Bangkok is known for it’s numerous shopping malls – from the relatively pedestrian MBK to the rather gaudy Siam Paragon and the Emporium. K-Village, a boutique shopping mall which opened up in late 2009, represents a new breed of shopping centers in Bangkok. Built on only two levels, the new K-Village with over 100 shops is fairly intimate and easy to navigate unlike the larger multilevel shopping complexes that dominate Bangkok.

My take? Located on Sukhumvit Soi 26 near Rama IV, K-Village was a convenient 5-minute walk from my hotel in Bangkok. I was quite impressed by the intimate ambiance, the wonderful Gourmet Market and the many trendy Asian restaurants - Taiwanese, Japanese, Vietnamese, Korean and Thai et all. In addition, K Village has two very attractive coffee shops, not named Starbucks.

The Gourmet Market, the centerpiece of K-Village, had an excellent selection of hydroponically grown vegetables, fresh fruits as well as an upscale deli and a special department that featured Japanese goods. Prices for some items were only slightly higher than the considerably more pedestrian Villa Market located on Sukhumvit Soi 33.

Surveying some of the restaurant menus, the average price for entrees were on the high side for most Thai people @ 120 baht ($4USD) per plate but relatively affordable for the tourist crowd.

With its fashionable and upscale shops and restaurants as well specialty desert and gelato cafes, K-Village clearly caters to the upwardly mobile, and high society crowd (HISO). Taking a look around me, many Thai ladies and gals were strolling around K-Village scantily dressed in their hot designer pants, short shorts, flimsy blouses and high heels, trying so hard to look sexy; funny thing, the Thai men didn’t pay them any attention. Oh well…

Located on the first floor, Watercress, a natural foods restaurant with a good variety of tasty vegetarian Thai dishes, has since become one my favorite places to eat. During my 10 nights in Bangkok, I ended up eating at Watercress on five different occasions

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Ouro Preto, with its unique baroque architecture, steep cobblestoned streets and many ornate churches – is indeed a very popular tourist destination in Brazil. While this small town has a lot of charm, at the same time it is a real tourist trap and you can expect to pay somewhat higher prices for dining – even higher than RIO.

Dining for Vegetarians in Ouro Preto is somewhat challenging, as there are virtually no bonafide vegetarian friendly restaurants or cafes. Sure, you can go into almost any Italian restaurant (and there are many) and order a salad or have some pasta. In most of these Italian restaurants, the food is mediocre and the prices are a bit on the high side. A simple pasta dish will set you back at least R$15-20 ($8 –11USD) and the same for a salad.

After doing some personal reconnaissance, I was able to identify some “go to” places - the best find was this small sandwich café located on the far corner of the plaza (forgot the name of the place). Popular with the University crowd, the café had a good selection of sandwiches, smoothies as well as a soup of the day. Their vegetarian sandwich - loaded with veggies, including beets, carrots, avocado, tomatoes, cucumber and mushroom - was very tasty. It was so good that I ate there three times during my 5-day stay. The cost was $7.50USD – good deal!

My last night in town, upon recommendation of a young Brazilian couple, I went to O Passo, a very classy Italian restaurant that specialized in pizza. On Thursday night, they have a Special Pizza Buffet where you can eat as much pizza you want for a set charge of R$30. The waiters come around every 5-6 minutes or so with different types of pizza. The place was really jamming – most of the patrons were Brasileros with a sprinkling of gringos.

Surprisingly they had at least 8 vegetarian pizzas to choose from – they even had a chocolate pizza. I wolfed down about 8 slices before I said “no mas”. The slices were small and the pizza had a very thin crust. Overall the pizza at O Passo was better than most places I’ve been to in the USA. Highly recommended!

• Pickpockets, Purse snatchers & petty crime

  While La Paz is not one of the most dangerous cities in South America, tourists are often victimized by pickpockets and purse-snatchers. Thieves often work in teams and utilize a variety of ruses to separate you from your valuables. Be especially careful when strolling through crowded marketplaces.

• Zebras

  Downtown La Paz is usually choked with traffic. To help referee traffic at the busiest intersections, the city employs a special squad of Zebras

• Medical Clinics

  If you need medical attention or travel inoculations, your best bet is to go any number of of private medical clinics scattered around La Paz. The best clinic in my humble opinion is Clinica del Sur located in Zona Sur, the more affluent part of La Paz. Service is very fairly efficient and relatively affordable.

• Haircuts

  Believe it or not, you can get a haircut in central La Paz for as little $2.50USD. In Zona Sur - the upscale part of La Paz - a haircut will cost you more monies. I paid about $7.00 at a middlebrow beauty salon in Zona Sur. More upscale establishments charge even more than this!

