Feeling earth-bound?  I know just the antidote.  Head to Baton Rouge’s Shaw Center for the Arts (100 Lafayette Street, 225.346.5001) and take the elevator upstairs to Tsunami, the Japanese restaurant located on the 6th floor.  Virtually all the tables offer a west-facing, near-180-degree view of the Mississippi River, downtown Baton Rouge, and Port Allen.  River traffic keeps the scene lively, and terrace tables offer an al fresco experience hard to find in oh-so-flat Louisiana.  LSU fans, take note:   you can watch the sun set and gaze at Tiger Stadium’s upper decks without having to move your chair.

The menu’s mix of raw and cooked dishes make it easy to accommodate a range of tastes.  Pictured above is an appetizer of stir-fried shrimp & eggplant, glazed in slightly sweet white miso.  At right is the “Carnival,” raw tuna and yellowtail (I substituted for the menu’s escolar) over pickled cucumbers and seaweed, garnished with a creamy, pale-green cilantro sauce.