Luang Namtha has a treasure trove of good food to explore. In addition to visiting our restaurant, The Boat Landing also invites you to go off on an culinary adventure in the stalls, stands and restaurants all around the valley. This little guide will lead you to Luang Namtha's culinary delights.
Restaurants with a View Sit and enjoy the beautiful landscape while on a bike ride or at the end of the day. These restaurants cuisine varies but all offer pleasant views of local life.
Dalavanh Bungalows The restaurant with by far and away the best view is the Dalavahn Bunglaows. From here you can enjoy an expansive view of the Luang Namtha Valley and the western mountains. After a day of cycling stop by for beer and peanuts and to watch the sun drop behind the hills. The restaurant has a pretty standard travelers menu of stir fry and fried rice. But with a little advance warning they can cook up local specialties.
Jin Xiang Hotel & Restaurant This Chinese restaurant has a view of the valley. The open restaurant sits high above the Namtha River at the north end of town and serves Yunnanese cuisine.
Happy Beer Down and across the street from the Heuan Lao. This is where the young hip crowd hangs out. It plays pop music and when foreigners are present they play the Back Street Boys, West Life and the Eagles. The view is of the river and the gardens on the banks. They serve spicy Thai and Lao food and do a good job.
The No-name Bridge Restaurant Crossing the Namtha River bridge on the road to Udomsai you’ll notice a little riverside restaurant with no name just below the Jin Xiang Restaurant. They serve beer food like grilled duck, meat balls and papaya salad. From the terrace you can watch traffic crossing the bridge and the gardens of the Namtha River.
The Banana Pancake Club These restaurants cater to the budget traveler crowd. Here you'll find comfort foods like French Fries and sandwiches. You'll also find the well known Asian standards of fried rice and stir fried sweet and sour. Most of the food served in these establishments is generic. These restaurants are good places to meet travelers, exchange stories, get information for the road and enjoy comfort foods.
The Panda Restaurant The Panda reportedly has the best banana pancakes of them all. On the way to the bus station, it is a good place to find people coming and going. Aht and his wife, who own the place, are also good sources of local travel info. Panda will soon move to a new building near the sauna on the dirt road to the old hospital.
Manychan Guest House and Restaurant Manychan was the first budget traveler restaurant and is a meeting place. She has recently brought something new to Luang Namtha restaurant scene, French cooking with steaks and cream sauces.
Darasavath Guest House and Restaurant The Darasavath has an open air restaurant built of wood giving it a rustic local feel. They have the lowest prices of the budget traveler restaurants and friendly service.
The Banana Café This welcoming little place sits next to Green Discovery and KNT Internet. One of their best dishes is Basil Fried Rice otherwise known as Drunkard's Fried Rice. If you are interested in trekking, Banana Café is the place to connect with others wanting to go trekking as well as to hear the stories of the trails from those returning.
The Provincial Market In the provincial market you'll find a section of glass cases which have ready made foods. Here you'll find seasonal foods, local specialties, sweets and delicacies. You’ll find the best and widest variety early in the morning. There will also be fresh hot sticky rice as well. Most restaurants won't mind if you bring in food from outside to eat as long as you buy something from them.
The District Market Near the airport in the district town is a smaller market. This is a village affair and much more intimate. You find some of the desserts and ready made foods to be a little different from the Provincial Market. The market can be a little hard to see from the road. But you can find it by looking at for all of the tuk-tuks parked in front.
Street Stalls If you want to meet local people and see where the common people hang out, try the evening street vendors in front of the town square. Here you can find grilled eggs, grilled water buffalo, the famous Kao Soi noodles and other things. It is has a low key, familiar atmosphere.
Push Cart Vendors Push cart vendors peddle around the town, wait outside of schools and offices and go as far as the district market and the boat landing. Different vendors sell different things such as home made ice cream, Chinese dumplings and baguettes smeared with paté.
Neigborhood BBQ's As you walk the streets and lanes of the town and the villages, notice small stalls grilling duck, pork and beef. Some may also sell dog and goat pot roast. They also make green papaya salad, ramen noodles and other foods. They typically do their best business in the late afternoon and early evening hours. In the provincial town you'll find one directly behind the Green Discovery office, across the street from Panda Restaurant and next to the municipal water works. In the district town, near the airport, down the street from the snooker/pool hall is friendly village BBQ with bamboo walls and a grass roof.
The Heuan Lao Restaurant and Guest House. This handsome wooden guest house on the main road to Muang Sing serves western-style breakfasts included with the room. It specializes in Lao banquet food and it has a number of unique Black Tai dishes on the menu. This restaurant is popular with local businessmen and government officials for business & official dinners.
Bus Station Restaurants The bus station restaurants are where you can find typical local foods. They serve dishes based on the contents of the small intestine of the cow - kee pia. (say shit soup 5X fast)
Noodles Luang Namtha is famed for its scissor cut noodles called Kao Soi, which are served with fermented soy beans. It can be served like spaghetti bolognese or as a noodle soup.
Next to Manychan Noodle Shop The best and oldest noodle soup shop in Luang Namtha is next to Manychan's Guest House. Also known for their delicious coconut shakes!
Markets On the edge of every market you'll find small noodle soup stands. They are especially busy early in the morning. Some of the market ladies will be selling the spaghetti like version of Kao Soi wrapped up in banana leaves for take away - this is called "Kao Soi Haw". In the district town, near the airport there are several Kao Soi shops along the road between the temple and the market. There is one with good sit down tables across the street from the snooker/pool hall at the intersection to the Boat Landing.
A note about Local Food - Lao people are afraid to let foreigners eat local food. They are sure that they can't possibly eat it. Have fun with the local restaurateurs, ask to try their food. Beg them for their favorite jeow (chili paste) or ask to taste their leftovers. They'll be touched that you asked and laugh when you love it. A little secret - Northern Lao cuisine is quite distinct and waiting to be discovered.
Mongolian BBQ Mongolian BBQ or "Sin Daht" is all the rage with the locals. These days when people go out to eat they are most likely to choose Sin Daht . Mongolian BBQ uses a domed pan with hot coals underneath. On the dome you place fat and thinly sliced meat and in the trough below the rim of the pan is stock to cook vegetables, eggs and tofu. Using chopsticks you take the vegetables and meat and dip them in a peanut sauce spiced with chili and garlic. If you do not like the peanut sauce you can ask for soy sauce with wasabi.
Rambo Sin Daht This little wooden house over a pond is down the street from Dalasavath guest house before the Vila Guest House on the opposite side of the street. The owner is a former weight lifter. Hence the name. Later in the evening they play karaoke for the patrons.
Modern Music Sin Daht Across the Namtha River bridge on Udomsai Road is the Modern Music Night Club. Opposite the night club is Luang Namtha's other favorite Sin Daht place.
MSG Monosodium Glutamate is a flavor enhancer known to be a cause of headaches, allergic reactions and Chinese restaurant syndrome. All restaurants in Laos use significant amounts of MSG in their cooking. While you cannot ask it to be removed from pre-cooked foods like in the market, you can request the restaurant not to put in the food. To do this simply say "Baw sai baeng noo-a." Baeng noo-a is MSG.
