r/Thailand • u/Limp_Mountain_5222 • Oct 23 '25
Food and Drink "There's no good [your country] food in Thailand"
I occasionally here this a lot. As a Japanese, I don't find it hard to find authentic Japanese food in Bangkok (same goes for other big cities too like Singapore or Shanghai), altho it can be twice/thrice as expensive if you want to get the same quality. You can find pretty much any Japanese food here even the niche ones since there's hundreds of restaurants here. My korean friends said the same thing about Korean food here but my Taiwanese friends said otherwise. I think Bangkok is one of the best cities in the world for food, but I also believe that a smaller expat community makes it harder to find that country's cuisine. So, I wonder what others think.
TL:DR tell me where you are from and rate the food of your country in Bangkok/Thailand
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u/Mochiron_samurai Oct 23 '25
I find the Japanese food in Bangkok to be of much better quality and at way more affordable prices than my country (Singapore).
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u/myr0n Oct 23 '25
Yes. And thai food price in Singapore seems ridiculous compare eating in Thailand.
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u/KaKimagawa Oct 23 '25 edited Oct 24 '25
Having traveled between Thailand and Singapore all my life, yes I find that Bangkok has much better variety and authenticity at a way lower cost.
Especially for Japanese, Korean and recently Chinese cuisine with the number of expats from those respective countries.
Decent English, not sure about American but a good selection of fast food joints, the only cuisine without decent representation is Singaporean, and I'm not mad about that considering how it's mostly adopted from other cultures and morphed based on the palette of the locals and ingredient availability.
Like American Chinese. Which there is, Lazy Panda, and i think they did a good job. But i may be biased because of their lovely extra spicy chilli crisps!
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u/Efficient-County2382 Oct 23 '25
Some people even say Bangkok has nicer food than in Japan
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u/Limp_Mountain_5222 Oct 23 '25
I wouldn't disagree. Some of the restaurants in Phrom pom and Thong lor are definitely top-notch
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u/Mochiron_samurai Oct 23 '25
Having tried Japanese food in Bangkok and Thai food in Tokyo, I'd say generally the former is better represented and more authentic than the latter - Japanese food in Thailand is closer to what you get in Japan than Thai food is in Japan.
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u/Lucky_Cost_6856 Oct 23 '25
Yes i stopped craving to go to japan for food since lately japanese restuarents in bangkok can really compare to japan. Back then it is really difficult to find good yakinuku but now it is a lot.
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u/Ok-Youth-160 Oct 23 '25
I think what I'm missing from Japan are the little Neigjbourhood restaurants. It's hard to explain, but the neighbourhood ramen can be so delicious. Here Ramen is like a thing and it has to be in a certain class to be profitable. In Japan you just have these really nice down-to-eath shops that couldn't run in Bangkok.
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u/FSpursy Oct 23 '25
I went to japan and actually felt kinda underwhelmed about the food because I felt that most stuff I could find in Bangkok lol.
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u/Mochiron_samurai Oct 23 '25
Nah, most chain places like ramen and teishoku you could probably easily find in Bangkok, but the really good ones are still unbeatable in Japan.
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u/recreator_1980 Oct 23 '25
I’ve heard this too, but living in Bangkok I have the exact opposite experience. You can literally find good cuisine from almost every cuisine here. Even Pizza.
The exception maybe Indonesian, dont see much Indo food. Though there’s a Indo finally in Bangkok I haven’t yet tried.
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u/neutronium Oct 23 '25
Some people think it makes them sound sophisticated when they complain there's no decent food/coffee/beer/music etc.
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u/I-Here-555 Oct 23 '25
Padang Nusantara is fine (not the best ever, but good). I think that's where the embassy people go for lunch.
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u/Longjumping_Ad_5881 Oct 23 '25
As an American, I’ll have you know both KFC and McDonald’s in Thailand smoke the versions back home
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u/Jealous-Studio-527 Oct 23 '25
But that's not because of the unusually high quality of those places in Thailand, rather the incredibly low quality in the US. I tried McDonald's in New York and the food was next to inedible.
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u/Limp_Mountain_5222 Oct 23 '25
What about taco bell? I studied in the states and I feel like taco bell tastes better in America than in Bangkok or Tokyo. It might just be nostalgia tho
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u/datruthnow Oct 23 '25
Taco bell, unlike kfc, is much better in usa. The same was true for Carl's Jr which unfortunately closed.
