Vientiane: The First Bite

The Establishment

Xayoh occupies a central spot in Vientiane, in front of the stylish Prakeo Culture Hall and nearby the Mekong River. Its superb location means it is nearby all the city’s main attractions; a fact that makes Xayoh a natural choice while for an upmarket meal in downtown Vientiane. Moreover, the attractive colonial building, which features elegant curved lines and an astonishing lighting at night - is home to one of the best pub-restaurants in the city. Solid wooden tables and chairs occupy a long space which is divided into a restaurant and a bar areas. Sometimes, a few tables are put on the adjacent sidewalk, facing the wonderful Culture Hall. Visiting Xayoh is thus ensured to be a very comfortable and enjoyable experience, especially due to its sophisticated inner setup and the tasteful music played.

The Experience

The food presentation is aesthetic, the amounts are generous but reasonable, and the ingredients used are of top quality. The menu is interesting and despite its sliding down sometimes into fast food tones, it manages to keep an exclusive and unique feel in Vientiane. The service is professional and has that special touch of Laotian captivating friendliness. Everything is attuned to ensure a superb experience.

The Food

For years Xayoh had its own in-house British chef. The results were spectacular and gave it a distinctive touch since most restaurants in town were oriented towards the French Cuisine. At certain point the chef stopped being present at all times and the food quality deteriorated a bit, but the basic menu was kept. The former flag item – the Traditional English Roast (beef, lamb or pork) served with Apple Crumble, Custard and Yorkshire Pudding – which was served exclusively on Sundays, became a daily item and its quality suffered as well; but overall the place kept being one of the top choices in Vientiane. The menu includes pastas and pizzas as well; the last can be delivered to hotels within the downtown area. A usually overlooked but worthy dish is the Pa Nin Fish, a Laotian delicacy fished in the nearby Mekong River. A tribute of the French Cuisine is done through the Cordon Blue, which is stuffed with ham and cheese. One of the fortes of Xayoh is the desserts and ice-creams which are big and tasty enough to exchange a whole meal.

Opening hours

Xayoh is open every day from 9am to 11:30pm.

Prices

Expectedly, Xayoh is one of the most expensive restaurants in Laos. Yet, an average dish would cost around three dollars and the most expensive items in the menu reach just about six dollars; overall any meal there is a bargain. In an unusual fashion for Laos, credit cards are accepted.

Branches

Xayoh has a basic branch in the nearby resort of Vang Vieng; the branch is mainly a bar-grill type of restaurant.

The Location

Le Safran enjoys an excellent location. It is very close to the Mekong River Promenade; however, it does not enjoy a direct view of the river. The Namphou Fountain, the Prakeo Culture Hall and all other Vientiane’s main attractions are within walking distance and thus transform the place into a good stop after a long day of sightseeing and before a late walk by the beautiful riverside.

The Establishment

The inner space of Le Safran was created having the customers’ comfort in mind; high ceilings, tasteful colors and pleasant tables placed at a respectful distance of each other ensure a pleasant visit. A small and unpretentious bar completes the picture. The outdoor area is separated from the street by a solid wall which blocks any breeze arriving from the river, thus it is somewhat wasted. However, there is plenty of greenery in the front yard and it is well covered, providing thus protection from the scorching sub-tropical sun.

The Cuisine

Le Safran is the archetypal French restaurant in Vientiane. Acknowledging the changing clientele of recent years, dishes from other cuisines were added to the menu’s French core. The main additions are Italian and include pizzas and pastas, but steaks and hamburgers can also be found. Laotian and Vietnamese dishes are also served.

Prices

Le Safran is on the top level of Vientiane’s restaurants, thus it isn’t cheap by local standards. Yet, a complete meal wouldn’t cross the ten dollars mark, unless a very expensive wine would be added to it. Despite the overall low prices, it is possible to pay with credit cards.

