Cafe Magistr

Samarkand


Right in the heart of the city, this bright two-room cafe aimed at students serves everything from real coffee to breakfast pancakes, as well as salads, burgers and pizza (the spicy pizza comes recommended) in a breezy fast-food setting. It's a reliable place that we kept coming back to.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby Samarkand attractions

1. Statue of Amir Timur

0.22 MILES

This glowering statue of Timur seated on his throne marks the boundary between the old Uzbek town and the Russian-designed new town. It's a major landmark…

2. Rukhobod Mausoleum

0.33 MILES

This brick mausoleum, dated 1380 and possibly the city’s oldest surviving monument, was renovated in 2015 and now serves as a souvenir and craft shop. The…

3. Regional Studies Museum

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The Regional Studies Museum occupies an old Jewish merchant’s house, and has a lavish wing devoted to Jewish history, with old photos of Samarkand’s once…

4. Gur-e-Amir Mausoleum

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The beautiful portal and trademark fluted azure dome of the Gur-e-Amir Mausoleum marks the final resting place of Timur (Tamerlane), along with two sons…

5. Ak Saray Mausoleum

0.52 MILES

Behind the ugly wall surrounding Gur-e-Amir is this unexpected 15th-century mausoleum, with some stunningly restored blue and gold decoration under the…

6. Hovrenko Wine Factory

0.59 MILES

Those with adventurous taste buds can sign up for a tasting of eight wines, balzams and cognacs from the Hovrenko Wine Factory, which has been producing…

7. Ulugbek Medressa

0.7 MILES

The Ulugbek Medressa, on the western side of the Registan, is the square's original medressa, finished in 1420 under Ulugbek who is said to have taught…

8. Registan

0.76 MILES

This ensemble of majestic, tilting medressas – a near-overload of majolica, azure mosaics and vast, well-proportioned spaces – is the centrepiece of the…