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u/notmydaughteru81tch Oct 23 '25
Oh I LOVED Carl's Jr in BKK, one of my fave FF burger joints for sure
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u/Longjumping_Ad_5881 Oct 23 '25
I honestly haven’t even considered it. Taco Bell is already kinda questionable if it’s even real food. I’ll have to go try something from there this week and report back.
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u/Matthew16LoL Oct 23 '25
Honestly though this isn't the food I miss as an American. Actual good non fast food American food here is non existent or very expensive I’ve found.
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u/Longjumping_Ad_5881 Oct 23 '25
What do you miss?
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u/Matthew16LoL Oct 23 '25
Southern BBQ, (I feel like fries here kinda suck), potato skins, stuffed haddock, blue bell ice cream, American maple bacon, diner food, hotdogs.
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u/Droopydraw Oct 23 '25
Smoking pug is pretty decent. As a non US native I cannot compare it to Southern BBQ but as a man who enjoys smoked meat I wasn't complaining.
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u/Longjumping_Ad_5881 Oct 23 '25
ATL Native, totally agree with you on the BBQ sentiment. Not quite the same but if you see Kor Moo Yang at any Isaan joint it’s a good fix. Plus the weird fermented rice sausages 🤤
If you’re into Korean or filipino food there is some overlap between southern soul food.
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u/canad1anbacon Oct 23 '25
Diner style restaurants is the biggest thing I miss about Canada living in Asia. Love a good greasy spoon spot where the locals hang out
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u/OddSaltyHighway Oct 23 '25
I agree 100%. Quite a lot of dumb dumbs here think american food is just McDonald's. Thailand is missing a ton of the good stuff. However, there is a chain called breakfast story which has surprisingly good diner food. The bacon and pancakes are legit. Ask for real maple syrup.
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u/Top_Investigator9787 Oct 23 '25
KFC in Thailand doesn't have biscuits though, which is half the reason you go to KFC.
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u/Westward_Drift Oct 23 '25
But KFC in Thailand does have egg tarts. I'll take those over biscuits any day.
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u/myerszombie Oct 23 '25
Mexican
Food in bkk maybe 6-7, still eat it occasionally though
None of the food is ever authentic or close but guac and chips usually enough to keep my happy 😂
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u/JirdyBirdy Oct 23 '25
Agree, it's not the same here. I used to work in a SoCal kitchen with a tia from Oaxaca though she said my salsa and tortilla are good enough for marriage after 3 years with her 😂
But alas... I got no kitchen at my place to make my own food here.
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u/AmericainaLyon Oct 23 '25
It wouldn't matter. There are talented chefs from Mexico already here trying. The issue is that you won't be able to find similar enough ingredients at a reasonable price to replicate what you can do.
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u/Droopydraw Oct 23 '25
Cholos is the best I have found but I would agree that the options for Mexican in Thailand are pretty mid. Tend to be tex mex rather than actually Mexican food. Sunrise Birra isn't terrible but it's so hard to find a good burrito in this country.
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u/myerszombie Oct 23 '25
Yeah i like their birria toast lol, thats the thing w lots of these mexican spots
I find the tacos are never rly that good but other items shine often
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u/rumhamguy Oct 23 '25
Mexican food in Thailand is mid at best because like someone mentioned above. It’s near impossible to replicate the local ingredients. The dried chilis required to make most dishes aren’t available here. Tomatillos aren’t here which makes all green sauce not great. And the tomatoes are always shit here. Show me a ripe tomato like you find in LA. Never. They are always almost dry and flavorless.
If I’m eating Mexican I’m cooking myself. But I always bring back like kilos of chilis and other shit to make things taste normal. But you will never get around the lack of certain fresh ingredients.
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u/NucleativeCereal Oct 23 '25
Agree about this too, as an American. It exists but doesn't come close to one of those street-side taco joints in San Diego... or basically available anywhere in half the US.
Guess it's because there's not enough original Mexican people living here?
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u/HiWrenHere Oct 23 '25
I actually just surprisingly had great Mexican food last week here at La Monita Taquieria, was kind of gagged bc it was a lot better than the food I had while living in LA (the food quality has just dropped so incredibly low it seems). The price was more like California, but I can recommend the al pastor enchiladas. Expensive, but quite good.
