Location: Mandalay
Top Restaurants in Mandalay
Top Things to do in Mandalay
- 1. Golden Palace Monastery (Shwenandaw Kyaung)
- 2. Kuthodaw Pagoda & the World's Largest Book
- 3. Maha Myat Muni Pagoda- Mahamuni Buddha Temple
- 4. Mahamuni Pagoda
- 5. Sanda Muni Paya
- 6. Bargaya Monastery
- 7. Mintha Theater
- 8. Mandalay Marionettes Theater
- 9. Mandalay Hill
- 10. Maha Aung Mye Bon Zan Monastery
Top 10 restaurants in Mandalay, Myanmar
Mandalay (/ˌmændəˈleɪ/ or /ˈmændəleɪ/; Burmese: မန္တလေး; MLCTS: manta.le: [màɴdəlé]) is the second-largest city and the last royal capital of Myanmar (Burma). Located 716 km (445 mi) north of Yangon on the east bank of the Irrawaddy River, the city has a population of 1,225,553 (2014 census).
Things to do in Mandalay
1. Marie Min
Overall Ratings
4 based on 516 reviews
Reviewed By Baldtotravel - Melbourne, Australia
This was recommended by our guide and it didn’t disappoint. The lassies were excellent and the meals fabulous. The service was quick and the waiter knowledgeable.
FYI. The location of the restaurant is not well signed at night and is located off 27th Street, down a lane way (opposite Rainforest restaurant) between 74th & 75th Street. Well worth the trouble to find.
2. Spice Garden
Overall Ratings
4 based on 201 reviews
The Spice Garden is a chic elegant restaurant serving Myanmar , Northern and Southern Indian cuisines with primary focus on poultry, seafood and vegetarian dishes. There is also a menu of continental favorites for the homesick tourists. Justifiably proud to be the only Indian-Myanmar fine dining restaurant in Mandalay , the General Manager subscribes to a policy of only preparing food for the same day itself to ensure guests are served the freshest quality food.
Reviewed By breweruk - Brookmans Park, United Kingdom
We had lunch and dinner twice at Spice Garden during out three night stay at the Hotel By The Red Canal in Mandalay. Each meal was very good with a wide selection of dishes to suit most tastes. We went for the Indian vegetarian because we were eating Myanmar food during the day as we toured the local area. We recommend you order three veggie side dishes, a bowl of rice and a nan. Very good choices and everything we tried was delicious. They have Myanmar red and white wine by the glass, which is good. Friendly staff and pleasant setting. Recommended.
3. A Little Bit of Mandalay
Overall Ratings
4 based on 164 reviews
Our restaurant " A little bit of Mandalay" was born on 8th April, 2002. Opened the Tavern (Inn) in November 2013 with 24 Twin-bedded rooms. We never have had a chain-restaurant nor a franchise in any city (Bagan, Yangon, Inle etc.. ) In Myanmar. Both the Restaurant & Tavern are located only in Mandalay as per above address, and registered in Mandalay. We have this ONE & ONLY establishment in Mandalay only.
Reviewed By guduains - Milan, Italy
We were staying in the hotel, so one night we had dinner in the restaurant. The place is informal, and is crowded by small and large groups of tourists. The food is very good, and if the season is just the outdoor environment is very enjoyable. It's slightly off the beaten then required to go by private vehicle. Recommended.
4. Mogok Daw Shan Noodle
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 57 reviews
Reviewed By thirstytravelingman - Stockholm, Sweden
You can experience amazingly tasty food and welcoming staff, don't get scared by the appearance and go for the famous handmade dumplings.
There is a lot to see in this place, starting with the open kitchen that displays food and the making of it, the traditional coffee man and his tools and the fresh dumplings making station. Worth a visit!
5. Rainforest
Overall Ratings
4 based on 405 reviews
Reviewed By Mateo_X - Cairo
The reviews here are very strong and I was very hungry so I was looking forward to this place, but it wasn't that great.
Both things I ordered had a problem. When I ordered my papaya salad the waiter asked if I wanted it spicy. I said yes, very. It came with absolutely no spice, which can happen when you are a Westerner and they presume you can't eat spice, but he had asked! And I had answered. So I sent it back to the kitchen and they brought it back with a single whole chili laid on top of it and no other changes made. I asked for a knife, cut the chili up into pieces and mixed it in myself.
I had a dish of egg and veg, described on the menu as a curry, that was baked onto a leaf. It was really dry. I asked for spicy sauce, not just to add flavor but also to make it m less dry, and again they brought dried chiles. I asked a second time for a sauce and they brought a little bit of nam pla, which helped. But it was not delicious.
They were all very friendly and nice. It almost felt like the chef was in training, maybe. I have to say I saw a lot of other foreigners in this place and the one across the street, owned by the same guy, in a town that does not have that many foreigners in it. I think the owner is maybe resting on his success and his TripAdvisor reviews rather than keeping up the quality control. Just my impression.
