Thailand (Lonely Planet, 13th Edition) - China Williams [258]
Pinte Blues Pub ( Map; 33/6 Th Moon Muang) This place deserves some sort of award for staying in business so long (more than 20 years) while serving only espresso and beer, and for sticking to a blues-music format the whole time. It is easy to walk by and not notice it, so you’ll have to use your ears as your guide.
Kafe ( Map; Th Moon Muang) A cosy bar snuggled in beside Soi 5, Kafe is often crowded with Thais and backpackers when every other place is empty. It offers a simple formula: cheap cold beer and efficient service.
Khan-Asa ( Map; 08 1681 0037; 84 Th Si Phum) Too lazy to cab it over to Th Nimmanhaemin, but need a break from the backpacker trail? This arty spot is mainly known for its Thai food, which is cheap enough not to put a dent in your beer budget. The soundtrack is light years beyond Chiang Mai’s strange fascination with Phil Collins and Jack Johnson.
Pub ( Map; 0 5321 1550; 189 Th Huay Kaew) In an old Tudor-style cottage set well off the road, this venerable Chiang Mai institution semi-successfully calls up the atmosphere of an English country pub. The Friday-evening happy hour assembles all the old expats who claim to have arrived in the city on the back of elephants.
Drunken Flower ( Map; 0 5389 4210; 28/3 Soi 17, Th Nimmanhaemin) Though this old standard has changed locations, it has carried across its loyal cast of characters, a mix of CMU bohemians and NGO expats. The closet-sized bar invokes an antique mood where the shaggy-headed students might have drunk and noshed away their haircut money.
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MARKET MEALS
Market mavens will love Chiang Mai’s covered food and grocery centres, which offer everything from morning noodles to daytime snacking and evening supping. To impress a Thai friend, pick up a bag of man gâa·ou, a roasted acorn-like nut harvested at the end of the rainy season.
Talat Somphet ( Map; Soi 6, Th Moon Muang; 6am-6pm) North of the Th Ratwithi intersection, this day market sells all the fixings for a Thai feast, including takeaway curries, sweets and fruit. Many of the cooking schools do their market tours here. Unfortunately, the market’s proximity to the tourist area has encouraged the fruit sellers to be creative with their prices.
Talat Pratu Chiang Mai ( Map; Th Bamrungburi; 4am-noon & 6pm-midnight) In the early morning, this market is Chiang Mai’s communal larder, selling foodstuffs and ready-made dishes. If you want to make merit to the monks, come early and find the woman who sells pre-assembled food donations (20B); she’ll explain the ritual to you. Things quiet down by lunchtime, but the burners are re-ignited for a large and popular night market that sets up across the road.
Talat Thanin ( Map; off Th Chang Pheuak; 5am-early evening) Market aficionados would be impressed by this efficient and clean covered market, one of the tidiest we’ve seen in Thailand. The meat vendors are segregated into their own glass-enclosed area preventing an accidental tour by sensitive stomachs. The fruit and vegetable section is a beautiful display of tropical bounty. In the prepared food section you’ll find Chiang Mai’s recent food trends: sushi and fahin salad (a Thai-style salad bar with 1950s options, like tapioca and jello). Continue deeper to the covered food centre for made-to-order noodles and stir-fries.
Talat Warorot ( Map; Th Chang Moi; 6am-5pm) Thanks to the Great Market’s cheap prices on household goods, there should be enough money for a bowl of noodles, served in the interior building’s main hall. A night market sets up after dark for cheap riverside dining.
Talat Ton Phayom ( Map; Th Suthep) This place acts as both a local market and a souvenir stop for Thais visiting from other provinces. Take a look at the packaged food area to see the kinds of edible gifts (like bags of kâap mo and sâi òo·a) that make a visit to Chiang Mai complete. Because