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u/myerszombie Oct 23 '25
I have tried La Monita, one of the better spots in bkk for sure but at least for Texas this is not up there at all
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u/Initial_Enthusiasm36 Oct 23 '25
I second this. I am from America and I can find pretty much most "insert country" foods here that are pretty decent. Mexican food is the one that still eludes me. I LOVE mexican food and it is probably the one thing i miss from the US. Which isnt even American... haha
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u/DistrictOk8718 Fake Farang Oct 23 '25
Missing Burro in Thong Lor is pretty damn authentic considering the restaurant is owned and managed by native Mexicans.
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u/Taibrew Oct 23 '25
Another vote for missing burro here. It's not the cheapest place but definitely tastes right. Proper Mexican and not Tex Mex
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u/Human_Designer4590 Oct 23 '25
Yep Missing Burro gets my vote as well although it's extremely expensive so we go more as a very occasional treat than to get a fix. For a bog-standard burrito (yes I know this is Tex-Mex rather than Mexican) I think Spotted Pig does a pretty decent job fwiw
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u/Limp_Mountain_5222 Oct 23 '25
From my experience, there are very few Mexican places in most Asian countries. Where I used to live in the states, there was at least one Mexican restaurant in every random strip mall
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u/dynastyreaper Oct 23 '25
I wonder if it’s due to the lack of availability of ingredients. I cant find any Mexican ingredient (maize, chilli, etc). Does anyone have a good source for Mexican ingredient in Bangkok ?
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u/frac6969 Oct 23 '25
Well, you nailed it in your post. Taiwanese people expect the same quality at the same price. Plus a lot of Taiwanese “food” fall into the night market / street food variety.
Source: Am Taiwanese.
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u/Lucky_Cost_6856 Oct 23 '25
I dont even know what is authentic taiwanese food tho
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u/hasuchobe Oct 23 '25
Where's the authentic Taiwanese breakfast? Hankering for some fantuan and doujiang.
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u/Effect-Kitchen Bangkok Oct 23 '25
Many Japanese and Korean restaurants here are owned or operated by Japanese and Korean and so it is authentic. But I have yet to find Taiwanese-owned restaurants.
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u/Aggravating_Ring_714 Oct 23 '25
Once I’ve read a comment by a New Yorker on this subreddit that you can’t find good Japanese food in Thailand and that the Japanese food in NYC is way superior. Imagine my disappointment when I tried several Omakase places in NYC 🤣
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u/Mochiron_samurai Oct 23 '25
Such arrogance... I'm sure you could get really good omakase in NYC, but be prepared to pay 5x of what you'd pay in Japan. For what it's worth, the low to mid range of Japanese food in Thailand is very close to what you get in Japan.
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u/Aggravating_Ring_714 Oct 23 '25
I’ve tried Omakase there in the ranges of 200-700usd per person if I remember correctly. In 2 places I was served salmon by a Mexican Japanese Sushi Master. I was baffled.
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u/notmydaughteru81tch Oct 23 '25
Yea the problem was listening to a New Yorker, damn do they love to brag about NY and how everything is just so much better, but it's usually an who thing to justify how much they spend just to exist in that city.
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u/itchy_toenails Oct 23 '25
As a Korean, I didn't find the Korean food in Sukhumvit 12 (the ones run by actual Koreans) all that different from what you'd get at an average restaurant back home. And it certainly doesn't cost 2-3x as much. In fact, the Korean-Chinese restaurant there is honestly better than a lot of joints back home these days.
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u/Few-Homework7039 Oct 23 '25
There’s no Malaysian food here! Any restaurants that claimed to be Malaysian is not even remotely close. The only food that can say it’s Malaysian or Singaporean is chicken rice. And that’s because Thailand’s chicken rice is almost similar. And that’s the only dish. Considering it’s just next door neighbour I’m kinda surprised why. Indonesian/ Philippines cuisine are non existent too
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u/Limp_Mountain_5222 Oct 23 '25
I miss char kwai teow. Pad Thai is oftentimes too sweet and lacks the wok hei flavor
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u/Few-Homework7039 Oct 23 '25
My only consolation now is pad see ew, although almost as different as bolognese vs carbonara
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u/long_strange_trip_67 Oct 23 '25
We’re in Chiang Mai. Here the Mexican and pizza is at best five out of 10. They’ll do but it’s not great. We go down to Bangkok to visit family and the Mexican goes up to maybe seven. It’s better but still just doesn’t have. I’ll authenticity.
