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Top 10 Thai Food

The winners

Thailand’s food needs little introduction. From San Francisco to Sukhothai, its profusion of exotic flavours and fragrances make it among the most coveted of international cuisines. As a walk through Bangkok forcefully reminds, these flavours and fragrances are seemingly inexhaustible. However, whether it be juicy pieces of grilled pork on a stick or a fiery bowl of ‘Tom Yum’ soup, we all have to start somewhere. And what better place than our carefully selected Top 10 of Thai Food, which spans everything from staple backpacker favourites to Thai classics. Once you’ve tried them all, please vote for the one that really thrilled your taste buds...

1

Tom Yum Goong (Spicy Shrimp Soup)

The quintessential Thai aroma! A bold, refreshing blend of fragrant lemongrass, chilli, galangal, lime leaves, shallots, lime juice and fish sauce shapes this classic soup, giving it its legendary herbal kick. Succulent fresh prawns and straw mushrooms lend it body. A versatile dish that can fit within virtually any meal, the distinctive smell reminds you of exotic perfume, while it's invigorating sour-spicy-hot taste just screams 'Thailand'!

2

Pad Thai (Thai style Fried Noodles)

From Cape Town to Khao San Road, the default international Thai dish! Dropped in a searing hot wok, fistfuls of small, thin or wide noodles (you choose) do a steamy minute-long dance alongside crunchy beansprouts, onion and egg, before disembarking for the nearest plate. A truly interactive eating experience, half its fun (and flavour) lies in then using a quartet of accompanying condiments - fish sauce, sugar, chilli powder and finely ground peanuts - to wake it from its slumbers.

3

Gaeng Daeng (Red Curry)

Made with morsels of meat, red curry paste, smooth coconut milk and topped off with a sprinkling of finely sliced kaffir lime leaves, this rich, aromatic curry always gets those taste buds tingling. At its best when the meat is stunningly tender, it could be likened to a beautiful woman: it's mild, sweet and delicately fragrant. And like all true love affairs, absence makes the heart grow fonder.

4

Kai Med Ma Muang (Chicken with Cashew Nuts)

Pardon the pun, but tourists go nuts for this stir fried dish. Perhaps it's the wildly contrasting textures of a dish that saut's chicken alongside roasted cashews, sweet soy sauce, onions, chilies, pepper, carrot and mushrooms. Perhaps it's the sweetening dash of honey that appeals. Do you really care? The important thing is that this dish works: it's simple but scrumptious, a little bit tame and yet still totally Thai.

5

Som Tum (Spicy Green Papaya Salad)

Hailing from the Northeast state of Isaan, this outlandish dish is both great divider - some can't get enough of its bite, some can't handle it - and greatly distinctive. Garlic, chilies, green beans, cherry tomatoes and shredded raw papaya get dramatically pulverized in a pestle and mortar, so releasing a rounded sweet-sour-spicy flavour that's not easily forgotten. Regional variations throw peanuts, dry shrimp or salted crab into the mix, the latter having a gut-cleansing talent that catches many newcomers by surprise!

6

Khao Pad (Fried Rice)

Fried rice, egg, onion, a few herbs - nothing more, nothing less. A popular lunch dish served typically with a wedge of lime and slices of cucumber, the secret of this unpretentious dish lies in its simplicity. The concept is this: you're the one devouring it, so you dress it. To do so, Thais use everything from prawns, crab or chicken to basil, chili and left-over vegetables, in the process turning an unremarkable pauper into a gastronomic prince!

7

Tom Kha Kai (Chicken in Coconut Soup)

A mild, tamer twist on Tom Yum, this iconic soup infuses fiery chilies, thinly sliced young galangal, crushed shallots, stalks of lemongrass and tender strips of chicken. However unlike its more watery cousin, lashings of coconut milk soften its spicy blow. Topped off with fresh lime leaves, it's a sweet-smelling concoction, both creamy and compelling.

8

Pak Boong (Morning Glory)

Found all across South-East Asia, the leafy plant with hollow green stems and thin fragile leaves forms the main component of this super easy favourite. Cloves of garlic and birds eye chilies join it in a wok alongside oyster sauce, fish sauce and black fermented bean. A few lazy stirs, until the leaves are shrunk and soft, and it's done! The result is an alluring favourite with an unobtrusive flavour, a staple for those who love their Thai food but not spice induced sweats.

9

Gaeng Keow Wan Kai (Green Chicken Curry)

Morsels of fresh chicken. Cherry-sized eggplants. Tender bamboo shoots. Sprigs of Coriander. Generous handfuls of sweet basil. These humble elements form the body of this seminal curry. But how does it get so gloriously green you ask? Oh, that'll be the spoons of green curry paste that's stirred furiously into hot creamy coconut milk. Sounds unexciting? Sure, but it's not. Served alongside a bowl of fragrant Thai rice, Gaeng Keow Kan Gai is the extreme opposite.

