, and a restaurant, Quark's Bar and Restaurant, based on the setting and character from Star Trek: Space Station Deep Space Nine. The restaurant setting is as replete with Gene Roddenberry's favorite props as a Cracker Barrel is with American kitch.

The menu, standard family fried fare, is cutified with lame names such as Picard's Pockets and the Photon Torpedo, at prices that make one wish for a replicator of one's own. The only saving grace might be the Warp Core Breach, made with 10 oz. of liquor. A couple of these and I might be able to choke down a Hamborger. Or maybe not.

Missing on the menu, surprisingly, is a William Shatner Cheesy sandwich. Scotty -- beam me up some Tums.

Tired of the same old Applebee's and Cracker Barrel fare? Well, fortunately, you're living in the 21st century, where choice reigns. We've pulled together some suggestions for places that offer novel dining experiences.

Much of what we think of as taste is expectation; a particularly stellar presentation can disguise rather ordinary food, to the relief of wedding cake bakers everywhere. Praise then the confidence of the owners of Dans Le Noir?, a restaurant with branches in Paris, London and Moscow, that offers dining in the dark.

At Dans, stripping away the visual clues forces diners to focus on the flavor of its haute cuisine. As the food is served, primarily by sight-impaired staff, aroma becomes a compelling element. Mouth feel, texture, even the sound of the crunchy bits is exaggerated.

I've eaten in many restaurants where I wouldn't mind have one less sense, mostly smell; a clothespin would have been a godsend. Bravo to Dans Le Noir? for showing the courage to make flavor its raison d'être.

Tired of the same old Applebee's and Cracker Barrel fare? Well, fortunately, you're living in the 21st century, where choice reigns. We've pulled together some suggestions for places that offer novel dining experiences.

All of the restaurants in this series share one attribute; they employ a unique theme for the purpose of making money. Except, that is, the Terra Bite Lounge.

The Terra Bite Lounge, in Kirkland, WA is a not-for-profit café/deli which operates on the policy of voluntary pay, the concept that Radiohead recently adopted with its most recent release. Diners eat what they like, and pay what they wish. There are no prices on the menu.

If someone wants to walk out without paying, that's OK. If enough diners throw money into the kitty that there is a surplus at the end of the week, that money is donated to a local charity. The spot also offers free Wi-Fi and free xBox gaming in its gaming boutique.

The concept has been relatively successful in other similar spots such as the One World Café in Salt Lake City.

Food provides energy, but a restaurant like Terra Bite might provide even more, the energy that comes from cooperation, compassion and bonhomie.

Tired of the same old Applebee's and Cracker Barrel fare? Well, fortunately, you're living in the 21st century, where choice reigns. We've pulled together some suggestions for places that offer novel dining experiences.

Down in gator country of Florida, it's said that road kill never cools -- the indigenous species fight over the Goodyear grub. The owners of the Linger Lodge would have you believe they're out there fighting for the best scraps to offer you on their Road Kill Café menu.

The Lodge offers the usual selection of American diner food, with the addition of gator, but in the guise of some revolting dishes -- Pigeon Smidgens, Poodles 'n Noodles, Shar-Pei Filet, Chunk O' Skunk and Snake & Bake. The vegetable of the day is always squash.

I can't imagine a more appealing menu for the kids, or those of us with a bit of juvenilia left in our souls. At least, until someone builds the Donner Party House.

Tired of the same old Applebee's and Cracker Barrel fare? Well, fortunately, you're living in the 21st century, where choice reigns. We've pulled together some suggestions for places that offer novel dining experiences.

The purveyors of the Ice Hotel in Sweden must have taken the old bromide 'if you have lemons, make lemonade' to heart. In the winter, they have lots of ice, so rather than complain, they created the Ice Hotel and Restaurant.

Ice is more than a theme here; it's the structural element. The entire hotel is carved from ice from the Torne River, lasting only until the spring thaw. The rooms, bar, and cathedral also feature ice art from some of the world's great ice artists.

The restaurant, however, is not made of ice, alleviating guests of the need to grapple to maneuver a fork while bundled in layers of insulation. The ice theme is carried through, though, by use of ice plates and ice glasses, as well as a menu featuring traditional arctic fare. The gourmet selection includes char from local rivers, elk and reindeer.

I'm guessing one night's sleep on a block of ice at the Ice Hotel and you'll understand what drove the Vikings to go raiding in warmer climes. Of course, they might have thought otherwise, if they'd had such a restaurant to enjoy.

Tired of the same old Applebee's and Cracker Barrel fare? Well, fortunately, you're living in the 21st century, where choice reigns. We've pulled together some suggestions for places that offer novel dining experiences.

Do you hate to dine in overcrowded restaurants amid the cacophony of the hoi-polloi? Then Solo per Due might be the perfect spot for a romantic dinner for you and your loved one, for Solo bills itself as the world's smallest restaurant. Seating? Two.

The restaurant is located in central Italy, on a sumptuous country estate once owned by the Latin poet, Horace. The house is surrounded by a magnificent garden of palms. The gourmet cuisine features locally-available ingredients with wines from its own extensive cellar.

