Vang Vieng Restaurants

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My intention was to go to Tam Lom but I loved this place so much i stayed here all day. I'm not fussy about my food, but i love fresh ingredients, salads, vegetables, but not bland stuff.

Fluid is just before you get the bridge to Tam Lom on the right hand side. It's right next to the river and has great views of the mountain peaks, you can chill on the platform or in the bamboo hammocks on the roof, i spent most of the time. It's quite a creative place, there's lots of junk art and some abstract paintings too. The guys who ran the place made me feel really at home and were super helpful with info about Vang Vieng.

The menu wasn't huge but had enough interesting dishes, lots of dips, some Thai salads, european salads and other fried veggies too. The curry's are also available in a veg option if you ask. I saw others eating some lemongrass skewers which looked nice, so theres also a good BBQ selection too. Free water as well, and clean toilets, which Vang Vieng has little of.

Favorite Dish: All of the food was delicious but I rather liked the Baba Ganoush (smoked aubergine dip), the tomato and basil salad was so nice with the balsamic dressing.

This restaurant/bar is located just off the main street that runs through the town. I came here in the mornings for breakfast which was superb (see photo). I had been to other Sakura's establishments in China and so knew what to expect.

Vang Vieng is really a chill-out town where backpackers come and relax, knock down a lot of alcohol and drugs, dance, "tube" and maybe do some caving. One thing you will unavoidably notice as you walk around, is hear and then see the US TV sit-com series Friends which is shown repeatedly on bootleg DVDs in restaurants and cafes where you'll find teens and older backpackers sitting on the floor with low tables and lots of cushions. If you don't like Friends then there are only a couple of alternatives and these are The Simpsons or Family Guy - which are always on TV back home. These places are a great place to relax but I wished they would show something else, even though I like to watch them back home.

After travelling for two months in Asia this restaurant in Vang Vieng was a big surprise. They not only serve a really good homebaked applepie, but also a variety of lao, thai and western food. This restaurant is an oasis. No tv´s just good food, relaxing music and and the cleanest toilets in Asia.

Favorite Dish: I have eaten in B&P a couple of times and my favorite dishes were the Tom Yam Kai, chicken with fried basil and a nice piece of applepie with whipped cream. They even serve a good espresso.

There are several food stalls when you enter the village on the first intersection (right after you get into town after crossing the airfield) and they sell delicious and interesting Vang Vieng foods that are popular with locals and Lao. They use local fish from Song river and they normally fry it or steam it. When steamed, they use local herbs and lemon grass in some fish. In fact, there are so many kinds of fish which you can try there - small or bigger ones; additionally there are few kinds of curries and soups and sauces, some vegetarian, vegan or with meat. Beside fish, you can find other kinds of meat too - pork, chicken, liver, buffalo.... all that is very common on Lao food markets. I was regular buyer there during my stay because I found there all I needed and because I trully enjoyed eating vegetarian and fish options.

If you want to try something really different then ask for steamed ant eggs with egg and spices wrapped in banana leaf (ask for 'khai mod som' in Lao) or steamed young bees (also wrapped in banana leaf). These delicacies have medicinal properties, so don't risk trying if you have sensitive stomach - not everyone can stand it well, even if you've been eating unusal foods before. I was also told that ants egg are also being used for anti-malarial properties in traditional medicine.

Normally the foods at stalls are cheaper than restaurant food and are eaten with sticky rice. You will take them away as they will pack them into small plastic bags or leaves. For fresh dish, go there between 9-10 or later in evening for night market foods.

Almost all menus in town appear to be photocopies of each other. Almost all places serve the same dishes at the same prices, but some have increased the prices since they are popular due to location and/or the constant episodes of Friends or Family Guy playback.

The ones on the main street play mostly DVD's while those just north (by ~3 minute walk) along the river just have chilled music.

Search around for best deal because except for the ethnic or foreigner-run restaurants, they all serve the same menu.

Or just choose your restaurant depending if you like Friends, Family Guy or want to listen to some chill music.

Favorite Dish: Don't pay more than 10,000 kip for either a sandwich or pancake.
Don't pay more than 30,000 kip for breakfast.
Don't pay more than 15,000 kip for any soup.

Thanks to growing popularity of VV there are nowsadays plenty of places to eat good food (local, international, vegetarian) in town. However, not every place benefits local comunity as much as Organic farm with its idea of 'sustainable farming' and improvement of lives of local kids and farm workers since the profits are circulating. The whole thing is explained on their web page below and Organic farm is becoming popular place to visit among those who support the idea of 'eco-tourism' in Laos. They have two restaurants in Vang Vieng - the smaller one in the town, 5 min from the bus station and another one is about 3 km North of town, by the Song river. Both have good organic foods. I prefer the latter since it is in nicer setting, though you'll probably go there by bike as it's a bit far to walk to. One of the things worth to try would be goat cheese but since it depends on thier goats it is not always available. Definitively must try is their own mullberry tea or fresh mullberry milk shake. They have quite a lot of foods on menu from vegetarian to meat dishes with inexpensive prices. Most of their products are home grown in their farm yard and some are sold by the restaurant (like silk, mullberry tea etc.). They also have some rooms to rent, if you'd like to stay near. In the end, that kind of place deserves attention and your money will be spent good there.

Favorite Dish: Fried spring rolls, shakes, mullberry tea, coffee, salads

That's small Indian restaurant by the main - straight road in town, has large menu, good veggie dishes and cheap prices. Nisha has 3 restaurants in Laos, another two in LPB and Phonsavan. The LPB Nisha seems to be more popular and crowded than VV one, but food I tried here in VV Nisha was much tastier and had better, friendlier service; it also looked cleaner than what I saw in LPB. In general it's nice place to try Indian foods.

Favorite Dish: Malai koftas here were my favourite I've eaten in Laos. But also other veggie foods are very nice.