Street Food by CentralWorld

As both a local and a tourist at the same time, I have always been a massive fan of street food in Bangkok. For this post, I will discuss one of the most common and in-your-face street foods in the central Bangkok area. If you’re in Bangkok, there is a possibility that you will devote some time to go and see the shopping malls such as Siam Paragon and CentralWorld. You may also choose to continue your journey and walk across the canal towards Platinum shopping area. On your way, you will see an area dedicated to two al fresco dining places just on the road side.

I’ve had the chance to finally try one of the eateries during my previous trip back home. I must advise that if you have a weak stomach (those that do will immediately know what I mean), should consider twice before dining here. This should not be taken as a bad point, but due to the simple nature that it’s a meter from the road, with elements of dust, dogs, cats, cigarette smoke, heat, pollution and who knows what else in Bangkok, the food that you consume will not be, how should I put it, the cleanest. Knowing all of this, I couldn’t help but to try it out.

As hungry as we were, the main aspect was to enjoy that touristy experience. There’s always something to eat in Bangkok no matter you are, so the taste and quality of the food was somewhat our second priority. As we walk pass the eateries, we could see huge river fish being grilled right before our eyes. The fish look quite appetising, and it’s covered in salt then grilled and smoked at the very same time. If you’re not a fan of seafood, they also have grilled chicken side by side with the fish.

As for the range of cuisine, they serve Thai food, of course. You can ask for almost anything that’s home-style Thai cooking. I would recommend getting simple plates for sharing, since the ambience encourages just that. It’s a familial setting; grab a few mates, grab some food, and grab a beer. In saying this, really do grab a beer. Coming from Australia, the value of the beer here is nothing short of amazing. You can get a massive bottle of beer for about 60 baht, which would equal to less than two Australian dollars. Whatever the equivalent in foreign currency may be, it’s an amazing deal. And what else is better than a big bottle of beer in the Bangkok heat?

I would suggest you order simple dishes like fried rice, stir-fried vegetables, a whole grilled fish and grilled pork neck. And oh, everything to share of course. Just to clarify, grilled pork neck is absolutely delicious, almost in everywhere in Thailand. I know the part of the pig this is from may frighten some reading this, but trust me, this is one of the best parts for barbecuing or grilling. It’s not completely tender, which gives it that fun bite to it. If you’re lucky or if you get to choose, you can also get a bit of fat on it. There’s no words to describing how the divine taste of pork with fat nicely rendered.

The whole fish though, is equally as good. The salt rub on it gives the fish natural seasoning. Some places may stuff herbs in the fish to add seasoning, otherwise the generous salt does it.

If the meal satisfies your thirst for cold beer, your hunger for Thai food, and your dream of sitting on the road side for the authentic local experience, you might as well wrap up your dinner with arguably the face of Thai desserts. I am referring to the one and only, made in Thailand, mango with sticky rice. The name of the desserts screams out Thailand already. We went for a few portions of the mango and sticky rice to conclude our evening. As the sticky rice and mango do not come in contact with heat before it arrives at your table, you might want to avoid it if you have a super weak stomach. You can get away with cooked foods since they go through a natural process of cooking, but the mango and sticky rice come as they are. If you feel brave, by all means, go for gold!

As to how to get to this specific street eatery, you will need to either start off at CentralWorld or Platinum. From CentralWorld, get out of the building from the side facing Big C, or also known as it’s main entrance. From there, you’ll need to turn left and keep walking towards the other side of the canal. You would be able to tell by the taller buildings and a bit of life on the other side. If you’re coming from Platinum, you simply need to follow your way back into the center of Bangkok. You can ask people near by about CentralWorld or Big C, and they’ll be able to point you to the right direction. This is another good thing about the Thai people. We are (the majority of us are, my apologies for the small population that are not) very friendly people and are always more than happy to help out foreigners that may be lost traveling in our country. Even if you don’t speak Thai, most Thais nowadays have a decent level of English, and with the help of sign language and a genuine smile, you should find your way to your destination with little difficulty.

And there we have it, a quick guide to some interesting street food (literally from the streets) in Bangkok. After a long day of discovering the city and shopping, it’s a great place to just sit down, enjoy the dynamics of the nation’s capital while sipping on some beer and local cuisine. I would also suggest that you purchase wet towels or those sanitised wet towels from a pharmacy, so that you could take a further step to semi-sanitize your cutleries, plates, glasses and hands (since you’ll probably lick your fingers after some good food).