The Experience

For much of my prolonged stays in Vientiane, I didn’t bother to stop at Le Safran; simply there were too much French restaurants to choose from. Until one day a fellow traveler I met at the hotel’s lobby just couldn’t stop talking about the wonderful pumpkin soup with cream served there. Next day I went to check it out and fell in love with the place immediately; the dish included an excruciatingly fresh, crunchy and tasty French baguette. Seldom can such a perfect performance be witnessed so far away from the birthplace of a dish.
Over time I managed to taste other main dishes, including the pizzas, which turned out to suffer from the ubiquitous South East Asian problem: a lack of good cheese that lead to a mediocre result. The spaghettis were good, but did not justify missing the French dishes which consistently turned out to be outstanding.

The desserts were tremendous; the French crepes and the chocolate mousse provided exquisite experiences, though the caramel flan was somewhat tasteless. The crepes were served with a freshly made orange sauce, which is a rare and tasty treat in that part of the world.

Overall Le Safran turned out to be one of the best dining options while in Vientiane, providing an exquisite experience in the immediate surroundings of the beautiful promenade which is the place to be on during the hot Laotian evenings.

The Dilemma

Following my initial survey of Vientiane, every morning there I faced the same dilemma: should I have breakfast at the Morning Market or at the Scandinavian Bakery? The coffee at the market was irresistible, while the Scandinavian croissants, newspapers and air conditioners fought hard to balance the equation. I lost the battle against my temptations and adopted a complex approach. Early in the morning I would visit the market and enjoy a double Laotian coffee. Then, after my daily internet session, I would continue for a quasi-brunch at the Scandinavian Bakery. Laos turned out to be a place created to support my worst indulgencies.

The Place

The bakery is placed on two buildings surrounding the Namphou Fountain, and thus enjoys a central and superb location in Vientiane. One building is occupied by the shop, which includes an attractive display of the food, and the kitchen. The second building includes a two-floor sitting area and the toilets. A few tables are placed on the sidewalk between the two buildings and facing the fountain, but the heat usually prevents their use. The inner sitting place offers conditioned air, comfortable seats and access to the Bangkok Post, the last being a real luxury while in Laos.

Hours

The bakery opens between 7am and 7pm.

The Coffee

Due to the words written at the introduction, it must be emphasized that the coffee served at Scandinavian Bakery is the same excellent Laotian coffee served at the Morning Market. However, the slightly different preparation method (an espresso machine here versus the traditional methods used in the market) results in a slightly less excellent result. As an additional service, the bakery sells bags of Laotian coffee at the same prices offered at the market. A bag of 250gr costs around $1.3; considering the exceptional quality of the coffee, this must be one of the best bargains in the planet. To complete the experience it is advised to purchase a set of typical Laotian filters at the market (see my "A Coffee in the Morning Market" in the "Vientiane: Love from First Sip" journal)

The Food

In a city plagued with crunchy, fresh French baguettes, the Scandinavian Bakery manages to produce awesome breads that can be bought for take away or in one of the several meals and snacks offered. Beyond the expected baguettes, traditional loaves and croissants, the Scandinavian Bakery may be the only producer of bagels in town. If staying for a meal at the shop, then any of the breads and croissants can be transformed into a tasty sandwich; all the additional products (cheese, ham, eggs and vegetables) are of excellent quality and freshness. Most meals and breakfasts cost less than two dollars and include coffee and fresh orange juice; the last is a rare and worthy treat in Vientiane. Other tempting and excellent choices are the cakes, cookies, pastries and ice-creams.

The Spirit

Nok Noy caught my attention at first sight. I couldn’t pinpoint the reason for that until I ate there. Among the many restaurants catering for tourists along the promenade and in downtown, Nok Noy is the closest thing to a traditional Lao restaurant. It has a simple menu of time-honored dishes, which are served in a simple, unpretentious environment, with all the grace natural of Laotian people. It is hard not to love the place and to use it as an exploration platform for the Laotian cuisine.

The Location

The restaurant is across the street from the gorgeous promenade looking over the Mekong River. The river cannot be watched while sitting in the restaurant, but a light breeze arriving from its direction constantly keeps it in mind. Thus, Nok Noy is ideal for a late dinner after a stroll along the riverside.