10

Yam Nua (Spicy Beef Salad)

If there was such a thing as a 'Salad Hall of Fame', Thailand's zesty own breed, or 'yam' as they are known here, would surely take pride of place. Unconvinced? Experience the fresh, fiery thrill of yam nua - with its sprightly mix of onion, coriander, spearmint, lime, dried chili and tender strips of beef - and you won't be. It perfectly embodies the invigorating in-the-mouth-thrill of all Thai salads, the yummy-ness of yam.

Top 10's of Everything in Bangkok

This Top 10 section compiles countdowns of Bangkok's very finest ingredients: among them, the finest luxury, budget and Skytrain-friendly hotels, the locales that inspire the wildest of romances, the malls and markets that most resemble shopping heaven, and the most happening nights out among the city's hedonists. Read more...

some recommended famous restaurants:

1. The basic rule in Bangkok is that there are fake everything and buyers beware.
2. Never ever trust your taxi driver to bring you to the place you want to go for FOOD, SHOPPING, or ANYTHING RELATED TO AN EXPENDITURE (MASSAGE, RESTAURANTS, etc). This is inspite of giving them specific directions written in Thai.
3. The problem is, for every famous place, there is an imitation (eg the famous Somboon Restaurant versus the fake Somboondee Restuarant). All taxi drivers will automatically bring you to the fake places period (regardless of instructions in Thai / English, etc).
4. All fake places charge at least 5x - 10x the price of the original places.
5. I had a simple seafood dinner consisting of 800grams crab, 900gram Fish/Seabass, a fried rice and a plate of vegetables (Kangkong / Morning Glory). The cost came out to a shocking 7,000 bahts. The correct price should probably be only about 1,000 bahts in Bangkok.
6. Even the restaurant owners will lie to you upon being confronted. They will lie about the road / location they are on, the name of the restaurant, etc.

SOMBOON SEAFOOD
thai chinese seafood

There are quite a few branches of Somboon at various locations around Bangkok. This one at 711 Banthat Thong Road is off the beaten track for most Bangkok visitors.
This particular branch is huge and it is my guess that it would have the capacity to accommodate 1500+ covers.

When I paid my respects to the kitchen staff before dining, it suddenly homed in once again just what a hard job it is being a chef in Bangkok.

There was long line of wok chefs sweating over turbo woks, cooking all manner of things. The wok master Chang told me they work for 10 hours a day and in such an inferno of an environment, I don’t think I would last much more than a week.

The menu features more than 100 dishes, and we chose the following:

2 x deep fried prawn rolls - 300 baht
Jelly fish salad (one of Somboon’s signature dishes) - 150 baht
Soft shell curried crab (another signature dish) - 325 baht
Peking duck - 800 baht
Prawns with seasonal vegetables - 325 baht
2 x serves of jasmine rice - 120 baht
1 x pot of Oolong tea - 90 baht
2 x green teas - 120 baht
2 x large Heinekens - 220 baht
1 x gin & tonic - 95 baht
2 x plates of peeled season fruits - 160 baht

The prawn rolls were gorgeous, deep fried to perfection and accompanied by a piquant sauce made up of sweet chili, dark soy sauce, fish sauce and sesame paste.

The jellyfish salad was something of a disappointment, represented by slivers of the stingers, wok fried momentarily and sitting on a pile of fresh leaves, cellophane noodles and covered in a seafood sauce.

By contrast the soft shell curried crab was outstanding, with the creature being presented on an oval dish, cut into portions and mixed with additional crab meat and swimming in a luscious and tangy curry sauce.

The Peking Duck was not as good as I’m used to getting here in Melbourne. I think this has something to do with the species of duck being used, with it being rather bony and somewhat stringy.

But the skin was nice and brown and shiny and the pancakes and accompaniments of scallions and celery stick with the hoi sin dressing were nice.

The prawns dish was a good example of the plump prawn syndrome. When I tackled the wok master later about this practice, he shrugged his shoulders and said “we all do it, it is the way diners like it!”

Well I don’t like this under handed practice and it about time it was stamped out.

The dish was just OK, with a light sauce of soy, sesame oil and a dash of master stock.

The jasmine rice was - well just steamed rice, the oolong tea pot was regularly filled up and the other drinks were served nice and cold and were consequently refreshing.

Overall, Somboon is an amazing restaurant, offering a huge menu, in an equally huge dining area. A couple could dine here for around 800 baht or so, but our little feast cost the following:
2380 baht.

It was quite a nice meal in a cavernous setting, but for that price we could have feasted on the magnificent buffet at the Sheraton Grande Sukhumvit.

But as I said, you can eat at the Somboon restaurants a lot more cheaply than we did by choosing prudently and not ordering so much food.

SUMMARY: Food, 7/10; value for money 5/10; hygiene 7/10; service 6/10; ambience 3/10. Score: 28/50.

VERDICT: Somboon is good for Hong Kong style seafood and other Chinese dishes. It also has a large selection of Thai dishes. It is big, bright and noisy.

Theme: Seafood

Address: 169/7-11 Surawong Rd (3 other branches)

Directions: Opposite Peugeot Showroom

Website: http://somboonseafood.velocall.com/