DADA KAFE Ratchamankla Rd. Tel. 053-449-718 Open 8 am

DADA KAFE recently joined the elite group of eateries that offer healthy dishes to its patrons, run by a local lady who is undoubtedly passionate about food; and healthy food in particular. Located beside Gecko Books at the end of Ratchamankla Road near the moat, you can expect to find an assortment of beneficial and wholesome dishes as well as a range of juices and smoothies designed with various health benefits in mind, such as to detox the body and to help with hangovers and stress. Nutritional supplements of spirulina, bee pollen, flaxseed oil or wheatgrass can also be added, each having their own essential benefits for the body.

Of the breakfasts, Toast Yahweh, consisting of toast, avocado, tomato and lemon makes for the perfect opening meal of the day and the sprout and avocado salad is recommended from the array of salads. A wide range of vegetarian and non-vegetarian menus with beautiful pasta dishes such as the spaghetti black olives and capers, courtesy of their excellent chef who spent a decade cooking in an Italian restaurant, are also available, with curries, brown rice, and homemade yoghurts among other highlights.

In recent years Kombucha Tea has gained in popularity with people swearing by its many benefits, from stimulating the immune system to improving digestion and liver function. DADA KAFE is one of the very few places in the city that sells this pleasant tasting beverage, which can be bought here by the bottle. Healthy food aside, DADA KAFE has been lovingly designed to create a friendly, relaxing atmosphere with a positive energy that is as palpable as the food is fresh.

Chocolate Fact 1. Opposite Wat Chedi Luang Tel. 053 279 718 Open daily 9 am - 8 pm, Sunday 9 am - 10 pm 2. Nimmanhaeminda Rd. Soi 12 Tel. 053 289 245 Open daily 9 am - 8 pm

Within the space of a year a simple well-thought-out concept has been transformed into two branches in Chiang Mai, a shop in Pattaya and very shortly a store in Bangkok's Central World. As you may suspect, Chocolate Fact is the brainchild of a chocolate lover, who has presented this most popular of foods with a modern approach using only top quality chocolate from Belgium, Switzerland and Germany. Both in the flagship store opposite Wat Jedi Luang on Propakklao Road or at the contemporary-styled bistro on Nimmahaeminda Soi 12, you can sample a range of different chocolate creations from the iced dark chocolate and Spanish hot chocolate drinks, to white chocolate cheese cake and chocolate fondue served with fruit.

Every type of chocolate that is produced has its own character and Chocolate Fact has chosen a diverse selection to give customers a chance to experience all that chocolate has to offer. Two contrasting cakes are the Dark Killer Cake, made of a very bitter chocolate and rum, and the Heart Cake, a raspberry cake filled with hot chocolate sauce that erupts upon breaking the surface. From the hot and cold drinks to the cookies, cakes and pies every item contains chocolate and is made exclusively by and for Chocolate Fact.

Chocolate aside, both Chiang Mai locations are perfect for hanging out with friends or stopping by to recharge your batteries on your stroll around town, designed as they are with a laid-back ambience and comfortable seating within a European-style setting.