A Self-Guided Food Tour of Bangkok’s Chinatown

Since Bangkok’s food scene doesn’t quit, neither do these food posts…

I had never visited Bangkok’s Chinatown before now, and I just knew I had to go there for one purpose:  to eat. I’d heard the food there is so plentiful that all it takes is a wander down Yaowarat Road, the neighborhood’s main thoroughfare, to get your fill.

Even better, I had my new Chinese friend, Miranda, with me to explain lots of Chinese customs, foods, teas, and even medicines that we saw in Chinatown, which made this experience more rewarding… rather than it being a free-for-all eating binge as it would’ve been if I were alone.

We met at the nearest MRT station, Hua Lamphong, and made our way to Yaowarat to begin eating a little after noon. In hindsight, you should definitely start later, as a lot of the street food stalls and restaurants don’t come alive until the evening. Still, there was plenty to sample. And you’ll certainly know when you reach Chinatown!

Everybody in Chinatown was gearing up for Chinese New Year, with chestnuts roasting on the sidewalk, decorations, and colorful cards ready to be filled with money for sale on the street. People were even going crazy over the traditional little Chinese outfits for babies, at which Miranda commented, “We do not use those…”

The streets were full of traffic and the sidewalks were full of people, so everything moved a little bit slow. I was pretty hungry at this point, so I grabbed a barbecue pork bun off the street. Miranda was not as interested because she has them all the time at the canteen at her school in Hong Kong.

We continued to make our way down the street, until Miranda paused for a flower tea that is supposed to help cool the body down. I’m not sure how well it worked, but it was incredibly hot outside.

Finally we ventured down a side street where everybody and their mom appeared to have set up shop. I love this type of chaotic atmosphere.

We took a left at the seafood lady to find all of this…

We tried out some shrimp siu mai. (“They aren’t dumplings, Rachel!”) They were green and filled with bits of shrimp, tossed in a bag, and doused with some kind of sauce.

We took a walk through a wholesale market, which just so happened to be air conditioned. And although it seemed that you couldn’t just buy one of anything, you could try on wigs. (Let’s just say I’m not prepared to go brunette just yet – it’s really not a good look for me.)

You can buy just about anything in Chinatown, but isn’t that the idea of any Chinatown in the world, really? Raccoon tails, anyone?

For our next dish, we had some chicken rice (my second serving in 72 hours). It’s so simple, but so good.

Then we took another wander down the crowded streets, taking in all the sights and smells… mainly of food obviously. Miranda even asked the lady selling tea if we could smell some of the different types of leaves.

It’s just so hard not to eat everything when there’s roast duck and freshly cooked food literally everywhere you turn!

We crossed to the other side of Yaowarat to find a hidden food market where tons of locals were shopping for groceries or picking up a quick meal or snack. Some things looked more appetizing than others.

Neither of us knew what these gelatinous things were, but for 6 baht a piece (17 cents), we were wiling to try them out. All the vendors could tell us was that the green ones were filled with “vegetables.” This one was a miss and neither of us could finish one.

There was tons of fresh seafood, including a few things I was wary of…

Miranda looked up the English word for these things, but I still didn’t recognize them. Any hints are greatly appreciated!

The market even had hundred year eggs for sale. It was really fun seeing all of this stuff that was so familiar to her yet so foreign to me, and to hear her explanations and stories surrounding them. The guy selling these eggs said that they actually go really well with beers. And that’s good, because I’d probably need a few beers before eating one.

And did you think we could leave Chinatown without trying the infamous bird’s nest soup? (I knew I had to after reading Anna’s take on it.) Since it’s rather expensive, we ordered some of the cheapest variety which cost 100 baht ($2.81 USD, I know, we’re such big spenders). And since it was so hot, we got ours chilled. It’s served in a coconut and they give you honey to flavor it with.

While the soup itself is quite flavorless, the texture was interesting, like soft strands of jelly… as one might expect from bird spit. I kind of liked it, and this dish did actually help cool us down.

After all our hard work, we opted for some mandatory foot massages, even though I’d promised myself I wouldn’t get yet another one. Miranda had a dinner planned with a Thai girl she’d met on Couchsurfing (so outgoing!), but I had other plans…

At 4:30 PM, two competitive, rather famous seafood restaurants open up and start serving amazing fresh food that’s grilled or cooked right outside: R&L Seafood where the employees were red shirts and T&K Seafood where they wear green shirts. I opted for T&K Seafood, though that’s only because it was nearly across the street from where I got my massage.

And actually, arriving early insured that I got a seat at this popular establishment. By the time I was finishing my meal, the place was practically full.

And I knew what I wanted before I even arrived…

Grilled giant prawns. These were fantastic, almost sweet, and the head might have been the best part. Wanna see them from the other side, cause they’re so beautiful?

And curried crab, which contained lots of baby garlic cloves and more fresh crab meat than one person should be allowed to eat on their own ever. No seriously, this is by far the most crab I’ve ever eaten in one sitting.

I regret nothing.

After this ridiculously gluttonous day, I made myself walk home to my hostel thirty minutes away. Chinatown is definitely worth a half-day of exploring, and you can easily go and just run into things that look delicious and try them. My only suggestion would be to head there later in the afternoon or even at night when more of the food stalls will be set up and all of restaurants are open. Happy hunting!

Anybody else been to Bangkok’s Chinatown for an all out eating fest?