So far we have not found much that is compelling in the way of traditional Laos food.  I suspect that our view may be a bit clouded by our love of Thai food and that some of the dishes that we give the Thais credit for may have come from or are influenced by Laos food.  Either way, excluding the things that we would have considered Thai food, nothing here has really encouraged me to go and seek out a Laos food restaurant back home.

On the other hand we have found some things that we would have not expected to find here that have been worth talking about.  First is the Indian food – I guess that they must get a fair number of travelers from India throughout SE Asis, as we have seen Indian restaurants I think in every place we have been, but we usually have something else in mind, so have not ever stopped at one.  This time a place was recommended to us so we gave it a try and are sure happy we did, tasty enough in fact that we went back a 2nd night.

The other thing that was a complete surprise to us was the sandwiches!?! In reading up on traveling to Asia I had heard people refer to having sandwiches particularly in Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos, but really, who goes to SE Asia to have a sandwich?  I turns out that one thing to give the French full credit for when they were colonizing this area is teaching the people how to make good bread.  The street vendors here all sell made to order sandwiches (sort of like the Laos Subway I guess) that are made on these delicious fresh made baguettes.  I can honestly say that it is one of the better sammiches I have had – BBQ chicken and mayo with a veggies and a little sweet chili sauce – nom nom nom!!!