Where to Eat in Bangkok
- Rand Blimes
- May 1
- 10 min read
OK, let’s just put this out there: we travel to eat. Sure, we like museums and nature and all that other stuff . . . blah, blah, blah. At the end of the day (and also the beginning and middle of the day), it’s all about the food.
And no place on Earth does food better than Bangkok.
Singapore? Great food, for sure.
Georgetown? Wonderful.
Rome, Athens, Madrid, New York? All amazing.
If you tell me any of those cities are as good as Bangkok, I won’t argue. But none are better.
Bangkok’s street food is unmatched for variety. The hole-in-the-wall restaurants are so good they’ve burned themselves into my memory. Even the few fancy places we’ve tried were fantastic.
Bangkok. Just jump in and eat it all.
My Top 3 Bangkok Food Experiences
If I had to pick just three:
Evening street food in Yaowarat (Chinatown)
The Sao Ching Cha food walk
Krua Apsorn (yellow curry with crab—life changing)
Eating Strategy
I’ve spent about six months total in Bangkok . . . and it’s not nearly enough. You need a plan if you want to get through Bangkok's food scene with anything less than a full lifetime.
Don’t just fill up at one restaurant. The best food is street food or small, informal places. Many cluster together. Go on "food walks." Grab some noodle soup from the cart that is known for it, then meat skewers at the famous place around the corner, then a order dish at a storefront restaurant. Keep moving, keep eating. Go with other people and share everything to increase the variety you can fit in your stomach.
When you’re too full to move, go find a pah tong koh cart and eat fried dough dipped in pandan sauce. You’ll manage.
Before we get to the recommendations:
WARNING: most of my suggested places are food carts or informal restaurants. Hours can be tricky. Check online before you go to try to make sure the place you want is open. Even then, having a backup plan in case you show up at a place and it is closed is a good idea.
MONDAYS in BANGKOK: Monday is street cleaning day. Don't go to places hoping to find lots of street food on Mondays. Stick to restaurants on Monday.
Best (or at least, my favorite) Food Areas
Yaowarat (Chinatown)
Every trip to Bangkok starts here for us. After dark, the streets explode with food stalls and small restaurants spilling onto the pavement. Dumplings, roasted chestnuts, noodles, oyster omelets, soups—you name it. To get here, take a Grab.
Our Yaowarat food walk
We do this walk every time we go to Bangkok. It is always a highlight of the trip. We do the following places, generally in the order listed. All can be found in Google maps, so you can map out the route. I have tried to provide pictures of the carts when they don't have English. Jump in and have fun!
Jek Pui: the ultimate Thai eating experience. Don't miss this little curry stand tucked into an alley. While most food in Yaowarat is best late at night, try to get to Jek Pui by 16:00 so they aren't sold out of whatever is the most popular curry they have that day. Order at the table (there is generally someone who speaks enough English to make this a smooth process even if you don't know any Thai). Once you get your rice and curry, grab one of the little, plastic stools, and dig in. Warning: this place may ruin all other curries for you.
Not far from Jek Pui, you can find Thai Haeng Sukiyaki Noodles. This places closes by 17:30, so you can hit it right after your early Jek Pui stop.
Nai Mong Hoi Thod. Hoi Tod is a delicious oyster ommelette. Michelin gave this place a nod, so it can be super popular. But it is worth braving the crowd. You can get the crisple ommelette, or the the soft (gloopy) one. Both are amazing. There are menus in English so ordering is quite easy.
Mung Korn Khao Noodle: opens about 18:00. Really good wanton mee noodles. Both dry and in soup. Both are delicious.
Yaowarat Toasted Buns: this is a cart set on the side of a busy street. It opens about 17:00. There will be a throng about it. You will take a paper slip from the cart and mark down what you want to eat. They toast rolls and cover them in a cariety of toppings. I love the coconut custard. My wife prefers the Nutella. Your toast will come quickly. Just stand in an as-out-of-the-way-as-possible spot on the street and enjoy. Don't go too far from the cart. You will probably want a second one.
