Luang Prabang Food And Drink Guide – Budget Travel In Laos

Like most major cities in Southeast Asia, food and drink in Luang Prabang suits all budgets, from street food to expensive restaurants.

Where To Eat In Luang Prabang

You can enjoy an excellent meal in a Luang Prabang restaurant for between thirty to fifty thousand kip (seafood extra). As well as traditional Laos dishes, many restaurants offer western meals, though these are typically more expensive. As we were travelling  to a budget so we ate in the lower to mid range restaurants. But that doesn’t mean we didn’t have great food.

Big Tree Cafe

We came here for coffee after noticing it the previous day. It was such a nice environment, we decided to stay for lunch. It had an interesting menu and it took us both a while to decide what to have. In the end I opted for fish katsu. It didn’t look anything like what I had imagined but it was delicious and a very generous portion. Map.

Coconut Luang Prabang

We had an evening meal here before heading to the L’Etranger for a movie night. The service was fast, which was not always the case in Luang Prabang. The food was decent, without being anything special. Map.

Maolin Tavern

We came here on Christmas Day as we were looking for anything that came close to a Christmas dinner and this place served ‘carbonade flamande’ which is a Flemish beef-and-ale stew. It had gravy! We had a couple of drinks and enjoyed the soul music they were playing. We also had a couple of their homemade flavoured shots (we went for the cinnamon option). The food was actually very good. My stew was lovely and had big chunks of soft, tasty beef. Joanna had fish lap and was also impressed. Map.

Epoca Cafe

Epoca serves Spanish food and we stopped here for breakfast. It was a little more expensive than we usually paid. We had coffees which were good and I had a Spanish breakfast and Joanna had a tofu sandwich. The food was quite good, but I was expecting better as we had read great reviews. Map.

Night Market Food District

The Luang Prabang Night Market offers an excellent choice of food in a very busy side street. We ate here a number of times. Joanna enjoyed the vegetarian buffet on more than one occasion. We purchased wonderfully fresh fruit, cakes, grilled meat, coconut pancakes and wonderful German sausage. On Christmas Eve, we tried to replicate Polish Christmas with a grilled tilapia fish (caught that morning in the Mekong River) with vegetable dumplings. It was delicious. Make sure you visit the Luang Prabang Night Market Food District. It has a lively atmosphere and some great food. Alcohol is also sold here.  Map.

Opera House Grill & Lao Kitchen

I came here for my final beer in Laos. The food that I saw coming out looked great. It’s a grill place so I saw mainly burgers and kebabs. I noticed they do a duck kebab which sounded interesting. It has good reviews so I would definitely eat here should I return to Luang Prabang. Map.

PK Bakery

We visited here one night as it was nearby and we didn’t fancy walking far. I had a chicken red curry and Joanna had a bamboo soup. Both dishes were average. The chocolate muffin was better.

Saffron Coffee’s Espresso, Brew Bar & Roastery

As featured in one of Mark Wein’s vlogs in Luang Prabang, Saffron Coffee is perfectly located on the banks on the Mekong River, meaning you can either sit inside and people-watch, or sit outside on the terrace overlooking the river. They care about their coffee here and it shows. Nothing bitter about the coffee here. They also sold a selection of cakes and sandwiches. Map.

Tamarind Tree Restaurant

If you take a walk along the Mekong River (and you really should), you will notice many restaurants. Surprisingly, they were quite cheap compared to the restaurants on the main street (Sakkaline Road). We stopped by Tamarind Tree for lunch. The tofu curry was not spectacular but Joanna enjoyed her fried fish. We enjoyed great river views from here and apparently the buffalo dishes are really good. Map.

Timeless Cafe

We came here just for a morning coffee. They also sell cakes/pastries. The coffee was not the cheapest but it was strong and a nice way to start the day. A good place to people-watch. Map.

Yongkhoune Restaurant

The menu proclaimed that this was the oldest restaurant in Luang Prabang (though not in the current premises). It seemed cheap considering it is located on the main tourist street. However, the price was reflected in the portion size which was very small. The food was decent, but not anything out of the ordinary. Map.

Best Bars In Luang Prabang

Luang Prabang is not a party town. Utopia is the closest you will get to a rave/full moon party type atmosphere and that closes at 11.30.

Alcohol in Luang Prabang is quite cheap, compared to Thailand (where food is much cheaper). A big bottle of Beerlaus costs between ten and twenty thousand kip in bars and restaurants. Look out for happy hours where you can get great discounts on food and drinks.

Aussie Bar – Sports Bar

This is where to go if you want to watch some sports. They had a number of big screens showing numerous sports channels. The beer was well priced too and came with a free ice bucket. It seemed a popular place for people to stay and get rather drunk. One guy I chatted with had been there the whole day! Map.

Icon Klub

This place was closed for Christmas but we’d made a note to visit on our return to Luang Prabang. It’s a small beatnik bar with a very European vibe; probably down to the fact that it’s run by a Hungarian woman. She specialises in cocktails but we went for the red wine. The bar offered great music and decor and the manager was also good fun. They had many board and card games so we had a few games of Uno (Joanna won). Map.

Utopia

Luang Prabang’s liveliest bar. It’s not in the centre of the city, but is tucked away on the banks of the Nam Khan river. There are signposts showing you how to get there. It’s chilled out in the day, when you can laze around on the many comfortable floor mats, have some lunch, or even take part in some yoga. By night, it becomes something different entirely. It is usually busy but there is plenty of space, including a ‘beach’ area with a fire to keep you warm. Local DJ’s provide the ambience. It’s a great place for people to drink and have fun. Local tuktuks will wait outside to take you home or, if you prefer, to the local bowling alley which is the only place that has a late license. You will also be offered ‘weed’ by the tuk tuk drivers, should that be of interest. Map.

What do you think is the best restaurant in Luang Prabang? What is the best bar in Luang Prabang? Have you tried a happy pizza in Luang Prabang? Let me know in the comments section below.