Chic little Tamarind injects a great deal of style into the Luang Prabang dining scene, inventing its very own make of ‘Mod-Lao’ cuisine. The à la carte menu boasts delicious sampling platters with bamboo dip, stuffed lemongrass and meuyang – DIY parcels of noodles, herbs, fish and chilli pastes, and vegetables. With a day’s notice they also serve banquets (per person US$6 to US$8) with variations like a Lao Celebration Feast (Pun Pa), and the degustation-style Adventurous Lao Gourmet. Dishes include whole fish, marinated in local herbs, stuffed with lemongrass and barbecued in banana leaves, traditional eggplant and meat stew, or Lao-style barbequed pork. Meals are enhanced considerably by the owners’ detailed explanation of the ingredients and how they’re eaten. The fruit coolers are divine on a hot day and the khai pene (seaweed), chilli pastes and teas (which you can buy) are wholesaled to restaurants around the world.