Places to Eat in Champasak

There’s a lot of crossover between restaurants and guesthouses in Champasak; most places to lay your head also double as spots to fill your stomach.

Food prices in Champasak

The town isn't overflowing with a variety of options to choose from; Champasak is small, and you'll find that your restaurant choices are somewhat limited. However, what Champasak lacks for in quantity of restaurants, most travellers agree it makes up for in quality. There is a decent selection of Lao and Thai foods available at restaurants in Champasak, and on average you can expect to pay about LAK25,000-LAK35,000 for a traditional dish. Western foods are also available at slightly higher prices. You won’t really be finding trendy cafes or fancy, expensive restaurants in Champasak, but the restaurants that you will find in this simple town offer authentic, delicious meals at low prices.

What to eat in Champasak

Lao food is similar to Thai food; you'll find well-seasoned dishes with lots of herbs and spices in both countries. Because Laos is so close to Thailand, there are often a lot of Thai foods available in Laos. Travellers who have fallen in love with Thai food sometimes find themselves disappointed by Lao food, as the country just doesn't have the same fame for its food that its neighbour does. But keep an open mind, and you're sure to find some foods you like in Lao.

Laap is one of the most popular Lao dishes—a type of spicy salad made up of finely chopped meat, often duck or pork. A dish of this should cost you about LAK35,000. Noodle soups are available from street sellers or most restaurants for about LAK20,000-LAK30,000. Spicy Lao sausages are another popular snack—flavourful meats that are seasoned with a variety of herbs and spices.

When trying to decide where to eat, it's usually best to have a look around in any new town and see what catches your eye (or what smells catch your nose…), but here's a list of a few favourite eating spots that other travellers to Champasak have enjoyed.

Hotel & guesthouse restaurants

Nakorn Cafe and Restaurant is a popular little spot, owned by a Lao-Belgian couple. They have also opened a guesthouse here fairly recently. Nakorn is located about 1 km south of the main roundabout in town, and they offer a nice variety of traditional Lao dishes (soups, curries, etc.) as well as some Western dishes. Their grilled meat and chips platter is a little over LAK50,000.

Champasak With Love (also a guesthouse!) has a lovely riverside view from its large tree-shaded deck which looks over the Mekong River. Travellers who aren't interested in the guesthouse may still enjoy a meal in the restaurant. This place is Thai-owned, so there is a lot of Thai food in the restaurant; the stir fries, omelettes, and other Thai dishes cost about LAK25,000-LAK30,000.

Another popular spot in Champasak is The Kitchen, located in Inthira Champasak Hotel. They have a large menu with quite a few different Asian dishes as well as Western foods (hamburgers, pastas, baguettes, etc). The Asian items will cost about LAK30,000; the Western dishes will cost about LAK40,000 or more, depending on what you get. This is a good spot if you’d like a lot of different options to choose from.

Traditional Lao

Champasak Flavor Restaurant, which is attached to Champasak Pottery Shop is a fantastic place to get traditional Lao dishes and Lao sausages. This restaurant is only open at dinnertime.

Street stalls

In addition to the restaurants in town, you’ll also see several street vendors along the road to Wat Phu. And as we've mentioned, most guesthouses in Champasak also have restaurants attached to them. Even though the town is small, as long as you're along the main strip, it shouldn't be difficult to find a place to eat at any time of day.