Having spent a lot of time in Kathmandu, the Lonely Planet guide to Nepal is a good start. However… if you want to avoid the places where every traveler visits, then below are some places we love to visit and eat at.
- Best meeting place: Himalayan Java (in Thamel and opposite Fire & Ice)
- Best place to chill / kill time: Garden of Dreams (the café there also does an excellent brownie and pot of Nepali tea, with wonderful staff – highly recommended). There is a NPR400 entrance fee plus cost for wifi.
Food and drinks
- Best coffee: Himalayan Java
- Best steak: Koto [K2] (Thamel)
- Best Nepalese food: Lazimpat Nepali Chulo, Culture Program (map)
- Bakeries: Pumpernickel (Thamel and Pokhara)
- Italian: La Dolce Vita (pasta and wine), Fire & Ice (pizza)
- Thai food: Third Eye
- Momos: Almost everywhere will do great momos… go to where it is full of locals eating, then you’ll know it is good!
- Sandwiches/rolls: Sandwich Point (Thamel) for a fresh ham, cheese & tomato (& salad) roll… delicious! Note: over the past 6 months, more ‘hole in the wall’ sandwich shops have appeared in the main chowk/intersection in Thamel. However we still recommend Sandwich Point, about 15 metres down from the intersection, as the quality is still very good meaning no upset stomachs afterwards from unclean food.
Places to shop and read
- Book stores: Pilgrims (Thamel) – the best range of books about Nepal, religion and other topics (a must see for book worms!)
- Pashminas: everywhere in Thamel… you can get nice ones (pashmina/silk) for under US$10. Softer ladies pashies are around US$18 to $25. Be careful of someone selling you one for more than US$50 – US$100 – it may be soft but may shread or leave fluff if not the real deal. (BTW I have about 30 so you can rarely go wrong!)
- Artwork: lots of places in Thamel, Bhaktapur and on your travels.
Buda Budi Treks 