Red Mekong Bar and Restaurant
Tel. +856-20-2222513, (http://www.redmekong.com). happy hour between 6pm and 8pm. it's large red illuminated name sign can be easily seen from nearby bor pen nyang.
Deja Vu
Next to l'opera restaurant on nam phu square fountain, a very classy and cozy bar, owned and run by japanese-speaking lao owner. great drinks. approx. 50k kip per cocktail. closed sundays.
Jazzy-Brick
Thanon setthathirat nearly opposite kop chai deu. a classy, and expensive, bar. the sign out front states "no shorts, no flip-flops allowed".
Bor Pen Nyang
Thanon fa ngum the river promenade, tel. +856-20-7873965, (http://www.borpennyang.com). breezy fourth-floor no elevator bar/restaurant which overlooks the mekong. travellers, locals, ex-pats, working girls, and ladyboys in seeming harmony. claims the most extensive fine whisky range in laos and stocks a wide range of liquors. special daily cocktail for 20.000 kip. pool & snooker tables on the 2nd floor. at the back of the bar there is a winner stays/loser pays pool competition every night.
Samlo Pub
Thanon setthathirat opposite wat onteu. was once one of only a few bars in town, and was packed every evening, especially between 11pm and 2am after other bars around town are closed. perhaps quieter now that there is more competition. has pool table and shows sports, but the "background" music often drowns the tv commentary. drinkers from bor pen nyang often come here when it closes, then move on again to the don chan palace night club once samlo closes.
Martini Lounge
Thanon nokeo kummane, just a block from the mekong and next door to croissant d'or bakery. opens at 6:00pm and closes well past the normal 11:30 curfew. movies shown monday-wednesday 8:00pm. thursdays are salsa nights and most fridays a dj is spinning. possibly plays the most eclectic music in vientiane.
Future
Just outside. 80s & 90s songs with a big video screen.
DTech
In the hotel grounds. mainly techno.
Khop Chai Deu
(http://www.khopchaideu.com) thanon setthathirat next to the fountain square. the name means "thank you very much". popular with tourists, expats and lao hi-so type. ok food; mid-range prices; large selection of western, thai, and recently introduced classic lao dishes. great place to drink beer in the centre of town.
Other clubs:
Meena: Across the street from Lao Garden restaurant. Popular with Lao teenagers.
Marina: Happening all nights of the week. Crowd changes from beginning, midweek, to weekend. Bowling alley and karaoke next door, same owner. Diverse crowd and music.
Romeo: Upgraded interior within the last 6 months. Diverse crowd and music.
Champa: Vietnamese owned 'super' club. Place to go for loud techno music.
Wind West: Different cover bands play throughout the night. Maybe the only Country & Western bar in Laos. A sit and listen to live band place, not a dance club.
Everything is supposed to close down before midnight before the start of the unofficial curfew, although clubs generally stay open until 1-1.30AM. The most notable exception is the extremely popular Don Chan Palace Hotel Nightclub which is open until 4AM on the weekend. It's an after hours club popular with working girls.
There are two clubs near the Novotel hotel:
Vientiane has a few bars/clubs, but there's no shortage of places for a quiet Beerlao. In particular, the Mekong shoreline has long been the epicentre of low-key nightlife, although a massive construction project to build a flood management levee system and a riverside park has seen most of the bamboo-and-thatch beer gardens here disappear. The South Korean-funded project should finish up by the end of 2010.