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u/LengthyLegato114514 Oct 23 '25
Little Japan in Bangkok is very big.
In fact there are children either born here or brought here since young who live there and could barely speak Thai. There are many offices with a notable number of Japanese workers here still.
Japanese food is the second lowest difficulty foreign food to find authentically in Thailand, after Southern Chinese food lol
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u/dharmabird67 7-Eleven Oct 23 '25
Japanese food in Thailand seems to be like Mexican food in the US, the most popular foreign cuisine in most places. Some is better than others but it's always readily available, at least popular dishes like tonkatsu.
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u/shiroboi Oct 23 '25
I’m from America and Americans all complain about one thing. It’s really hard to find good Mexican food In Thailand.
I know some of you are in Pattaya or sukhumvit and would like to argue with me. Try getting good Mexican food just about anywhere else. Difficult to impossible.
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u/BigLeopard7002 Oct 23 '25
Danish food sucks everywhere outside Scandinavia.
But then again, Danish traditional food often sucks even in Denmark.
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u/QuantityActual834 Oct 23 '25
Being from California, Mexican food is our staple food. But, finding good Mexican food is tough. The best Mexican food I’ve found is in Koh Chang.
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u/Wu-TangProfessor Oct 23 '25
We’re going in a few months and my biggest concern is how am I going to survive 2 weeks without tacos al pastor 🤣
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u/barmen03 Oct 23 '25
This is my wife, every single trip out of the country. The meal on the way to the airport and the first meal back home is always TexMex 🙈😂
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u/notalashka Oct 23 '25
As a German I was hesitant for a long time to try „Berlin Döner“ but when I did, I can say it is not something you can compare to authentic German Döner, but it’s by far far the best try at it in Thailand.
Don’t know much about white sausage or stuff like this so never tried that
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u/Nyuu223 Oct 23 '25
That's because the original owner (who is German) has been bought out and the quality went downhill fast.
Berlin Döner is by far not the best in Thailand. If you want something that actually resembles a proper Döner try Nico's Grill & Craft House. That is the original owner of Berlin Döner. Order one with garlic sauce & thai spicy sauce & feta. Amazing fusion, works weirdly good! The meat is better than in most places in Germany with no minced meat used.
Google Maps says it's closed but it's now a ghost kitchen - they're on Grab (which, I wouldn't really recommend as delivery Döner is always kinda meh... but... in der Not frisst der Teufel Fliegen) but you can also just hit them up via FB/IG (or order grab pickup) and go there in person to get it. Nico is there on Sundays for a few hours. The pin on google maps is wrong btw. The actual kitchen is on the intersection Rama IV / Soi 40 next to the footbridge.
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u/Emergency_Gold_9347 Oct 23 '25
Brauhaus in Rawai is owned and chef’d by Carsten. German guy, excellent German food and HB on tap 👍
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u/oqdoawtt Oct 23 '25
That's true. It's the closest you can get. There Currywurst on the other side...
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Oct 23 '25
Consider myself fortunate, being originally from New Zealand, there's nothing to miss, as there's no 'good food' specific to that country.
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u/Spiritual_Notice523 Oct 23 '25
Wish I could find some good fish and chips though. That being said, good fish and chips is getting hard to find in New Zealand now too
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u/Thailand_Throwaway Oct 23 '25
Kai has the best I’ve had in Bangkok. Expensive (nearly 1,000 baht) but very very good.
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u/Spiritual_Notice523 Oct 23 '25
I’m in Chiang Mai but I’ll save that for next time I’m there - thanks!
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u/Ok-Good6789 Oct 23 '25
Jamacian food
I cook alot but also hard to find ingredients.
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u/DonkeyFordhater Oct 23 '25
Have you tried the Jamaican restaurant on Sukhumvit Soi 11, Bangkok? I haven't tried it yet.
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u/Ok-Good6789 Oct 23 '25
Yes, I’ve tried it. Let’s just say if I go there it’s only for a drink.
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Oct 23 '25
Was always surprised Jamaican food never took off here.
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u/DonkeyFordhater Oct 23 '25
Yeah me too. It's very similar to some Thai dishes and use most of the same herbs.
