Eat in Wualai and Hai Ya, Chiang Mai

Payaka Cafe ★ 4.0

A quiet south-side bakery-cafe near the moat baking pretty layer cakes and Thai-flavoured pastries, a calm spot for coffee and something sweet by Hai Ya.

Worth the queueLayer cakes

Chiang Mai Gate Market ★ 4.1

A tourist-light evening food market at the south gate, its rock-bottom stalls plating grilled meats, khao soi, som tam and Thai sweets for 30 to 50 baht.

TryGrilled meats, khao soi, sweets

Eight Days A Week Cool Muang ★ 4.2

A Lanna-house taproom open since 2024 with ten taps pouring mostly Thai craft brews, an airy Hai Ya courtyard that anchors the south side beer scene.

Saturday Walking Street ★ 4.2

The Saturday market fills the silversmith street of Wualai with a kilometre of crafts and food stalls, a slightly more local counterpart to the Sunday walk.

Grasshopper Adventures ★ 4.2

A pioneering small-group bike food ride pedalling the backstreets after dark, stopping at street stalls and markets for northern specialties and local sweets.

Chiang Mai Flower Festival ★ 4.0

The February flower festival fills Nong Buak Haad park and the moat road with blooms, parade floats and rows of street-food stalls along the parade route.

Khao Soi Lung Prakit Kad Kom ★ 4.4

Why locals goA Bib Gourmand stall in a tucked-away Hai Ya market that locals rate the city's best khao soi, put on the map only after Somebody Feed Phil filmed here.

TipIt sits inside Kad Kom market south of the moat; go mid-morning and pair the khao soi with a plate of naem crispy-rice.

Pakorn's Kitchen ★ 4.3

Why locals goA quiet family kitchen south of the moat whose massaman was named the world's best curry in a 2021 competition, still barely known to visitors.

TipOrder the award massaman and the pomelo salad; it is small, so booking ahead on a weekend evening is wise.

Khao Soi Wulai ★ 4.0

Why locals goA tiny shop near Wat Lok Molee on Wualai Road where a 30-baht bowl of khao soi draws locals but almost no tourists despite the low, low price.

TipIt is a lunch-only spot; arrive before 14:00 and expect to share one of just a few tables with the neighbourhood regulars.