Food your experience

[seme]

Post here your experience about Thai food, place like restaurant or market.

What about breakfast in the morning, lunch,dinner.

What is about food, good food, bad food, what try and what absolutely no try?

[DocBenway]

I love Thai food. I have never been yet, but looking forward to it. I am almost as much looking forward to the food. Street food, restaurant food, whatever. I'm the kind of guy that when I go to a Foreign country, I want to immerse into the local culture. So how is the street food? Is it like Mexico where us Gringos have to make sure they are using purified water, or avoid street food because of the water?

[Dr. Cop]

I'm here now and have been eating the street food for several weeks with no problem. I would get bottled water or eat food that is throughly cooked ....Good Luck !!

[pubstud]

I love Thai food. I have never been yet, but looking forward to it. I am almost as much looking forward to the food. Street food, restaurant food, whatever. I'm the kind of guy that when I go to a Foreign country, I want to immerse into the local culture. So how is the street food? Is it like Mexico where us Gringos have to make sure they are using purified water, or avoid street food because of the water?

 

Can be that way for some, depends on your own constitution. Some tourists have no problems at all with Thai street food, others get ill fast. Tap water is considered a no-no, seems everybody drinks bottled water. As for street food I guess it's just a matter of give it a try. I think everybody has some degree of intestinal upset at first in SE Asia and then they build up resistances.

[cc2709]

In over 10 years of extensive SEA and India travel, only 1 issue ever (minor bout of the runs due to a bit of ecoli on some unproperly washed greens in Malaysia), far better then my record in the US. The key is to use common sense, for example if they are cooking chicken (which btw is outstanding from a street vendor), do they store the raw chicken on ice/refrig or is it out in the open, and if so how does the area smell, any question move 10 feet down the street to the next vendor.

 

Also, and a lot of people ask this, while you should not drink tap water, ice is fine, it comes from factories where it has been purified prior to freezing.

[THAJEC]

I love thai food too. I had never problem yet. I ate almost everything. Of course I drink water in bottle.

[flippy]

I love Thai food. I have never been yet, but looking forward to it. I am almost as much looking forward to the food. Street food, restaurant food, whatever. I'm the kind of guy that when I go to a Foreign country, I want to immerse into the local culture. So how is the street food? Is it like Mexico where us Gringos have to make sure they are using purified water, or avoid street food because of the water?

 

I've been sick quite a few times from the food in Thailand, but as far as I know, allways from restaurants. With street food, everything is out in the open, you can see what they're doing, if you don't like it walk away..

 

In the restaurant the kitchen is out of sight so if they have a poor standard of hygiene, you can't see it. I find the sense of hygiene in Thailand isn't bad by Asian standards, but it's pretty poor compared to the strictly regulated standards of my own country, so use common sense and never eat food that doesn't look/smells right and/or tastes funky. Better risk leaving a meal, than puking your guts out for 12 hours..

 

I find Pattaya food pretty good in general, but I think many people get sick there, because they are not used to the local bacteria and on top of that they weaken their immune system by too much drinking, irregular lifestyle and lack of sleep..

Edited August 12, 2011 by flippy

[pubstud]

Thai food - along with other SE Asian cuisine - has a reputation for being very healthy: lots of fresh vegetables, usually steamed, boiled or stir fried, fresh seafood, small quantities of meat, and lots of fresh fruit. However, there are some unhealthy aspects of Thai food too that are worth being aware of. Here are just a few things to consider:

 

Coconut cream: lovely tasting stuff that makes sweet desserts and creamy curries but also one of the highest sources of cholesterol and very fattening. Used in huge quantities in most Thai curries and virtually all Thai sweets, desserts, rice-cakes.

 

Eggs: Used in so many dishes in Thai cooking. Most tourists will eat a western breakfast at their hotel, bacon, toast, 2 eggs. Have fried rice for lunch and get another egg, have a pat thai for lunch or in the evening and get another egg. Have some tasty Thai cakes/desserts in the evening and get another couple of eggs. So it's very easy to eat 4 or 5 eggs a day in Thailand. Not good if you're over 40 and have high cholesterol.

 

MSG: Used in many Thai dishes to enhance the flavors. Some people are allergic to it; many consider it to be an unhealthy additive.

 

Deep Fried Chicken and Sweet Potato from street stalls: Deep fried food is considered unhealthy at the best of times but Thais buy drums of used cooking oil from the backdoor of super stores like Big C and Tescos and use that in the street stalls. The Thai Health Department has placed posters around warning Thai vendors not to use this spent oil as it's carcinogenic but many still do so to cut down on their expenses.

[slipperysam]

Stay away from the Som Tum even Thais get sick from that sometimes!

Edited August 13, 2011 by slipperysam

[pubstud]

Stay away from the Som Tum even Thais get sick from that sometimes!

