In Chiang Mai, the second-largest city in Thailand, you’ll find thousands of spots to stop for a bite, a drink, or to satisfy your sweet tooth.
There are stalls offering delicious and affordable local food, fast food chains, simple eateries, and even high-end restaurants.
The variety is vast, with dishes featuring meat, seafood, soups, noodles, and rice. You’ll find both local Thai cuisine and Western-style dishes.
Luckily for us, even as non-meat eaters, we discovered plenty of highly recommended vegetarian-friendly places in Chiang Mai.
At every place I recommend here, we ate and genuinely enjoyed ourselves. Some we stumbled upon by chance while wandering through the city, and others came from recommendations we found in different groups – and now it’s my turn to pass them on to you.
PHAPLOEN MARKET
A clean, inviting food court and our favorite among the several located in the Night Bazaar area.
You’ll find a variety of stalls offering food, drinks, ice cream, and alcohol. There are plenty of seating options, free restrooms, and live music playing in the background.
V Secret Vegan is a vegan food stall inside the market. We nicknamed it our “go-to spot”. Every time we visited, we made sure to eat there.
Whether it was the tea leaf salad, pomelo salad, spinach curry, or pumpkin curry , every dish was delicious, and each one costs just 80 baht.
Lanna Square
A food court located in the Old City with multiple food and drink stalls, seating areas, restrooms, and trendy music.
Our favorite was the stall offering a rich and tasty avocado salad.
Kat’s Kitchen
An authentic Thai restaurant with excellent food and affordable prices.
We ate there several times, and there was almost always a line, but the restaurant is large and the turnover is fast. If you see a line, it’s worth the wait.
The menu is extensive. We told the waitress we don’t eat meat, and she offered plenty of vegetarian options.
Highly recommended: the amazing Khao Soi, northern Thailand’s signature dish. This is undoubtedly one of the best spots in Chiang Mai.
Mu Ai Tha Phae Local Taste Kitchen
A local restaurant offering a wide range of tasty dishes at budget-friendly prices.
I had a huge fish dish, served with a bowl of vegetables, it was flavorful and filling, all for just 280 baht.
Rotee Pa Day
A roti stand that has won a Michelin Star several years in a row.
We came across it by chance while exploring the Old City during the Loy Krathong Festival.
Despite the long line, we couldn’t resist. You write your order on a small numbered slip and then wait at the back of the line.
Roni and Peleg, who had tried roti at other places, said they didn’t find it particularly special. I thought it was tasty but expected more, given its Michelin status.
Bottom line: If you’re nearby and the line isn’t too long, go for it, but I wouldn’t make a special trip.
iU (I and U) Pizza & Pasta
A perfect place for pizza and pasta.
It’s small and cozy, with a modern vibe, a friendly team, and delicious food.
We tried the Margherita pizza, pesto and burrata pizza, spicy pink pasta, and a special dessert-style pizza made with black dough, soft cheese, strawberries, and blueberries.
Our meat-eating friends also recommended the pepperoni and pineapple pizza and the Caesar salad.
Pizza prices range from 240 to 360 baht, depending on toppings.
On Tuesdays, there’s a “buy one, get one free” deal on Margherita and pepperoni pizzas.
For large groups, reservations are recommended.
Chef’s Together by Aod & Dan
A magical spot on the Ping River with a fun atmosphere, live music, and a wide variety of tasty food and great desserts.
I had a chirashi bowl with salmon, light and delicious, and for dessert, an excellent tiramisu.
Saar, of course, had pad Thai 😄.
Just a heads up: prices here are on the higher side. It’s a good place to save for a special occasion.
L’Opéra
A French-style bakery where you can enjoy a pastry with coffee, have a nice breakfast, or take home fresh baguettes.
The Salad Concept (Nimman branch)
As the name suggests, this is the place to eat salad.
What makes it special is that, besides its diverse menu, you can also build your own salad: choosing from various veggies, toppings, and dressings.
We came very hungry and ordered generously, as seen in the photo (not included here). The food was beautifully presented and very tasty.
There are two branches: one in the Old City, and the other in the Nimman neighborhood.
Freely Pizza
We found Freely Pizza by chance while walking through Nimman.
There was a truck with a wood-fired oven parked on the sidewalk, surrounded by tables, chairs, and chill music playing from speakers.
As pizza lovers, we had to try it. We did, and loved it.
No photo evidence… it was gone too fast 😄
Hummus Chiang Mai
Hummus Chiang Mai is Israeli-owned and serves delicious hummus with homemade pickles and spicy condiments.
There are other dishes on the menu, but we came for the hummus 😊.
We ordered two portions with pita, and left completely full.
The portions are large and heavy, in hindsight, one would’ve been enough.
Final Thoughts
Chiang Mai is a large city packed with restaurants and food stalls.
When we travel somewhere new, we love discovering unique spots and tasty dishes on our own, but we’re always happy to get tips from those who’ve been before.
Either way, enjoy and bon appétit!