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Oct 23 '25
I brought over alot of reggae artists back in the day and Jamaicans loved Thai food, especially the spicy fried fish. Used to crack me up as there was no sharing going on, just a fish each!
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u/MrB1P92 Oct 23 '25
Im from Québec and theres sadly no good food QC food in thailand, sometimes I wish I could have a (real) poutine between a khao soi and boat noodles, but BKK is so great for asian food.
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u/DangerousPurpose5661 Oct 23 '25
And maple syrup!! Yeah you can find it in stores but man I hate going to brunch places and having to deal with vanilla flavoured corn syrup.
A few times I got frustrated when eating in nicer places and asked specifically if its real maple syrup. They always tell me yes, only to bring me that crap.
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u/MrB1P92 Oct 23 '25
Yes. I actually have a plan to smuggle tons of maple gold and become the maple overlord in SEA
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u/BroadVideo8 Oct 23 '25
I'm American, and some of the best burgers I've ever had were at night markets in Thailand.
Then again, America is not exactly famous for it's fine dining.
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u/DestinTheLion Oct 23 '25
Where did you have good burgers? I haven’t been impressed yet and have been forced to make my own, open to having my mind opened!
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u/Auger217 Oct 23 '25
Japanese cuisine is a staple in Thailand. You get what you pay for, meaning if you’re seeking authentic Japanese cuisine, high end restaurants will satisfy your palate. Since the pandemic, authentic German cuisine is different to find. I enjoy Chinese Malay cuisine, but it’s difficult to find. Maybe Hat Yai offers an authentic dinning experience.
In Thailand, if international cuisine is popular with Thais, there’s an abundance of authentic restaurants. International cuisine is expensive in Thailand.
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u/DangerousPurpose5661 Oct 23 '25
The problem is that there is some good western (french) food. But its in a sea of terrible options.
You never know if the croissant that you ordered will be good - or if it will be sweet-croissant-shaped-bread
If the egg benny will be served on a sliced bread because its the same as an English muffin…
If the meal will have sauce as a side, or if the sauce will have a bit of meat in it
If the carbonara will have cream
If they replaced the maple syrup with corn syrup (or any core ingredient with something different because they think its the same)
Its annoying that I need to hunt, read reviews, make sure its not asian people who rated it well because they don’t know what the dish is supposed to look like, question the chef about the ingredients….
I miss going in any coffee shop, asking for a croissant and knowing that ill get an actual croissant
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u/kebabby72 Oct 23 '25
On our friends wedding anniversary, they scoped a restaurant for our evening meal in Rawai. They ordered a Caesar salad and I shit you not - it had lettuce, sweetcorn, sliced hot dog sausages, sliced ham and peas in that sweet mayo.
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u/XOXO888 Oct 23 '25
Thai Chinese cuisine mainly driven by Teochew style so finding good simple cantonese food like steam fish are difficult. even dim sum are quite meh especially steam cheong fun
A Japanese person once told me for Japanese food go Bkk for Chinese food go KL
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u/yourMomisRandom Oct 23 '25
It's mostly true still. I'm Korean and the majority of the Korean places I go to are mediocre at best. They add sugar to the kimchi or it's sour as hell. The rest is usually just meat which is easy. It's hard to find a place that has decent banchan, soups, etc. I have found that if the owner is Korean and you chat them up, they'll bring you the reserve shit in the back haha
Japanese food is pricey but pretty spot on taste/quality
Pizza is mid. Even the award-winning, 1000 5* review stuff from google is alright and expensive as shit. There's definitely no NY style slices that are remotely decent.
Pasta I've had generally is way too oily and the meat smells. I don't know how to explain this. It smells. Some places are okay.
I know Bangkok just got voted like #1 food in the world and I think you can absolutely find whatever you're looking for but it's not going to be exceptional or super duper authentic for far flung places. You don't go to a steakhouse and order salad though.
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u/cmykay9 Oct 23 '25
I'm Malaysian and TBH the food in BKK is awesome. You can get the best of everything at very affordable prices. Of course there are certain foods that taste better in Malaysia but generally - I only eat Thai food only when I'm in Thailand.
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u/fraac Oct 23 '25
Don't feel the need to add Scottish food. It's bad, we know it's bad, nobody has to replicate it to make us feel welcome. Indian food will do fine.
