John Mariani
I find it laughable that of the ten Michelin star-rated restaurants in Bangkok, four are French, one Italian, one Indian, one Danish, and so it goes. (The Thai government is said to have paid a great deal of money for Michelin to do a guide.) No traveler to Bangkok should even consider straying from the path of finding great Thai food everywhere. On a recent foray into the city’s food culture I don’t think I ever had more exciting and delicious food, meal after meal, day after day.
I discovered that all Thai food is not blistering hot; instead the heat and taste of the chilies are but two aspects of the blend of seasonings that are never meant to overpower the flavor of the fish, meat or vegetables they enhance.
SIRIWAN HOI TOD
120 Prachathipatai Road.
02-282-9651
John Mariani
A storefront eatery it may be, with several branches, but here is where you’ll find some of the best traditional Thai food, lovingly prepared and served by owner Khun Ludda, Siriwan Hoi Tod, who opens her restaurant at ten in the morning and shutters it at seven PM.
There are plastic stools and shiny bare tables, and the room is suffused with aromas that make the appetite race. The menu focuses on street food, and the staff prides itself on cleanliness and hygiene--not a given in many other places. I just asked the owner to keep sending out dishes till we said stop, beginning with a spicy papaya salad, followed by the noodle dish pad thai, which, despite what some ignorant western authors contend is not really Thai, I found was a true and ubiquitous classic in Bangkok. This one was definitely the best I’ve had, where every ingredient from the noodles to the herbs and the shrimp revealed layers of taste.
John Mariani
There was a juicy pork satay with a velvety peanut sauce; mussel fritters were addictive and spring rolls were packed with pork and taro. Then came a seafood omelet with rice and holy basil, and steamed fish with crispy fried garlic.
What most impressed me beyond the levels of flavor and heat was that unlike Thai restaurants in America where so many dishes simply serve meat or seafood in the same six sauces, each dish at Siriwan Hoi Tod was wholly different from the next, in texture, aroma, complexity and style—fried, steamed, wok-seared, and steamed, all for just minutes.
SANEH JAAN
130-132 Wireless Road
02-650-9880.
John Mariani
The explosion of new office buildings anchored by restaurants has afforded the year-old Saneh Jaan prime real estate in the beautiful Glasshouse near the U.S. Embassy. The dining room is sleek, sophisticated, done in soft earth colors, with widely separated tables and very comfortable banquettes. The walls are hung with photos of Bangkok. Nothing seems corporate about it.
Saneh Jaan serves the traditional food of Central Asia as it was fifty years ago, with no extremes of flavor. Yet the flavors were myriad in a wide array of dishes I enjoyed that included fried fish balls with sweet and sour sauce; a quickly sautéed fish cake called pla krai; an egg roll stuffed with minced pork and spices; a massaman-style curry; a curried fish mousse, and a shrimp and crispy pork rind omelet. I was delighted to find a dish so often made outside of Thailand as a treacly sweet mess—mee krob—here to be rendered with subtlety and real crunch.
John Mariani
Even the desserts were way beyond the ordinary, from sweet sticky rice to and an egg custard with coconut milk. Of particular interest is the restaurants first-rate wine and spirits list, including a wide range of single malt Scotches.
The best way to appreciate dinner here is with the 8-course menu at US$50; à la carte, main courses run between US$13 and US$15.
LE DU
399/3 Silom 7 Alley
92-919-9969
John Mariani
The word le du means “season,” the driving force for the Chef Thitid Tassanakajohn (known as Chef Ton), so his set four-course menu (US$54) and six-course menu (US$95) are always changing, depending on the day’s market.
The room itself, with an open kitchen, is modest and not easy to find, but every taxi driver knows Le Du, which has won its share of international awards.
Chef Ton actually graduated—first in his class--from the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, NY, then worked at Eleven Madison Park, The Modern and Jean Georges; along the way he received the Certified Sommelier recognition from Court of Master Sommelier.
John Mariani
There is a great deal of innovation and presentation in Ton’s cooking, every dish showing precision of technique and vivid color, from cold appetizers like khoa-chae shrimp, and tender pork balls with radish, salted fish and jasmine ice cream, to blue swimming crab cooked in prawn fat and coconut milk. Sustainable fish is used and Ton adds pungent durian curry and pickled vegetables to one species or another. Short rib of beef comes with egg noodle, cabbage and a Northern curry called khao soi, and he puts banana blossom together with egg, curry and river prawn. You may get a tot of tomato water with cream and yogurt or a cup of pineapple jelly with peanuts.
The desserts are lovely and very refreshing, like mango panna cotta with smoked coconut ice cream.
Le Du is well known for all the right reasons, not least by showing Bangkok cuisine is as modern as anywhere else in Asia, buoyed by a good culinary education back in the States.
