I have to be honest – Bangkok may be a shopping haven to many people, my main motivation for going back to the Land of Smiles year after year is …. FOOD. There are so many options available, on the streets or in cafes and restaurants, that you won’t have to repeat the type of food you eat throughout the entire trip. I’ve not explored that many, but from what I’ve tried, here are what you HAVE to try when you visit Bangkok. Otherwise, your trip’s wasted!
Pig’s Trotters Rice
I’ve no idea why I’ve never tried this super awesome and amazingly yummy dish after so many trips to Bangkok. There is a reason why it made the first one on my list – The pig’s trotters are tender and braised to perfection in the savory dark sauce. Matched with some sour pickled vegetables, this simple fare brings you straight to food heaven. Open from 9am onwards, be prepared to queue for at least 45 minutes to an hour if you visit the stall in the early morning. We went there at close to 11am and only had to queue for 30 minute. Don’t worry about being bored while queuing though – Your senses would be overwhelmed by the strong fragrance of the braised pig’s trotters that’s in the air. Or be entertained by the people preparing the food - They do the same tasks repeatedly at high speeds everyday that they’ve become masters.
The pig’s trotters bubbling in that flavorful sauce.
This was what was served to our table. Take my advice: One plate is not enough.
Wanton Mee
At the same stall, customers usually also try their wanton mee, which was actually their main specialty. I personally preferred the pig’s trotters though. Having said that, their noodles were springy, tasty and smooth in the mouth, but the portion’s really small.
Fried Chicken
This Thai café/restaurant is famous for their fried chicken, cooked a little like ayam penyat style. That’s the shop name & address there:
The fried chicken was indeed heavenly. You would see at least a basket of it at every table.
The name of the restaurant actually means ‘Papaya Salad’, so you can guess that it’s another must-try dish here. However, when I visited, it was sold out, so we settled for mango salad instead.
Mango Desserts
Mangoes are everything in Thailand, and I love the really sweet ones. We stumbled upon s dessert shop near Som Tam – Mango Tango, and decided to try it after seeing the long queues. We didn’t wait for long though, as the crowd cleared pretty fast. Their desserts were awesome!
We ordered mango pudding as well as mango sticky rice with mango ice-cream. Yummy and refreshing! Every mouthful was bursting with fresh mangoes.
Phad Thai
The most common dish in Thailand, so you can certainly try it at most places. When we visited the Rod Fai Night Market, we tried the kway tiao version instead, and it was also fragrant and very hearty.
Sushi & Steamboat Buffet
Interestingly, there are many such restaurants in Thailand, at really affordable prices. We popped into one of them at MBK for lunch one of the days, and the steamboat dishes were on conveyor belts – Quite interesting. :)