The decor is great, I'll say that.
6. Super 81
Overall Ratings
4 based on 235 reviews
Reviewed By Peter S - Rome, Italy
Super 81 Restaurant, Mandalay, Myanmar
The description of the restaurant in Lonely Planet said it all; and it was our last evening in Mandalay and in the country. We should eat somewhere special. The restaurant was around 10 blocks from our hotel – too far for walking in the dark and all those intersections to cross (the majority w/o traffic lights to control access – everyone slows down and edges across, with bikes out-flanking the lines of cars). We went by taxi – naturally.
We were not disappointed – the Super 81 is where people hang out to watch, well, people hanging out. The downstairs beer station was half-full - >50 people - mainly men (and a handful of ladies) – all in their 20-30s – drinking and smoking in groups around the tables in the open social area. There were a few family groups too. Outside in the road and across the wide steps that you climb to enter the restaurant there must have been a dozen people or more. They were scattered amongst >40 motorbikes that were parked in lines below the steps. Some people were sitting on the bikes eating take-away food. It was pitch dark outside; with traffic passing with and w/o lights.
We elected to eat on the edge of the beer station – pushing to small tables together to cater for six places - two couples and two little kids – with the enthusiastic help of service staff. Service generally was good. You could eat upstairs in the comfort of a/c, but it wasn’t that warm and/or humid and we preferred to eat where the action was (or may have been – it wasn’t, but an atmosphere of ‘being there’ helped put Mandalay into perspective). Out tables were on the edge of the steps and looking out over the road; to escape the smoke of the interior. The restaurant was noisy.
English was widely spoken; we ordered from the meals offered by the young man leaning over our table and rattling-off his suggestions and pointing to the menu. In any case, we knew what we preferred of local cuisine after 10 days in the country - chicken (2), fish, prawns, vegetables, corn and potatoes, which came as a mixture of mains and sides. Draught beers (3), soda water (2) and one fruit juice complemented the food.
Food was more than sufficient for us - it came quickly and was hot and well-presented. The fish was interesting – served whole – with more than sufficient succulent white flesh for two people, but you had to work your way through some tough scale and lots of bones. (Remove the head & tail and waste to edible would be around 4:1 respectively.)
We had sufficient food remaining at the end of the meal to request a ‘doggy bag’ (a Styrofoam box) into which the remains were heaped for our nearly three-year old to eat later back at the hotel.
The meal and drinks cost K29,150 (US$21, €20); so yet another great value for money eating option – around US$4/each (not counting baby – at nine months - who, with no teeth could only suck – trying the corn, mashed potatoes, bits of fish and whatever anyone offered him); and this time we’d hit the circuit in Mandalay.
The ladies toilet was upstairs. Feedback said that we’d made a more interesting choice when eating downstairs with the trendy locals.
Peter Steele
12 April 2017
7. Shan Ma Ma
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 610 reviews
Reviewed By Lonelylaowai - Peking
This place was recommended by our hotel’s front desk as a good place to try traditional Shan food. Most dishes are affordable, with many under 3000 k, and the flavor really is distinctive—it’s not just local food dressed up for foreigners.
Place is pretty loud and bustling, which some may not like. It’s open to outdoors, but so much of this just adds to the vibe of it being a genuine local establishment that made it big with tourists.
8. Aye Myit Tar
Overall Ratings
4 based on 273 reviews
Reviewed By Tusky S - Kabul, Afghanistan
We were 2 pax for lunch. Restaurant is quite big if not stylish. There are always a handful of attendants waiting for you, which could be a good thing for some. The food speciality is Myanmar curries (possibly of the Bamar region), which we found to be really good, but nothing out-of-the-world. There are a number of accompaniments served as part of traditional Myanmar food, thus making the meal quite elaborate - be prepared! Overall, an experience worth trying. And yes, it is excellent value for money for hungry souls. Please choose your side dishes wisely, ask plenty of questions to the staff. Some of them speak relatively impressive English.
9. Golden Shan
Overall Ratings
4 based on 91 reviews
Reviewed By travel_lover046 - Graz, Austria
a nice place when you will see how daily life is working...you can choose from a buffet and waitress was very helpful to explain the dishes. Some exotic stuff we haven't had before like offals.
10. Central Park
Overall Ratings
4 based on 104 reviews
Shop 1 is located at 27 street between 68 and 69, and shop 2 is located at the corner of 66 and 32. We provided light food such as Pizza, Wrap, Hamburger, Sandwich, and some Mexican food and pasta in the future.
Reviewed By Zeddog - Alice Springs
Solo lady diner, pizza craving led to a small pepperoni pizza with some ... also had the happy hour 2 small draft beers. Pizza was Ok, nothing exciting but the crust was good. Putting a paper doily under the pizza was annoying since you had to detach that from your pizza each time you had a piece. All in all, perfectly Ok but nothing exciting. Total tally of 6,000 kyats odd ($6 AUD) was good value.
