The Top 5 restaurants in Vientiane (updated 10/2014)

I was thinking about writing this article for a while, but never wrote it. The main reason is that it is hard to find 5 TOP restaurants. It is quite easy to have two or three, but then it gets difficult. So what is my benchmark for a good restaurant? It needs to balance the three main factors well. Those are food, service and ambience. The food must be not only of good quality, but should also show some creativity in preparing and displaying it. The service needs to be customer focussed with at least knowing the basics (and providing this every day). The ambience must be outstanding compared to the mainstream, something special. None of the restaurants in the list below will score highest in all categories, but at least they are close.

1. Acqua Italian Restaurant

The owner Gerado is very ambitious and has high expectations of his staff and work (he co-owned Aria next door before, but opened the new Acqua just recently).  The italian restaurant is fin dining at it's best, from homemade paste to finest lobsters and seafood. The owner has highest expectation to service and food quality, and to show that, he installed a big window to the kitchen, so guest can see how their food is prepared. Acqua also offers a huge selection of wines and private rooms upstairs. 

10 Rue François Ngin, Ban Mixay, Open daily for lunch and dinner





2. Le Silapa (French-Asian Fusion)

In terms of food and creativity Le Silapa is the best place to go. The Menu is very unique in Vientiane, quality of food always on a high level. Le Silapa recently moved form a beautiful small house that gave guests a lot of privacy, to the first floor of I-Beam. although the reasons for the move or understandable from the owners point of view, it lost a bit of it's charme, and suprisingly the level of service dropped significantly. It's still above most places here, but one would expect more for the price they pay for the - again - outstanding food.

Setthathirat Road, opposite Wat Inpeng. Open daily for lunch and dinner.









3. Fujiwara Japanese Restaurant
Fujiwara was one of the first Japanese restaurants in Vientiane and for a long time the most popular. It lost customers to the recently opened Thai owned Fuji, and both are in the same league of quality of food. Yet, Fujiwara still has some advantage when it comes to ambience and dining experience. It is one of the places where you like to sit just a little bit longer.

Rue Setthathilath, Vientiane, Laos


4. L'Adresse
This might be the best french restaurant in town, yet it has it's problems: It is overpriced, if you are not french you don't feel much welcomed, and a sense of arrogance was in the air when I visited it last time (or better try to visit: We came a bit early before opening at 6.30pm, and were told to come back later).
Yet, if it has to be french cuisine, this place is the hot spot for this type of restaurant. Well decorated, it is a nice place to have dinner. The menu contains the usual suspects, from duck liver to lamb with rosemary, but of good quality. 

Website: http://ladressedetinay.com


5. Muzaic Restaurant
This place is a little bit different: It is not fine dining, but something so special that it has to be on this list. They serve outstanding salmon laap, pumkin curry and many other Lao and Asian dishes. It's interior shows that someone cares about it, although it is simple and basic. Its just some special place. For lunch, go to Lao Kitchen, serving Lao food on a higher level.

Manthathoulath street. Open daily for dinner


Those didn't made it to the list:
Le Signature at Ansara Hotel is totally overrated. We always got a terrible service for a place in this category of fine-dining, the menu is boring and the prices are too high. La Scala has quite a nice interior, but service sucks and the menu isn't something special. Yet, the lunch buffet is a pretty good deal.
Makphet is a place where you should eat because they employ street kids. I rather like to eat at a place where they serve good food.
Lao Garden is a very solid place to go, and should be number 6 on this list. Le Opera had it's good times, but the menu is the usual italian dishes, nothing special and for this too expensive. In case you are looking for a good well priced steak, go to Veena Cafe opposite the City Inn Hotel. Avoid the restaurants of the big hotels like Mercure, Green Park, Lao Plaza and Don Chan Palace. Benoni is more Cafe than restaurant, but has a decent and reasonable prices selection of dishes. 

Social marketing Lao style

So I received this email today. (I anonymised the name of the place, it doesn't matter who it is).

"Dear.....
We need you to help us decide what has to change at XXXX. You have the power !

Let us know what you like and don t like about the restaurant and we will do the modifications accordingly.

No taboos, tell us the blank truth......

1. Do you like XXXXX Restaurant?
2. Why?
3. What would you change to the current restaurant?
4. Do you think we should change the concept (yyyyyyy food)?
5. What type of restaurant is missing in Vientiane and could work instead of XXXXX?"

I was asking myself how desperate the people in charge must be. They just publicly (all recepients in cc instead of bcc) admitted that they are in such trouble that they even consider to change the concept of the venue.

You think it's smart to be that honest?

Ban Kai: new small and nice restaurant in Sokpaluang

So we living around VIS have a new restaurant to go: It is called Ban Kai (or Ban Gai) and as the name says it is about chicken. But it is actually more.


Not only it looks nice and clean and the owner speaks English, it also has an outstanding menu.

For Breakfast (examples):

•  Vanilla and Cinamon French Toast

• Ban Gai Biscut Egger Sandwich (Hot buttermilk biscuit sandwich with scrambled egg, sausage and cheese with Fresh Cream Gravey) 

They also serve a perfect coffee latte (made with the famous Benoni aka Le Trio coffee beans)

Breakfast is served all day, by the way.

Lunch special for now is 25.000 KIP including Fried Chicken Strips or Hot Wings, Sweet potato French Fries or Fried Rice or Sausage Bacon Cream Gravy and softdrink for 5000 extra.

I tried the Fresh Roasted Chicken baguette with fresh cream sauce, and it was amazing.

Give this place a try, it is worth a visit and they have for now promotions, like a latte for 12.000 KIP.

It is located opposite HHI appartments, a few meters from the German Embassy.

Places with best and worst service in Vientiane

Before I rate some places, just an explaination what means good and bad service for me: Good is when I get what I want and even more. Bad is when nobody is talking to me and when it is way below expactations. I usually expect more from a foreign owned restaurant because they should now better. Many times, they unfortunatly don"t.

Best service:
Joma Bakery
Pizza Company
Japan Tei (next to Novotel)
Scandinavian Bakery
Small room (crepe cafe)
Silapa


Worst service:
Nos Japanese Restaurant
Khop Chai Deu
True Coffee 23 Singha


Of course, this list isn't complete. Feel free to comment !
Between, but still a long way to go:
Ansara Hotel
Lao Garden
Dao Fa
Sabeidee Cafe