Hoi Kraeng Pa Jeen. This is THE PLACE for blood cockles. It will be crowded, and there is usually a wait. It is worth it. Take a number and hang out in the area, waiting your turn. You will get a plate of blood cockles that you eat with salt and lime. These are addictively good. (NOTE: while there may be reason to fear shellfush, we have never gotten sick after eating here. You should do whatever research you feel necessary to make an informed decision).
Pa Tong Ko Savoy. This is how we always finish our Yaowarat food walk. Pa tong ko are little, heavenly fried donuts. Dipe them in condensed milk, or the green pandan sauce. This place also got a Michelin nod and so is crowded, but they can crank out their donuts at high speed, so you won't have to wait long. They are open late.
Victory Monument
Easy BTS access. After dark, the entire area turns into a noodle and stir-fry wonderland.
Highlights:
Jae Wa Chicken Rice: Open 9:00-21:00. Hainan chicken rice (khao man gai) is one of the great comfort food of the world. And it is so simple. Some poached chicken. Rice cooked in chicken stock (with some chicken fat added). In its simplest form, that is all. You usually get a little cup of the chicken stock as well. You might get a sauce, but with good khao man gai, you don't need any sauce. It is simple and amazing. Jae Wa Chicken Rice does a great job.
Lan Kuay Jap Jaedaeng. Open late. This is a long-time favorite street cart. Its location is fixed enough that you can find it on Google Maps. This place is often called the "Microphone" cart. You will see a man with a megaphone hawking his food. There is a fairly extensive menu. The pad see ew (fried flat noodles), and khao ka moo (stewed pork nuckle) are really good.
Chakki: Only open for lunch, about 11:00-14:45. This place is known for rad na (chewy noodles in a pork gravy). It got a Michelin nod, so it can get busy.
Isan Rod Ded. Open 10:30-22:00. This is one of my favorite Issan (Northeastern Thai) food places in the city. Everything is great. Get the nam tok moo (a pork salad), som tam (green papaya salad), and (if you are feeling adventurous) duck face (it is really good, but not much meat).
Ban Ajarn Restaurant: Open 11:00-22:00. This place has a fairly extensive menu. Great Massaman curry.
Chaeron Krung near Saphan Taksin (Bangrak)
It is easy to get here. In fact, this is the part of the city I usually stay in due to a combination of fantastic food and good transportation options. You can take the BTS to the Saphan Taksin stop. YOu can also get here on the Chao Praya Express boat. Or take a Grab/taxi.
Prachak Roasted Duck. Open 8:30-18:30. I love this place. Get the roasted duck over noodles. If you peek in from the street and all the tables are full, no worries. there is plenty of space upstairs. They have menus in English so ordering is easy.
Sor Boonprakob. Open at 8:30, likely to sell out around noon. This is one of the best places in the city to eat mango sticky rice. Get there early, or they will likely be sold out.
Jok Prince. Open 6:-13:00; 14:00-3:00. This is one of the best places in the city for jok (rice porridge). They open early and stay open late (although they close down for a couple of hours in the afternoon).
Baan Padthai (House of Padthai). Open 11:00-22:00. If you ask soeone who has never been to Thailand to name a Thai food, padthai is usually the answer. Padthai is not eaten as commonly in Thailand as you might think before, but there are some great places to get padthai in the city. Baan Padthai is a good one (in my opinion it is just as good as Thipsamai, but not as crowded).
Grand Sanyod. Open 10:00-21:00. If you want something a little more upscale (but still not fancy), Grand Sanyod is great. It got a well-earned Michelin nod, but it isn't overly difficult to get in and get a seat.
Food carts. Starting at the Saphan Taksin BTS station and walking northeast up Chaeron Krung there are loads of food carts. There is also an alley right before you get to Robinsons Bangrak Mall that fills with street carts in the evening (and a few in the morning). And the roti cart that sets up at night by the 7-Eleven across the street from Robinsons makes great roti (egg, banana, and Nutella is our favorite). The exact food carts change day to day, and hour to hour. As you wander the area, just graze on whatever looks good.
