Bangkok street food: the best neighbourhoods to eat in
Bangkok street food is not evenly spread. Some districts have a stall on every corner and some have none, and the best eating happens where old markets, office crowds and late-night traffic overlap. This is a guide to the neighbourhoods where the street food is worth planning a day around, with the dishes to look for in each.
Yaowarat (Chinatown)
Yaowarat is the obvious starting point and still the best. The Chinese-Thai cooking here has had a century to settle: kuay jab (rolled rice noodles in peppery broth), stewed goose, oyster omelettes, grilled seafood, bird's nest and chestnut vendors on the pavement. Daytime is for the market lanes off Yaowarat Road; after dark the main road itself becomes the dining room. Wat Mangkon MRT is the stop. Read the Chinatown guide for a walking route.
Bang Rak and Charoen Krung
Between Silom and the river, Bang Rak is an old market district where the stalls serve the office crowd. The roast duck and congee shops along Charoen Krung have long histories, Bang Rak market itself is good for fruit and snacks, and the lanes towards the river hold the kind of noodle shops that have been in the same family for generations. Saphan Taksin BTS is the nearest station. The Charoen Krung guide has more.
The old town: Maha Chai Road and Nang Loeng
The Rattanakosin side of the city is where Bangkok's most famous individual stalls are. Maha Chai Road near the Golden Mount has the pad thai and crab omelette places that made street food an international story. Further north, Nang Loeng market is a century-old food market with Thai sweets and lunch counters that few visitors reach. The old town guide sets out the walk.
Victory Monument: boat noodles
The alley beside the Saen Saep canal at Victory Monument is lined with boat-noodle shops: small bowls of dark, rich pork or beef broth, meant to be ordered by the stack. It is the quickest street-food fix on the BTS, one stop from Phaya Thai. See the Victory Monument guide.
Sam Yan: Banthat Thong Road
South of Siam, Banthat Thong Road has become the city's busiest evening food street, feeding Chulalongkorn students and everyone else: grilled pork skewers, seafood, dessert stalls and shophouse restaurants with queues down the pavement. It runs late and is at its best after dark. The Sam Yan guide covers it.
Thonburi: Wang Lang
Across the river from the Grand Palace, Wang Lang market feeds the staff of Siriraj Hospital and does it well: southern Thai curries, grilled chicken, fried snacks and desserts in a tight maze of lanes. Take the cross-river ferry from Tha Chang or Tha Phra Chan. The Thonburi riverside guide has the piers.
Ari
For a quieter version, Ari has stalls along its main soi and the side lanes: noodle carts in the morning, grilled pork and som tam (papaya salad) at lunch, and a few famous dessert stands. It is an easy stop from Ari BTS and pairs with the area's cafes. See the Ari guide.
Getting there
- Yaowarat: Wat Mangkon MRT.
- Bang Rak: Saphan Taksin BTS or Sathorn pier.
- Maha Chai Road and Nang Loeng: Sam Yot MRT, then walk or taxi.
- Victory Monument: Victory Monument BTS.
- Banthat Thong: Sam Yan MRT or National Stadium BTS.
- Wang Lang: ferry from Tha Chang pier.
- Ari: Ari BTS.
Stalls keep their own schedules, and the best ones sell out. Morning stalls are gone by noon; evening streets fill after six. Pay in cash, and look for the stall with the longest Thai queue.