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Canadian_Guy · Joined: 08 Nov 2004 Posts: 27

When i got to Thailand i wont be wanting to waste alot of money on expensive english foods. So would it be hard to switch to local foods?

sigmoid · Joined: 21 Jan 2003 Posts: 1276

Some Thai food is especially good and it's generally cheaper than Western food. But some Thai food is not really great. You've got to try it out and found out what you like.

Cheap food includes fried rice, rice with chicken or duck, fried noodles, noodle soup, green papaya salad [somtam], grilled chicken and sticky rice. Thais love to eat and there is food available everywhere.

One problem some people have is that a lot of Thai dishes are fairly spicy.

Sheep-Goats · Joined: 16 Apr 2004 Posts: 527

Whether you'll find the local food palatable or not is totally dependent on you. In general, if you can tolerate eating outside in the heat, and can tolerate spice, you'll have no trouble finding an acceptable Thai-style lunch at 20B instead of a Western one at 120B++.

sigmoid · Joined: 21 Jan 2003 Posts: 1276

laura1d · Joined: 13 Jan 2005 Posts: 108 Location: Spain

If you don't like it spicy then just ask for it 'mai pet' (not spicy). It is not a problem for them.

I live out in the provinces and they have no problem catering to a western stomach! I am sure in the big city lights (if that is where you are going) it will be easier still.

Happy eating!
Laura

Kent F. Kruhoeffer · Joined: 22 Jan 2003 Posts: 2129 Location: 中国

Speaking of spicy --- A few months after I arrived in BKK I was invited to dinner with my boss and his Thai wife. The 2 of them ordered and soon the table was full of dishes; fish, fried rice, pots of steaming meats, oysters, you name it. One dish that caught my eye was a chicken & cashew with veggies dish. Looked great, smelled fantastic and didn't look too hot. So I filled my plate. To my surprise, there were little bacon bits in there too! I love bacon, so I started shoving these little 'bacon bits' into my beak one after the other. After a few seconds of chewing, my mouth morphed into the towering inferno. In fact, it was so hot that tears were rolling down my face. I thought I would die.

My boss and his wife were rolling on the floor. Laughing

Turns out the 'bacon bits' were not bacon bits, but fried red hot chilli peppers.

Lesson # 1. If it looks like bacon, it probably isn't. Twisted Evil

As laura1d suggested, I learned the 'mai pet' phrase pretty quickly.

As others have mentioned, there is a huge variety of food in Thailand ranging from cheap local dishes at mom & pop restaurants to sidewalk vendors to the fast food franchises we all know and love. And everything in between. On top of all that, you'll find a 7-11 or Family Mart on EVERY corner of Bangkok ... when ya feel like a hot dog and a bag of Lays.

Yes - you can eat well & VERY cheaply here. It's one of the reasons I decided to stay on for a second year, by the way.

My favourite dish is Pad Thai. This is a Thai specialty (sort of like spaghetti ala Asia) consisting of fried rice-noodles, chopped tofu, bean sprouts, green veggies and your choice of meat or shrimp. Personally, I prefer the Pad Thai Moo (pork) with a fried egg on top, and eat it almost every day.

It's cheap, delicious, healthy and not combustible. Mr. Green

http://www.thaifoodandtravel.com/recipes/padthai1.html

JosephP · Joined: 13 May 2003 Posts: 445

Go hungry in Thailand? Wow, that would be some feat!

As for me, "mai phet, mai ao, mai chawp." Incendiary torturously spicy food is for beginners. More chilis for me please.

Hod · Joined: 28 Apr 2003 Posts: 1613 Location: Home

I love these go native posts. I used to hang out on BKK street stalls eating some of the worst slop known to man just cos I felt obliged to. It wasn't long before I became a regular at Starbucks, Au Bon Pain and, of course, Offshore Fish 'n' Chips for real food.

The western stomach can't cope with only Thai food. The never-touch-farang-food types nearly always supplement their diets with a sneaky Mars bar or two. Your body soon screams for protein and a cheese sandwich. The only street food I touch now in BKK is Isaan stuff, and only if it's tried, tested and not too damned hot. Some of the other food, i.e. soup and stuff, is grim. Wean yourself on to Thai food; don't go in at the deep end.

yaco · Joined: 03 Mar 2003 Posts: 473

Of course Western stomachs can handle Thai food.

Thai food is about the best food in the world.

It is even better when cooked by yourself.

sigmoid · Joined: 21 Jan 2003 Posts: 1276

Canadian_Guy · Joined: 08 Nov 2004 Posts: 27

Thanks for the Great Feedback everyone Laughing

JosephP · Joined: 13 May 2003 Posts: 445

stevenabroad · Joined: 16 Jan 2004 Posts: 34

At first you'll likely get a real kick out of Thai food...how it's so cheap and tasty. But the cravings for western food will kick in and like everything else in Thailand it can be really cheap or really expensive depending on where you go. There are always specials. Pizza Company restaurant seems to have a special for 60 Bhat that comes and goes which includes a small pizza and coke-add a salad bar trip for another 60. Go to Sizzler and get an all you can eat western buffet for 99Bhat. Lots of cheap stuff if you look for it and always McDonalds, which unlike KFC actually tastes like back home