Sao Ching Cha
Sao Ching Cha is one of my favorite Bangkok neighborhoods for food. Do a progressive dinner here, hitting multiple small restaurants. ImportFood.com’s guide to this area is pure gold:https://importfood.com/features/thai-cooking-features/item/sidewalk-guide-to-bangkok-s-finest-street-vendors-saochingcha-area-2
No easy public transport. Grab/taxi is the best way to get here. If you have to take a taxi, download a photo of the Giant Swing (Sao Ching Cha) and show the driver.
Khao San Road
Don’t eat here. Don’t stay here. Don’t go here. (You’ve been warned.)
How to Find Great Street Food on Your Own
Part of the fun of eating in Bangkok is just going out and experimenting. The street carts are cheap, and you can just point to what you want if there is a language barrier. You can go out on your own and find great street food if you know where to look. Here are three places that are usually a good bet to find great food:
Universities — Always good food nearby. Thammasat University is a solid bet. The area around Chulalongkorn is also great.
Markets — Touristy markets like Chatuchak are fine, but local spots like Wang Lang Market (across the river from Ta Prachan) are even better.
Hospitals — Sounds odd, but trust me. Street food vendors gather where people gather. Near hospitals = good eating.
Additionally, just go where office workers eat at lunch (Soi Convent is a good bet). Look for the locals in business clothes lining up outside rundown places. That’s where the magic happens.
The less English spoken, the better the food. If the staff can’t communicate with tourists, they rely on repeat local customers and word of mouth—which means the food has to be good.
Random Holes-in-the-Wall
Krua Apsorn. Open 10:30-19:30. Just go here. This place is absolutely amazing. There are two locations now, so getting a seat is not as tricky as it once was (if you want to be sure to get a seat at dinner time, ask someone at your hotel to call and make you a reservation). The whole menu is great, but the standout dish is yellow curry with crab. It is life-changing. BTW- the Auntie that runs the place will adopt you if you try to order in Thai.
Hom Duan. Open 9:00-20:00. This is the best place for northern Thai food in Bangkok. It is on Ekkamai Road, which has more than its fair share of great food. At Hom Duan, get the khao soi, and northern-style curry.
Sabaijai. Open 10:30-22:30. Sabaijai is also in the Ekkamai area, and it focuses on Issan (northeastern Thailand) food. They special in gai yang (roasted chicken). The place is popular, but it is large and has lots of seating area.
Nangleung Pork Curry & Stew Rice. Open 7:00-14:00. This is in the Nang Lang market area (where there is great food all around). This place will have two bubbling caudrins of deliciousness. One full of a home style curry (very different from most other curries you will eat in Bangkok), and the other with stew. Both are increadibly comforting and delicious. In theory the place is open until 14:00, but I have gone at noon and found them completely sold out for the day. Go however early you think you can eat curry. We go for breakfast.
Khao Kaeng Ruttana. Open 10:00-14:30. In the Nang Lang Market area. "Khao kaeng" means "curry rice." Khao kaeng places tend to have several pots of curry. You buy some rice and the curry you want. You can get a plate of curry rice, or you can get curry in a bag to carry away. All the curries I have eaten here have been great. Massaman is my favorite, and it was amazing here. In theory, they are open until 14:30, but they can sell out of the most popular (best) curries.
“Real” Restaurants
We rarely go fancy in Bangkok, but when we do:
Le Du, Sorn, Suhring, and Gaggan were all listed among the 50 best restaurants in the world in 2024. The only one I have been to is Sorn, and it was fantastic. Reservations can be difficult to get, so plan ahead. While any of these places will cost many times as much as all the other places listed in this post, they will likely be much cheaper than a similar caliber restaurant in most other countries. So if you want to eat as one of the world's best, Bangkok may be a great way to do it.
The places I have described in this post barely scratch the surface of the great food in Bangkok. They are just some of my favorite places. But really, if you want to go in depth on the Bangkok food scene, you should read everything Mark Weins has ever written. We have eaten in places he has recommended not only in Thailand but all over the world. He has never led us wrong. Spend some time at his website, Eating Thai Food.
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