 

Som Tum Thai seems to be OK but Som Tun Lao/Isarn with pla rah in it is vile shit IMO. Yes, makes Thais sick too, it's almost part of the ritual, I seen my GFs do it tons of times, sit there eating Som Tum Lao and then 10 minutes later racing into the toilet for a bout of diarrhea.

 

Another thing to be aware of are the Isarn BBQ and sausages - lots of fat and fatty meat. Yes, I know it's about economics, they're poor and have to eat what they can, but farang should be aware if they're eating this type of food that they are consuming way too much artery clogging fat.

[999Baht]

Food is all part of the experience of being in Thailand.

THe street food is amazing to try...pick a busy place and it will be really fresh!

 

Where else can you get a Pad Thai Noodles whipped up for you in under 5 mins at a cost of around 60 Baht but in the street.

 

Damn I miss the taste of authentic Thai food.

Somehow the Thai restaurants in Australia can not even get close to the tastes you experience in Thailand.

[pubstud]

Food is all part of the experience of being in Thailand.

THe street food is amazing to try...pick a busy place and it will be really fresh!

 

Where else can you get a Pad Thai Noodles whipped up for you in under 5 mins at a cost of around 60 Baht but in the street.

 

Damn I miss the taste of authentic Thai food.

Somehow the Thai restaurants in Australia can not even get close to the tastes you experience in Thailand.

 

So true, there's a Thai restaurant around the corner from where I stay in Perth and what they serve is unlike anything I've ever had anywhere in Thailand, their food's OK but it's just so different.

 

I also find Thai street food good, however I must confess to having a preference for Malaysian street food, that hawker food found in Penang is really great stuff. Used to get amazing street food in S'Pore too but I'm not sure how much is left these days.

[themosch]

Best Thai food in Pattaya is on the parking lot of Alcazar cabaret next to sabai resort !

[seme]

Did u share with us the price of breakfast, lunch, dinner, min average and max? Thanks

[DocBenway]

Food is all part of the experience of being in Thailand.

THe street food is amazing to try...pick a busy place and it will be really fresh!

 

Now that sounds like some common sense good advice. Thanks.

[lespaul5000]

i'm addicted to Pad Thai...great little vendor in front of 7-11 on soi Buakhao just past soi Chaiyapoom if memory serves me

[16cashluc]

street food is very good for me=only 50baht

the water is free and marvelous

the buffet s are very big,so much as you want ,and very fine

very cheap ( you find several for +/-250 baht)

[grafboy]

Chicken with Holy Basil is my personal favourite, and whenever we visit Thailand I make a point of eating 80% of my meals from the street vendors.... I've eaten from the street thoughout Asia and luckily I have never been ill. The same cannot be said for Greece, Tenerife etc where I've had terrible food poisoning! If you are ever in Bangkok head over to Soi 38 for some cheap and delicious street food.

[karlstegger]

I'm as addicted to Thai food as I am to Thai girls ;) I simply love it! Like other BM mention, the street food is normally very good - and cheap of course. I have never been sick from eating it.

 

If anyone like the local noodle soup (kood diaw moo) for breakfast/lunch I can recommend a small restaurant on 2nd road. If you walk out from hotel Welcome Plaza, turn left and walk about 200 meters iirc. Sadly I can't recall the name of the restaurant but there will likely be many farang as well as they serve farang breakfast. They have some very good thai food in there - I'll get back when I figure out the name.

 

As good as the food in the numerous restaurants can be it will never compare to the "real" thai food you can get when eating with the locals. Anyone ever tried the "Pad mii korat" for instance (very spicy)? Or "Naam phrik moo"? Now THAT is fantastic and authentic thai food.

[Massive1990]

Eggs: Used in so many dishes in Thai cooking. Most tourists will eat a western breakfast at their hotel, bacon, toast, 2 eggs. Have fried rice for lunch and get another egg, have a pat thai for lunch or in the evening and get another egg. Have some tasty Thai cakes/desserts in the evening and get another couple of eggs. So it's very easy to eat 4 or 5 eggs a day in Thailand. Not good if you're over 40 and have high cholesterol.

 

That's nonsense! Dietary cholesterol in eggs does not raise blood cholesterol ;)

 

Eat as many as you want (within reason!)

 

Coconut cream: lovely tasting stuff that makes sweet desserts and creamy curries but also one of the highest sources of cholesterol and very fattening. Used in huge quantities in most Thai curries and virtually all Thai sweets, desserts, rice-cakes.

 

Also nonsense, perfectly good fat source. Calorific yes but not unhealthy. ;)

Edited September 1, 2011 by Massive1990

[raymie]

Most of the food i have tried is delicous from the hotel breakfasts to the street vendors. Here is a link for you on Pattaya food.

http://www.gothailand.com/pattaya/dining.htm

[bakh]

The best types of food in thailand are pancakes and fresh fruits. Pancake are very tasty and hot. Mmmm...