Consistent with the focus on royalty-like service, Solo also offers other gala touches, such as personal fireworks displays and Ferrari rental.

The definition of the loneliest man in the world? One who dines at Solo per Due alone.

Tired of the same old Applebee's and Cracker Barrel fare? Well, fortunately, you're living in the 21st century, where choice reigns. We've pulled together some suggestions for places that offer novel dining experiences.

There are few traditions too sacred to transform into theme eateries. As an example, I might point to Ninja New York. This restaurant, built to emulate feudal Japan with numerous small chambers and stone walls, employs the mighty Ninja warrior class as waiters.

Don't blame Americans for trivializing the tradition, though; Ninja began in Japan and was brought to New York by the same owners. As you can imagine, the Ninja waiters are dressed as warriors complete with cutlery, prone to shout out 'hai!' at the drop of a napkin, and occasionally scuffle for the entertainment of the Gaijin. When one of the ninja transgresses, he might even be taken to the torture chamber for an old-fashioned, highly entertaining whipping. No waterboarding, though.

The food is prepared with the typical Japanese love of presentation and elegance, something I doubt any real Ninja enjoyed in his combat environment.

If you want to experience a real Ninja life, I suggest you slice your arm open with a sharp blade, sleep in the snow and live on an occasional ball of rice. Or you could settle for this version of Ninja, authenticity be damned.

Tired of the same old Applebee's and Cracker Barrel fare? Well, fortunately, you're living in the 21st century, where choice reigns. We've pulled together some suggestions for places that offer novel dining experiences.

Nothing spices up dinner like a bit of gunplay among gangsters. For the ultimate in American second-amendment culture and dining, grab your gat, your fedora and your moll, jump in the Cord and head to Tommy Gun's Garage Restaurant in Chicago.

The Speakeasy-themed restaurant offers an immersive gangster experience right from the door, where a bouncer demands a password before allowing you access. Once inside, hoods and molls take your order and serve typical Chicago fare, heavy on meat as befits the 'hog butcher to the world.'

Dinner is followed by a light-hearted review including song, dance, police raids, and gunplay. For those nostalgic for the era of massacres and bootleggers, Tommy Gun's is aces.

Tired of the same old Applebee's and Cracker Barrel fare? Well, fortunately, you're living in the 21st century, where choice reigns. We've pulled together some suggestions for places that offer novel dining experiences.

Some countries (yes, you, South Africa) bury their head in the sand when facing the AIDS epidemic, so it was gratifying to see the bold approach taken by Thailand's Population and Community Development Association. They operate several restaurants under the name, Cabbages and Condoms, including one at their romantic Birds & Bees Resort.

The Condoms part, the use of which is promoted for both AIDS prevention and birth control, is reflected in the décor, not the cuisine, thankfully. The walls are covered in gaily-colored condom wrappers, the carpet with condom-promoting cartoons, and condoms, rather than mints, are available at the register. The lounge is called the Vasectomy Bar, which may make it a great place to meet single women.

The fare is mainstream Thai, including generous use of the cabbage, a staple in the country.

Tired of the same old Applebee's and Cracker Barrel fare? Well, fortunately, you're living in the 21st century, where choice reigns. We've pulled together some suggestions for places that offer novel dining experiences.

If you like breakfast in bed, you'll love the B.E.D. restaurant in Miami Beach. B.E.D. (beverage, entertainment, dining) serves the very best cuisine to diners reclined on large, you guessed it, beds. Your chance to play Hugh Hefner comes complete with silky sheets and enough pillows for a soft-porn pillow fight.

The restaurant/club caters to the highly fashionable and paparazzi-worthy by offering more than a superb supine dining experience. Surrounding the dining area is a dance club with a blowout sound system, often hosting special events such as fashion shows and celebrity soirées.

The owners obviously were not able to overcome the temptation to play upon their theme in designing the menu, as shown by dessert selections including Roll in the Sack and Menage a Trois. I wonder if the latter is served with three spoons?

If you go, please remember that, despite the theme, pajamas are not considered proper dining attire.

Tired of the same old Applebee's and Cracker Barrel fare? Well, fortunately, you're living in the 21st century, where choice reigns. We've pulled together some suggestions for places that offer novel dining experiences.

Theme restaurants may have finally reached their pinnacle (or bottomed out) in the Toilet Restaurant, a chain of restaurants in Taiwan that features toilets for seating and serves noodle dishes in dog-dish sized ceramic toilet bowls.

The questionable taste is almost limitless. Small entrees are served in urinal shaped dishes, while larger dishes are served in the toilet-shaped bowls. Noodles come in small bathtub-like containers.

Among the most popular entrees are those that resemble material that one commonly associates with the commode, including curry noodles or chocolate ice cream.

The purveyor began as a street vendor serving up ice cream in hand-sized toilet cups, but has already expanded his toilet-themed restaurants to several locations in Taiwan. Apparently, we Americans have a lot to learn about the potential scope of theme restaurants.