Bangkok's best Thai food isn't always found in its five-star restaurants. There are innumerable superb hole-in-the-wall eateries known only to the local sand residents like David Johnson, who takes us on a tour of his favourites.
Vientiane Kitchen
WHAT’S IT LIKE? For a really unique dining experience, Vientiane Kitchen is a treat. This restaurant celebrates the northeastern region of Isan, the cultural heartland of Thailand. Set in a tall bamboo building, it is adorned with Isan artifacts such as buffalo yokes and sticky rice holders, and the waitresses, who provide excellent service, don mutmee silks, a type of weave indigenous to the region.
There are elevated and low sala-seating areas, featuring either thick, comfortable cushions or bamboo tables.
A troupe of student musicians play folk songs from the region while Thai dancers perform traditional dances. This is not the tacky performance seen in so many Thai restaurants, but the real thing.
Thais comprise about 70 percent of the clientele, while international visitors make up the rest. Foreigners (farang), however, will have no problem communicating as the staff speak English reasonably well. There is no air-conditioning, but ceiling fans keep the temperature fairly cool.
SPECIALITY: Three dishes form the cornerstone of the menu. Try sai grok Isan, an Isan pork sausage dish that comes with an assortment of leafy vegetables, nuts, lime, ginger and little green chillies, larb bet (spicy minced duck salad) and gaeng normai (bamboo curry). These are best eaten with khao niew (sticky rice).
PRICES: Very reasonable. Dishes cost 60 to 120 baht (US$1.80 to US$3.60), except for seafood, which is based on weight and can be more expensive. A meal for two will cost about 400 baht (US$11.94) each, excluding drinks.
CONTACT: 8 Naphasap Yak 1, Sukhumvit Soi 36, Klongtoey, Bangkok 10110 (Thonglor Bangkok Skytrain), tel 66 2 258 6171. Open 1200 to 2400 daily.
Hua Plee Restaurant
WHAT’S IT LIKE? Literally meaning “Banana Blossom Restaurant”, this quaint house, tucked away in one of the most famous word-of-mouth areas of Bangkok, is home to one of the town’s coolest holes in the wall.
Located behind the tall blue glass-clad Thai Airways building, Hua Plee is adjacent to the legendary Talad Leung Perm, a boutique clothing market brimming with cut-price imported goods (brought in by THAI Airways staff) and hip local fashion. The restaurant can be found a few paces down a leafy residential street and is the kind of place where it is possible to be sitting next to a famous movie star without knowing it as it is with someone from the neighbourhood. Decorated with vintage memorabilia, the place is well designed, offering intimate dining spaces dominated by antique sewing machines that have been converted into dining tables. A multitude of small wooden-framed window panes adds to the cosy feel.
The outdoor area, lush with tropical plants, is cleverly arranged in two levels, which are lit up with candles in the evenings. Although Thai customers make up 95 percent of the customer base, the staff speak English well enough. An alfresco bar with possibly the coldest beer in Krung Thep and ’50s jazz music sounds complete the ambience.
SPECIALITY: An industrial-weight menu holds a surprising array of innovative delights such as house favourites yam hua plee (spicy banana blossom salad) and tord man hua plee (deep fried banana blossom). You needn’t stick to the banana-inspired dishes. Go ahead and sample the giew cheese tord (deep fried cheese noodle wraps) and the excellent khao pat pak (vegetable fried rice), which comes with a soup and onion omelette on the side.
PRICES: Medium range, with dishes costing 80 to 150 baht (US$2.40 to US$4.50). Sitting down with a group of four and sharing the food is a fun and inexpensive way to enjoy this restaurant.
CONTACT: Viphavadi Rangsit Soi 22, Chatuchak, Bangkok 10900 (Phaloyothin Subway St), tel 66 2 511 1397. Open 1300 to 0100 daily. The best time to go is about 1800 to 1900 when it is less crowded, allowing one to fully savour the twilight calm.
Kupa Kupa Barong
WHAT’S IT LIKE? Walk through the gates of this high red-brick walled restaurant and you may feel like you have walked straight into Bali. On a trip to the island some years ago, the Thai owner fell so in love with the Balinese style that he meticulously re-created a gorgeous oasis in the heart of Bangkok, complete with water features, statues and carvings. The theme extends to the uniforms of the staff, who don traditional outfits. The menu, however, remains (predominantly) Thai. The blend of Balinese and Thai seems to work wonderfully, judging by the packed tables that are the daily norm.