• Altitude Sickness

  Many tourists have problems with the high altitude of La Paz, which at 11,800 feet above sea level is the highest capital in the world. You can combat altitude sickness – symptoms are headaches, dizziness, nausea and diarrhea - by drinking several cups of Coca tea during your stay.

• Cocaine bars

  Many establishments that cater to tourists are now freely offering cocaine (for a price of course) in addition to the standard array of libations and drinks. Be careful, as cocaine is still illegal in Bolivia.

• Vegetarian restaurants

  There are many vegetarian restaurants in La Paz. One of the better places for tasty vegetarian meals is Namaste Café and art gallery. One of the older hotels in downtown La Paz (forgot the name) also offers a vegetarian buffet for lunch. Cost was about $3.00USD. Very Cheap!

I am a confirmed vegetarian (90% vegan) and health nut. I occasionally eat dark chocolate (70% or more cacao), eat egg whites and once every two months, I have a veggie cheese pizza; that puts me in the category of being a quasi vegan.

As I travel overseas a lot, I usually do some research to scope out some dedicated vegetarian/vegan or vegetarian friendly restaurants in the area. Most of the time, I am usually have some modicum of success by searching online or asking the concierge or somebody at the hotel front desk. Some destinations are definitely not very vegetarian friendly as I found out on my recent trip to Brazil and Bolivia in South America (Brazil is not the most veggie friendly place) – but I usually am able to find at least a couple of suitable places.

When I was in La Paz, Bolivia’s capital city I came across a wonderful Vegetarian restaurant & Art gallery called Namaste. A family owned business, Namaste is relatively new, having opened up only 2 ½ years ago. The menu features a variety of vegetarians entrees and like many restaurants in la Paz, Namaste’s specialty is a set lunch or “plato del dia” (plate of the day). The lunch fare is very cheap, serving sizes are ample and the food is very tasty.

I had the opportunity to have dinner there one night – the food was outstanding (muy sabroso) and very affordable. I had quinoa soup as well as two other plates. The bill amounted to about $6.00USD or so including hot tea.

Scattered around the restaurant, there are some very beautiful and eclectic paintings on display as well as alfresco murals and other artwork. Gonz, the very affable co-owner of Namaste, is an accomplished sculpturer and painter in his own right in addition to being a restaurateur.

I had an opportunity to sit down and interview Gonz about the history of Namaste and how he morphed into Vegetarian Restaurateur after working for many years in mid-level mangement in Corperate America. See video below….

If you’re traveling to TAIPING, a very pleasant city located in Northwestern Malaysia, you’ll definitely want to stop by and pay a visit to La Promise Bakery and Café. A relative newcomer to the scene, La Promise may be the only restaurant in Taiping that specializes in Western Food, a city which is dominated by food shops offering Chinese, Malay and Indian dishes.

Centrally located in downtown Taiping, the café is especially popular with the University crowd and professional people. Very spacious inside with comfortable seating, the café also has free WIFI.

Prices are reasonable and the food – while definitely not gourmet quality - is fairly good. To give you some idea of the prices – a plate of spaghetti is 7.90RM (about 2.30USD) and a Western style Breakfast – complete with eggs, toast, sausage and juice - is all of 5.50RM(1.60USD). The pastries in particular looked absolutely scrumptious. Richard is a genuine pastry artist!

A young Chinese couple - Richard and Ling – own La Promise Café. I had an opportunity to talk extensively with the amiable Ms. Ling. Of all the people that I met in Taiping, Ms Ling probably speaks the best English. She said that her facility with English can be attributed to her being very diligent as a student in both primary and secondary school.

Born and raised in Taiping, Ms. Ling has quite an interesting history leading up to her career as restaurateur.

After graduating from high school in Taiping in 1999, she received a scholarship to study at a University in Penang, where she majored in hotel management and catering. After 2 1/2 years at the University, she left Malaysia for the Gold Coast of Australia, where she finished her studies at Griffiths University.

Upon graduating from the University in 2005, she returned to Penang, Malaysia where she worked as manager for over 2 years at a local Haagen Daas Ice Cream Store. It was there that she met Richard - her future husband and business partner - who worked in the pastry department of a major hotel.

In 2007, she traveled to Ireland where she took courses in accounting and lived with her brother-in-law for over 1½ years, before returning to Taiping in September 2008. Back at home, she decided to pursue career as a restaurateur with her newlywed husband, Richard.

Her parents, who own a local hardware store in Taiping, gave financial backing to Ling and Richard for their “new baby”, La Promise Café. The Grand Opening took place in August 2009.

I give La Promise a big thumbs up!

