COLOGNE DINING
Cologne has tons of good restaurants and it's not expensive. I didn't think I would like the food, but boy was I wrong! I loved it all -- and there is a wide variety, plus some friendly setups. As in many pubs, diners share tables -- that's one reason this town is such an easy place to strike up conversations with strangers. Two of my favorite places were:

FRUH
Fr�h, just a couple of blocks from the Cologne Dom, is probably the most popular brewery/restaurant in the city. It serves great local dishes, ranging from Rievkooche (grated potato cakes) to Halver Hahn (half a chicken). Brauhaus Fruh, Am Hof 12-14, Cologne; tel.: 49-0221-26 13 0.

TAKU
If you don't want a typical restaurant, try Taku. Located in the Excelsior Hotel Ernst, it features Asian delicacies. The best part (besides its location) is the design of the restaurant. It's in the basement so it lacks windows, but when guests first walk in they pass over a glass-covered river with live koi swimming below. Diners reach their tables by crossing over a frosted-glass illuminated bridge. It's all very chic, the service is excellent and the food is quite tasty. Taku, Trankgasse 1-5/Domplatz,50667 K�ln; tel.: 49-(0)-221-270-39-09.