Thick wooden tables and chairs occupy a fan-cooled alfresco area, although stone paths lined with tropical plants invite exploration. An air-conditioned glassed-in room is available for individual diners or can be taken over for small private cocktail functions. A top-notch band performs Thai and international favourites, albeit unobtrusively not impeding conversation. This is one of those great secrets you share with close friends, who upon arriving, exclaim without fail: “How on earth did you find this place?”
SPECIALITY: A wide variety of dishes is available, but don’t miss the guediew kung song jom pon (shrimp on a bed of sautéed rice noodles with garlic pepper), gai long rachada (grilled chicken) or the spicy khao pat poo poo naam prik maeng da (fried rice with chilli paste).
PRICES: Medium range, with dishes costing 120 to 160 baht (US$3.60 to US$4.77). Sharing is the way to go here as the portions are large and it is more fun that way too.
CONTACT: 111 Rachadapisek Soi 42, Jankasem, Bangkok 10900 (Latprao Subway St, followed by a three-minute taxi ride), tel 66 2 513 5617. Open 1100 to 2400 daily. Best to book on the weekends.
Harmonique
WHAT’S IT LIKE? For grandstand riverside dining at prices that are a fraction of what you’d pay in the five-star hotels lining the Chao Phraya River, look no further. Located between the Oriental and Royal Orchid Sheraton hotels, and a 10-minute walk from the Shangri-La, the restaurant is ensconced in the courtyard of a century-old mansion.
The charming entrance – presided over by an overhanging banyan tree – sets the tone for guests when they arrive. The venue is divided into individual sections, which are decorated with plants and Thai antiques helping to create intimate ambience.
Inside the house are more treasures: exquisite woodwork as well as a host of Chinese antiques, artwork and objet d’arts. Truly one of Bangkok’s most memorable outlets, Harmonique is run by three sisters who are hands-on managers. You are really treated like family here.
SPECIALITY: The food is presented in the Western style but doesn’t necessarily cater to the farang palate. Fish is the specialty of the house, each dish superb. We recommend the tom yam pla (spicy and sour fish soup), hor mok pla (fish curry in banana leaf) and tasty pla satay (fish satay).
PRICES: Prices are in the medium range, with dishes costing 70 to 200 baht (US$2.09 to US$5.97). Sharing always works best with Thai food, but individual plates are available too.
CONTACT: 22 Charoenkrung Soi 34, Bangkok 10500 (15 minutes walk from Saphan Thaksin BTS), tel 66 2 237 8175. Open 1100 to 2200, Monday to Saturday.
Lumba Lumba
WHAT’S IT LIKE? Seafood lovers queue up to dine at Lumba Lumba, a restaurant located five minutes from the Chidlom BTS station, along the trendy Soi Langsuan. An institution, this spacious restaurant with its long glass window frontage can seat as many as 140 customers at a time and has two private rooms. All dining areas are air conditioned and tastefully done up in a Thai-Balinese motif and enhanced by mood lighting. The open kitchen is a refreshing change from the neon-lit and often atmosphere-less seafood restaurants.
The eye is immediately drawn to the 42 giant fish tanks packed with lobster and several varieties of seafood ready to be selected by eager diners. Thailand’s famed hospitality goes on show here daily, and one is not disappointed. Many of the waitstaff have worked for Lumba Lumba for years and thus possess a good command of English and an innate sense of what guests demand.
SPECIALITY: With a large Thai-Chinese following, the menu carries their favourite dishes such as boo pat phong currie (crab curry or koung mangkorn op neuy kratiem (lobster baked in butter and garlic).
PRICES: Prices for appetisers are about 120 to 200 baht (US$3.58 to US$5.97). Seafood is judged by weight with 500 to 1,200 baht (US$14.92 to US$35.81) for two covering a full range of seawater favourites. Set menus for groups with a selection of eight dishes start from 800 baht (US$23.87) a head.
CONTACT: 31 Soi Langsuan, Ploenchit Road, Lumpini Bangkok 10330 (five minutes walk from Chitlom BTS, opposite Central Department Store), tel 66 2 652 1973. Open 1100 to 1430, 1730 to 0200 Monday to Saturday.