Should you tip in Bangkok restaurants? Most restaurants include a service charge in the bill; otherwise
Gourmands who believe Thai food is all spicy and very, very hot will be happy to learn otherwise in Bangkok. From street food to upscale dining, balance and flavor are key to classic cuisine there.
John Mariani I find it laughable that of the ten Michelin star-rated restaurants in Bangkok four are French one Italian one Indian one Danish and so it goes The Thai government is said to have paid a great deal of money for Michelin to do a guide No traveler to Bangkok should even consider straying from the path of finding great Thai food everywhere On a recent foray into the city’s food culture I don’t think I ever had more exciting and delicious food meal after meal day after day I discovered that all Thai food is not blistering hot instead the heat and taste of the chilies are but two aspects of the blend of seasonings that are never meant to overpower the flavor of the fish meat or vegetables they enhance SIRIWAN HOI TOD 120 Prachathipatai Road 02-282-9651 John Mariani A storefront eatery it may be with several branches but here is where you’ll find some of the best traditional Thai food lovingly prepared and served by owner Khun Ludda Siriwan Hoi Tod who opens her restaurant at ten in the morning and shutters it at seven PM. There are plastic stools and shiny bare tables and the room is suffused with aromas that make the appetite race The menu focuses on street food and the staff prides itself on cleanliness and hygiene--not a given in many other places I just asked the owner to keep sending out dishes till we said stop beginning with a spicy papaya salad followed by the noodle dish pad thai which despite what some ignorant western authors contend is not really Thai I found was a true and ubiquitous classic in Bangkok This one was definitely the best I’ve had where every ingredient from the noodles to the herbs and the shrimp revealed layers of taste John Mariani There was a juicy pork satay with a velvety peanut sauce mussel fritters were addictive and spring rolls were packed with pork and taro Then came a seafood omelet with rice and holy basil and steamed fish with crispy fried garlic What most impressed me beyond the levels of flavor and heat was that unlike Thai restaurants in America where so many dishes simply serve meat or seafood in the same six sauces each dish at Siriwan Hoi Tod was wholly different from the next in texture aroma complexity and style fried steamed wok-seared and steamed all for just minutes SANEH JAAN 130-132 Wireless Road 02-650-9880 John Mariani The explosion of new office buildings anchored by restaurants has afforded the year-old Saneh Jaan prime real estate in the beautiful Glasshouse near the U.S. Embassy The dining room is sleek sophisticated done in soft earth colors with widely separated tables and very comfortable banquettes The walls are hung with photos of Bangkok Nothing seems corporate about it Saneh Jaan serves the traditional food of Central Asia as it was fifty years ago with no extremes of flavor Yet the flavors were myriad in a wide array of dishes I enjoyed that included fried fish balls with sweet and sour sauce a quickly sautéed fish cake called pla krai an egg roll stuffed with minced pork and spices a massaman-style curry a curried fish mousse and a shrimp and crispy pork rind omelet I was delighted to find a dish so often made outside of Thailand as a treacly sweet mess mee krob here to be rendered with subtlety and real crunch John Mariani Even the desserts were way beyond the ordinary from sweet sticky rice to and an egg custard with coconut milk Of particular interest is the restaurants first-rate wine and spirits list including a wide range of single malt Scotches The best way to appreciate dinner here is with the 8-course menu at US$50 à la carte main courses run between US$13 and US$15 LE DU 399/3 Silom 7 Alley 92-919-9969 John Mariani The word le du means season the driving force for the Chef Thitid Tassanakajohn known as Chef Ton so his set four-course menu US$54 and six-course menu US$95 are always changing depending on the day’s market The room itself with an open kitchen is modest and not easy to find but every taxi driver knows Le Du which has won its share of international awards Chef Ton actually graduated first in his class--from the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, NY then worked at Eleven Madison Park The Modern and Jean Georges along the way he received the Certified Sommelier recognition from Court of Master Sommelier John Mariani There is a great deal of innovation and presentation in Ton’s cooking every dish showing precision of technique and vivid color from cold appetizers like khoa-chae shrimp and tender pork balls with radish salted fish and jasmine ice cream to blue swimming crab cooked in prawn fat and coconut milk Sustainable fish is used and Ton adds pungent durian curry and pickled vegetables to one species or another Short rib of beef comes with egg noodle cabbage and a Northern curry called khao soi and he puts banana blossom together with egg curry and river prawn You may get a tot of tomato water with cream and yogurt or a cup of pineapple jelly with peanuts The desserts are lovely and very refreshing like mango panna cotta with smoked coconut ice cream Le Du is well known for all the right reasons not least by showing Bangkok cuisine is as modern as anywhere else in Asia buoyed by a good culinary education back in the States Should you tip in Bangkok restaurants Most restaurants include a service charge in the bill otherwise