The Moon: Be Kind to Animals

About The Moon: Be Kind to Animals

There is no sign worth the name, just a bougainvillea-draped courtyard on the main road north of Ananda Temple, a few tables in the shade, and a menu that has fed temple-weary travellers for years. The Moon, full name Be Kind to Animals, is the vegetarian institution of Old Bagan: open-air, unhurried, and famous among the people who cycle the plain at dawn and need a cold lassi by noon. It is not refined and does not try to be. It is one of those rare rooms that everyone who has been to Bagan remembers.

The Kitchen

The kitchen is entirely vegetarian and leans on Burmese and pan-Asian comfort cooking. The dish to order is the tamarind-leaf salad, tart and bright and unlike anything most visitors have had, with the pumpkin curry with ginger the other plate the room is known for. Beyond those, the menu runs to sauteed vegetables with vermicelli, vegetable spring rolls, chapati wraps and a Massaman-style vegetable curry with coconut rice. The lime, ginger and honey juice and the lassis are as much a reason to stop as the food.

You will find it on the main road just north of Ananda Temple in Old Bagan, an open-air courtyard that predates the plain's UNESCO listing. Plates run a few dollars each, which makes it one of the great-value tables anywhere. Set it against our best vegetarian restaurants worldwide, browse the full Bagan dining guide, or measure it with our seven signs of a great restaurant.

The Room

The room is a courtyard under bougainvillea, open to the air with fans turning and the temple road just beyond. Sound is easy, the shade is the luxury, and the tables are simple wood spaced loosely. There is no dress code at all; you arrive as you are off a bicycle or an e-bike, dusty from the plain. It fills at lunch with travellers and empties in the late afternoon, and the slow, friendly service is part of the charm.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is The Moon worth it?

Yes, for what it is: the friendliest, best-value vegetarian stop in Old Bagan. Do not expect refinement; expect a shaded courtyard, a tart tamarind-leaf salad, a good pumpkin curry and a cold lassi for a few dollars after a morning among the temples. It has been a traveller institution for years for good reason. Come hungry and dusty off the plain, and it is exactly the rest you need.

How hard is it to book The Moon?

You do not book, you walk in. The Moon is a casual open-air courtyard that takes no reservations, and a table is almost always free outside the busiest lunch hour. Arrive a little before or after the midday rush and you will sit straight down. It is at its best in the late morning or early afternoon, when the temple crowds are out on the plain and the courtyard is calm.

What is the dress code at The Moon?

There is none. This is an open-air vegetarian cafe on a temple road, so you arrive exactly as you are, often dusty from cycling the Bagan plain. Light, modest clothing suits the heat and the nearby temples, where shoulders and knees should be covered. Comfort is the only rule; nobody will look twice at bike shorts, a sun hat or sandals at The Moon.

What should I order at The Moon?

Order the tamarind-leaf salad, the tart and unusual dish the room is known for, and the pumpkin curry with ginger alongside it. Add the vegetable spring rolls or a chapati wrap to share, and do not skip the lime, ginger and honey juice or a lassi to cool off. Everything is vegetarian and a few dollars a plate, so order widely and graze.