Eating in Bangkok

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Bangkok not only has plenty of Thai restaurants, but a wide-selection of world-class international cuisine too. Prices are generally high by Thai standards, but cheap by international standards; a good meal is unlikely to cost more than 300 baht, although there are a few restaurants (primarily in hotels) where you can easily spend 10 times this. Of course, for those on a budget street stalls abound with noodle & meals at around 30 baht. Try:

• Phad Thai and curry at shops everywhere.
• Tom Yum Goong, you must try one of Thailand's most famous soupS.
• Street vendors selling satay with hot sauce (for 5-10 baht a piece).
• Finding a kanom roti street vendor is a must if you like sweets. The crepe-like dessert is filled with sweetened condensed milk, lots of sugar, and can also have bananas inside. Also fascinating to watch them being made.
• Bugs - yes, insects. They are deep fried, nutritious and quite tasty with the soy sauce that is sprayed on them. Types available: scorpions, water beetles, grasshoppers, crickets, bamboo larvae, mealworms, and some more seasonal specialties. Note: break off the legs from grasshoppers and crickets or they will get stuck in your throat.
• Chinatown has a range of street stalls and cheap restaurants selling food (try 1kg of huge barbecued prawns or tom yam with prawns for 300 baht) to the discerning local population.
• All the Thai restaurant chains covered in the main Thailand article.
• Restaurants featuring cuisine from all over the world on Sukhumvit Road and Khao San Road.

Vegetarian/Vegan In the more tourist-friendly parts of town (MBK, Khao San Road, Siam Paragon, Siam Square etc.), there are a few vegetarian restaurants or food court stalls, and vegetarian options are readily available on menus and in shops. Typical street restaurants will also easily cook a vegetarian equivalent of popular Thai dishes for you. Ask for "jay" food to leave the meat out of the dish. For example, "khao pad" is fried rice and "khao pad jay" is vegetarian fried rice. For vegans, the most common animal product used would be oyster sauce, and to avoid it, say "Mai Ou Naam Mon Hoi". Be aware that all street noodle vendors use animal broth for the noodle soup.