In United States and many Western countries, it is customary to leave a tip for the waiter/waitress at a restaurant or bar. The amount of the tip varies depending on the quality of the service. The exact tip amount is of course at the discretion of the customer. In the USA for average service, the acceptable tip percentage is 15%.

Things are far different in Southeast Asian countries like Thailand and Malaysia, where tipping is not the standard practice among the locals and in general, tips are not expected by most of the local restaurants. However in high-end restaurants - or those that cater exclusively to oversea tourists - tipping is more commonplace, and in many instances the gratuity - normally 10-15% - is included in the bill.

I have experienced the built-in gratuity myself at high-end restaurants like the Rang Mahal, the most prestigious Indian restaurant in Bangkok. At the more humble Raan Derm, a Thai restaurant on Sukhumvit Soi 22 which caters both to middle class locals and tourists, they add 7% gratuity to the bill.

To give you an idea about the prevailing attitude towards Tipping in Southeast Asia, I have two relatively comical stories that I will share with you – both experiences took place in Malaysia.

While I was in Taiping, a very lovely city located in Perak State (Northwest Malaysia), I patronized Su Hean , a Vegan Chinese restaurant which had recommended to me by a local. The restaurant was very proper but not flashy by any means and catered primarily to the relatively affluent Chinese community in Taiping.

On my 2nd visit there, I ordered a couple of veggie plates. The total bill came to roughly 14.00RM (or $4.30USD). Very cheap for me! Since the service was fairly good , the waitress was very nice (and the food was delicious), I left a tip of 4.00RM (or about $1.20USD). Upon leaving the restaurant, the young girl came running after me with a very concerned look on her face and said to me “Sir, you forgot some monies on the table”. Smiling, I said to her “Young lady, that is your tip.”

Several days later I traveled to Penang, the most popular tourist destination in Malaysia, and well known for its excellent restaurants. On my last night there, my Taxi driver took to me Luk Yea Yan, a well-regarded Vegan Chinese restaurant. Again this was a proper restaurant, not a greasy spoon affair. Upon hearing my story about my experience in Taiping, he laughed and told me that only Americans tips - most Europeans do not!

So after the meal, since the service was better than average, I left a tip which represented about 22% of the bill. Upon leaving, the taxi driver told me that the restaurant owner said to him “Your customer forgot some monies at the table”. We both had a good laugh!

I would like to share with you my favorite trio of restaurants in Langkawi, Malaysia’s most popular beach destination. Almost all tourists are self-styled restaurant critics. I am no different, except there is one caveat - I’m a vegetarian (97% vegan). While I’m not fussy, I am very conscious about the way the food is prepared - you know, minimal salt and oil etc. If the produce used in the restaurant is organic and grown locally, so much the better. Finding some decent vegetarian friendly restaurants in Cenang Beach, Langkawi’s liveliest resort area, was a little difficult as many of the restaurants specialize in the traditional Malay cuisine which is heavy on fish sauce, meat and seafood, however I did see a number of Indian and Middle Eastern restaurants that offered vegetarian entrees, and a lesser number of Chinese and Thai restaurants as well.

Be forewarned, there are some pseudo fancy Indian restaurants in the area, but menu prices looked a bit on the high side and judging from the lack of customers, the food at these places was probably mediocre at best!

My wholehearted recommendations are as follows:
**** Let’s hear the drumroll please!****

1. The Oasis Pub and Restaurant
   ****

   Located about 200 meters south of Underwater World, this small beachside café specializes in North Indian Tandoori and Western food. After sunset, the ambiance at the Oasis Beach Club is very special with large colored light bulbs and candlelights illuminating the outdoor dining area. Did I say romantic? At the Oasis, there’s a good selection of set Indian dinners – both vegetarian and non-vegetarian – and for Langkawi, entrée prices are fairly reasonable. The fact that I ate there two of the four nights that I stayed in Langkawi has to tell you something – the food was very tasty. Only negative thing that I can think was that the service can be somewhat indifferent.

2. Red Tomato Café
   ****

   Located just 50 meters north of AB Motel was RED TOMATO, this small rather eclectic café offers a variety of mostly Mediterranean and Western dishes. The ambiance is very tropical, funky and offbeat – a place where most western tourists feel comfortable and judging from the crowds that gather here for the early morning hours, this café is hands down the most popular place for breakfast in town. While I was having breakfast there one morning, Red Tomato was so busy that the Maitre-D was putting people on a waitlist. What did I have for breakfast? A large mixed fruit salad with yogurt and granola accompanied by some delicious organic coffee (not Nescafe, thank G-D) and a toasted baguette. Don’t miss out on their wonderful homemade bread and rolls!

