Chiang Mai Breakfast World

Breakfast is the whole point here, and the kitchen doesn't pretend otherwise. Doors open at seven and everything stops at 2.30pm, seven days a week, so this is a morning and early-afternoon place rather than somewhere to drift into for a late lunch. The menu covers both Thai and international breakfasts, which is what makes it useful when you're travelling with someone who wants rice soup and someone else who wants eggs and toast.

It sits on a soi off Mun Mueang Road in Phra Sing, which puts you inside the old city and within walking distance of the temples most people are heading for after they eat. Prices sit in the middle bracket. Not the cheapest breakfast in Chiang Mai, and you'd pay less at a market stall, but you're paying for choice and a place to sit properly.

My advice is to go early. Somewhere this popular with both residents and visitors fills up, and weekend mid-mornings are the crunch point. If you turn up at half seven you'll have the run of the place.