Opening Hours

Nok Noy opens between 7am and midnight.

The Prices

Even in Laotian terms, Nok Noy is an inexpensive place with main dishes costing less than two dollars.

The Food

Most of the dishes served here are based on rice and noodles, a fresh variation after the ubiquitous French restaurants in Vientiane. To the staple carbohydrates, vegetables and a meat (duck, chicken, pork or water buffalo) are added. However, there are two dishes which are slightly different and very Laotian in nature.

The first is called Laap and is a salad made of cooked and chopped meat, mixed with mint leaves, chilies, lime juice and a bit of fried rice. The best variation is the one prepared with duck meat. The result is extremely spicy and should be eaten with care, it is recommended to sample it carefully and if needed to take out the chopped chilies (even after that it will stay spicy). Laap is served with sticky rice and raw vegetables as side dishes; the portions are generous and elegantly served.

The second worthy dish is the papaya salad. It is prepared with long slices of unripe papaya and peanuts as main ingredients. The spicing consists of chilies and lime juice. The dish is extremely attractive in shape and spicy enough to burn its way up to the brain’s memory center and to engrave there a permanent and almost painful memory.

The Drinks

It is impossible to consume such spicy food without giving some consideration to the drinks. Nok Noy is a good place for tasting a cool glass of the excellent Beer Lao (called here Bia Lao); this smooth beer is highly priced even across the river, in Thailand. However, there is a better option. Laos offers an astonishing variety of fruits which are easily transformed into tasty juices, based on water or milk. Papaya and pineapple are the staples, but if arriving at the right time of the year a rare treat awaits the traveler. Rarmood is an indigenous fruit resembling a small, brown potato; its juice is extraordinary and justifies the long trip to Vientiane.

A Common Practice

Most people from Western countries would not consider eating insects, and would consider the practice almost a taboo. However, honey is a popular sweetener in those cultures, despite obviously having been execrated by a flying insect.

The Rationale

Insects are a rich source of proteins and are grown quicker and more efficiently than mammals. Thus, many cultures suffering from a difficult access to animal protein have chosen insects as a complimentary source of protein.

Legitimized by Invisibility

Apparently the problem appears once the insects’ body parts are visible to the eater; at that moment the appetizer becomes an unthinkable aberration. "If I don’t see them, then it’s OK," we apparently think. Nonetheless, in some instances it is hard to avoid – or detect – the insects being used to prepare the food. For example, in Laos and Thailand ground insects are used in some of the meat-balls added to the ubiquitous noodle soup. In such a form, the protein source is undetectable and the product is quite tasty and agreeable to Western taste buds.

The Real Thing

In the Vientiane’s Morning and Night Markets there are many stalls selling fried and living insects for consumption. They can be consumed as a snack – while exploring the merchandise in the nearby market, for example – or as a meal. Many Laotians take with them little plastic bags filled with fried insects while traveling; whenever the bus stops for a meal they just buy some sticky rice which is then eaten coated with the flying proteins brought from home.

A Rich Variety

The most popular products include crickets, ant eggs, cockroaches (especially those carrying eggs), grasshoppers, scorpions (which are eaten with their tails), water beetles and, bamboo worms. South of Vientiane, in the Cambodian town of Snuol, spiders (which aren’t exactly an insect, but are close enough to be included in this entry) became a popular snack due to the lack of food which resulted from the Khmer Rouge regime.

Hygiene

Despite the popular belief on the issue, no one in Laos hunts for insects in the Mekong River Plateau; most insects are professionally grown in special farms and thus do not contain pesticides or undesired filth.

Spicing Up Insects

As almost every single dish served in Laos, insects are spiced up with chili. Since they were first fried, they are covered by oil which helps to spread around the hot spice evenly. The outer shell gets thus very crunchy and spicy, while the interior reminds a kind of tasteless gray puree.

Once in Our Lifetime

Having spent so much in a travel aimed to see exotic places and cultures, shouldn’t a Western traveler try – at least once in his or her lifetime – a fried insect, especially when they are such a popular part of the local diet?