   The European lady who owns the place is a little quirky, but her Malay husband, Oli - by occupation, he is a building contractor in Langkawi - seems to be a really amiable gentleman. He even posed for a series of pictures for me. I didn’t have a chance to make it there for dinner, but the menu had some decent vegetarian options including some delicious sounding salads. Service can be a little bit spotty though and prices are a little on the high side for Langkawi. In addition, their free Wifi is very fast - a lot faster than the service I paid for at the AB Motel. Soymilk is available upon request for their mixed coffee drinks.

3. HAROO
   ****1/2

   Owned by a middle-aged couple from Korea, Haroo is located on a side street directly opposite Underwater World. Haroo offers a very diverse dinner menu, but their breakfast offerings are rather standard - toast, eggs, hash brown and a small juice. The service is very good and the prices are very affordable. The one time I went there for dinner, I ordered a very delicious vegetarian curry dish, rice and a side of garlic bread. Hmm very tasty! The husband personally greets every guest that walks into the restaurant with a bow and a smile, while his wife mans the kitchen. Overall, this is probably my favorite restaurant in LANGKAWI as the husband and wife tandem are such gracious and humble hosts. Their daughter, who is very fluent in English, is quite artistic – see her tribute to chairs and coffee houses on the far wall. Excellent calligraphy. Highly recommended!

I admit to being a Chinese food enthusiast; although I’m a vegetarian, most Chinese restaurants can accommodate me by substituting soy bean curd (tofu) for meat/chicken/seafood. One of my favorite dishes – I usually order it with all my meals - is hot and sour soup, a staple in Chinese cuisine. I have had this particular soup at Chinese restaurants not only in my home town of San Francisco but all around the world, in places as far away as Accra, Ghana and Quito, Ecuador. The common denominator is that the soup is relatively spicy and has a certain thickness or consistency.

Believe it or not, the worst hot and sour soup that I have ever had was at Kim Liam Kee, a rather, large establishment located on Petaling Street in the heart of Kuala Lumpur’s famous Chinatown. I ate at this establishment on Nov. 27 of this year - it was my first night in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia’s capital city and after a strenuous day of travel, I really wanted a proper vegetarian meal. My hotel was an easy 5-minute walk to Chinatown and my decision to patronize this particular restaurant was primarily because of their rather large and very prominent signage.

I ordered two dishes at Kim Lian Kee – a vegetarian claypot dish with rice and a small hot and sour soup to the accompaniment of a Royal Stout. While the claypot dish was satisfactory, the soup was very watery and had hardly any taste – it was so bad, I thought I would let the management know about it. Now I’m a person who is not afraid to voice his opinions to the restaurant management if the service or the food is bad.

Expressing my dissatisfaction vociferously with the manager over the bland tasting soup, I opened up ‘a rather large can of worms’. Later on, I asked the manager to reprimand the young waitress for her very flippant comment when I requested the bill. After hearing my complaint, he smiled and replied “I am sorry sir, none of these girls have any training; they are hired off the street.” After hearing that, it was very difficult for me to refrain from laughing out loud!

In retrospect, I really thought the whole incident was quite amusing as I relished playing the role of the incensed tourist-customer. Bottom line - I would never, ever go back to this restaurant and recommend that my fellow travelers do not patronize this establishment as well. For a detailed account of my rather dismal experience at Kim Lian Kee, I have filed a report on TripAdvisor

On my 2nd night (and final night in Kuala Lumpur), I went to Fatt Yan, a small vegetarian Chinese restaurant that received very favorable reviews in Happy Cow. The price was right at 18.50RM ($5.25USD) and my two entrees were very tasty – one of which was a vegetarian hot and sour soup. Take that Kim Lian Kee!

As a traveler, I am very fussy about restaurant food – it must be tasty, healthfully prepared and of course it must be completely vegetarian (no animal or animal byproducts and no seafood). If you haven’t guess it by now, I’m a full-fledged vegetarian. Thailand is a destination that I have traveled extensively, and there are many restaurants - even outside of Bangkok - that have excellent vegetarian options to choose from. Below is my “Best of Thailand” a partial list of some of my favorite restaurants (excludes Bangkok). My opinion is subjective of course, and my choices are influenced by virtue of being a strict vegetarian. Bon Apetit!

• PAI (Mae Hong Son Province) Na’s - Khun Na can cook up a storm
• KAMALA BEACH (Phuket) Baan Rim Klong - Thai, English and Indian food
• MAE SALONG Salema - A Halal Thai restaurant, runner up for best Pad Thai
• KANCHANABURI Sri Rung Reung - One of my all time faves
• MAE HONG SON Sang Tong Huts - Creative Thai cookery , the chef here is one of the best in Siam
• CHIANG DAO Malee’s Nature Lodge - Excellent family style dinners. Brown rice is the default here
• KOH CHANG Morgan - I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve eaten here!