The grilled pork skewers at Rod Dee Det, a roadside restaurant in Bangkok, are recommended by Thai Town’s own Sarantip “Jazz” Singsanong of Jitlada restaurant.
(Jenn Harris / Los Angeles Times)
6 stops for a whirlwind street food and bar crawl through Bangkok
The street food scene in Bangkok exceeded my wildest expectations. From the fruit vendors to the boat noodle shops, there’s no shortage of exceptional things to eat in every neighborhood.
This list is by no means exhaustive. It’s a rundown of some of my favorite places to eat and drink during a short jaunt through the city. I hope you find it useful for any trips planned. And if you have recommendations, I’d love to hear them for the next time I’m in town.
Chef Ton’s cooking career was already an act of defiance, and then he doubled down by using local ingredients at a time when fine dining was Eurocentric. It landed him at the top of Asia’s 50 best list.
Showing Places
(Cody Long / Los Angeles Times)
Kitti Duck Noodle Restaurant
Thai $
This chain specializes in using every part of the duck. Here, you feast on beaks, intestines, heart, liver and breasts alongside slippery rice noodles and cups of broth. The broth is pretty spectacular, and you can order a full bowl of duck noodle soup. Make use of the table condiments and add immoderate amounts of vinegar and chile to everything.
Soi, Khwaeng Bang Chak, Bang Na, Bangkok 10250 and at multiple locations in Thailand
Soi, Khwaeng Bang Chak, Bang Na, Bangkok 10250 and at multiple locations in Thailand
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(Cody Long / Los Angeles Times)
Le Du
Thai $$$
This is the restaurant that introduced the farm-to-table movement to Bangkok. Chef Thitid “Ton” Tassanakajohn’s tasting menu restaurant is named for the Thai word for “season,” and the menu changes often, but there’s one dish you can count on when you visit. Tassanakajohn’s khao kluk kapi is a take on the popular Bangkok street food of fermented shrimp paste fried rice. He serves his with a medley of raw and cooked condiments, including a pork jam, green mango, red onion and chiles. Alongside the rice is a grilled river prawn as big as a small lobster, covered in a spicy, creamy tom yum sauce and bits of crunchy fried egg. The dish alone is reason enough to book a ticket to Bangkok. Le Du was named the top restaurant on the World’s 50 Best Asia list.
399/3 Silom 7 Alley, Silom, Bang Rak, Bangkok 10500, +66 92 919 9969
399/3 Silom 7 Alley, Silom, Bang Rak, Bangkok 10500, +66 92 919 9969
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(Jenn Harris / Los Angeles Times)
Nusara
Thai $$$
Thitid “Ton” Tassanakajohn named Nusara for his grandmother, who often cooked for him as a child and helped him fall in love with food. The tasting menu restaurant was named third on this year’s World’s 50 Best Asia list. It’s a restaurant that celebrates the chef’s innovative and sometimes radical approach to Thai food and ingredients. A recent menu included a sapid blue swimming crab curry served over a crisp betel leaf with horseshoe crab roe. A lump of paddy field crab roe was so wonderfully pungent that it made my nose tingle. A refreshing two-bite salad featured a sliver of local squid draped over raw cucumber and tomato. Each dish was unlike anything you’ll find in your neighborhood Thai restaurant.
336 Maha Rat Road, Phra Borom Maha Ratchawang, Khet Phra Nakhon, Bangkok 10200, +66 97 293 5549
336 Maha Rat Road, Phra Borom Maha Ratchawang, Khet Phra Nakhon, Bangkok 10200, +66 97 293 5549
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(Jenn Harris / Los Angeles Times)
Rod Dee Det
Thai $
A recommendation from Sarantip “Jazz” Singsanong of Jitlada restaurant in Los Angeles, this small roadside spot is known for its boat noodle soup. Giant vats of broth bubble away behind the counter in the main dining room. If you’re looking for air conditioning, ask to be seated in the side room, where a small unit is working extra hard to keep the cool air flowing. The beef noodle soup is a bowl of rich, meaty broth crowded with beef balls, strips of tender beef, bean sprouts, green onion and your choice of noodles. The vermicelli are gossamer strands that seem to soak up the broth as you sip your way through it. The soup will be as hot as the r temperature outside, but immensely comforting. Order a plate of grilled pork satay with peanut sauce to eat while you wait for your soup.
420 Siam Square Soi 7, Bangkok 10330 +66 2 252 7524
420 Siam Square Soi 7, Bangkok 10330 +66 2 252 7524
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(Cody Long / Los Angeles Times)
Som Tam Jay So
Thai $
People line up at all hours for this stand’s papaya salad and grilled chicken wings. A woman behind a small cart pounds papaya, chiles, garlic, tomato and carrot in a giant mortar with a pestle as long as her arm. She garnishes each salad with a strip of sweet corn and a handful of crunchy peanuts before working on the next batch. The salad is tart with fresh lime juice and drenched in the fish sauce dressing. The chicken wings, grilled dozens at a time on a giant open flame, are smoky, juicy and perfectly charred. Off to the side of the small dining area is a self-serve station where you can scoop more sticky rice into straw baskets and help yourself to a large pot of chile sauce. That sauce is your friend, each spoonful adding a sweet, hot tamarind kick to the chicken. Members of my party may have gotten up a dozen times for refills throughout lunch.
Phiphat 2, Silom, Bang Rak, 10500, Thailand, +66 85 999 4225
Phiphat 2, Silom, Bang Rak, 10500, Thailand, +66 85 999 4225
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(Jenn Harris / Los Angeles Times)
The Standard Bangkok
Thai Cocktails Chinese $$
The Standard hotel in Bangkok is a luxurious, five-star hotel with multiple restaurants and the highest rooftop bar in the city. The breakfast included with your stay is offered as a made-to-order buffet, with a mix of Western and Thai small plates. Order as much as you like from the list of offerings. There are fried eggs and sausage if you want them. And they’re very good. But the pork sate skewers with sticky rice, the chicken congee with threads of ginger and the prawn wontons with crispy garlic are the standouts. The craft cocktails served at the multiple bars on the property make use of the region’s bounty of tropical fruits, with mango, passionfruit and pineapple making frequent appearances on the menus. And no matter what you’re sipping, the view from the Sky Beach cocktail bar will take your breath away, with 360-degree views of the city.
114 Naradhiwas Rajanagarindra Road, Silom, Bang Rak, Bangkok 10500, +66 2 085 8888
114 Naradhiwas Rajanagarindra Road, Silom, Bang Rak, Bangkok 10500, +66 2 085 8888
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