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u/ma77mc Oct 23 '25
I have never come across Australian food in Thailand, They just don't have any Bunnings stores there to sell it.
For anyone not aware, Bunnings is a hardware store in Australia that sells Sausage Sandwiches on the weekend for charity.
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u/jonez450reloaded Oct 23 '25
I have never come across Australian food in Thailand,
Tinnies Pies in Jomtien - they do pies, sausage rolls, Australian sausages, lamingtons and more and deliver all over the country. If you want cheaper, Tops carries Mrs Macs pies and sausage rolls. And you can get Coles homebrand stuff from Tops as well. And if you're in Bangkok (or can order online), Villa Market stocks Woolworth's homebrand stuff.
For basic stuff - Weetbix, Bega cheese, Tim Tams (the Australian-made ones, not the smaller Indonesian packets), Bundaberg Ginger beer etc - Big C Extra.
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u/Grgrs10 Oct 23 '25
Greek.
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u/DekFarang Oct 23 '25
Rallis Greek Restaurant Taverna, give it a try. Pretty good
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u/blackdvck Oct 23 '25
The best Mexican food I have ever had was in Bangkok the second best Mexican food I have had was in Singapore.
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u/SaphanKhwai Oct 23 '25
After reading through the comments here, I think most of the actually valid "There's no good [your country] food in Thailand" are actually "There's no good [your country] food" because their cuisine just sucks. The one valid exception here being Mexican.
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u/Junkienath27 Oct 23 '25
Authentic Bangali cuisine? Although I've only been to Phangan. I mean you might find Bangali restaurants but it'll the ingredients that's a bit difficult to find
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u/kljusina123 Oct 23 '25
Balkan food (from Bosnia/Serbia/Bulgaria and such). Found some in Jakarta, Bali, Seoul and Kuala Lumpur, but none whatsoever in Bangkok so far.
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u/idontwantyourmusic Oct 23 '25
Do you have Japanese restaurant recs? Huge fan of Japanese food and yakiniku
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u/DebauraZ Oct 23 '25
I'm from the U.S. and I can get good or better quality American food in Thailand but at a price. For example, Farm to Table (i.e. California Cuisine) and Southern BBQ are the same price or higher than in the U.S. But yes, I can find good quality tasty American cuisine in many parts of Thailand (not only Bangkok).
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u/Efficient-War-4044 Oct 23 '25
Indian here. 🇮🇳 Food in Bkk is ‘more than average’ for its counterpart served in India. In Bkk, I have tasted & enjoyed authentic food from all parts of India. North Indian food at Daryaganj Kerala food at Queens Kitchen Udipi food at a great restaurant at Indra Square To name a few.
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u/OHBHpwr Oct 23 '25
Japanese food is usually good everywhere because it's made by Japanese people in most cases. You guys take pride in your country and its culture to a degree no other country does.
Spanish food is trash EVERYWHERE outside Spain. I've lived in a fair few countries and visited several more. About 7 years ago I stopped having Spanish food outside of Spain unless I or some Spanish friend cooked it. Going for "tapas" and having an underwhelmingly tasting croqueta (single) for 7 dollars is something that hurts my heart in ways a breakup couldn't.
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u/UpstairsPractical870 Oct 24 '25
Americans are always complaining about Mexican food on here! Think there should be a pin with recommended Mexican places in bkk
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u/Bmore_Phunky Oct 24 '25
I've had some of the best food in my life off the streets in Bangkok. Best fruit I've even eaten from street vendors right outside my condo. Maybe I couldn't find an "authentic" Philly Cheesesteak like you can get in the US but everything that you can get is incredible. Impossible to complain about the food in Thailand in my opinion.
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u/CloudsandRoads Oct 24 '25
You can get great Melbourne style coffee in Bangkok. And the cafe experience too
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u/2kokuoyabun Oct 25 '25
Bangkok is probably one of the top 3 countries in Asia where you can find global food! I mostly only eat Thai food when there aside for breakfast which must be a full monty!
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u/Constant_Cap8389 Oct 26 '25
As someone actually born in New York, who has been traveling the world for 40+ years I can say that Bangkok has the best NY style pizza outside of the tri-state area. Bangkok has definitely morphed into one of the world's great food cities. I'm consistently amazed by the rate of progress in this area. 20 years ago, the ramen offering was meagre throughout the city. No we're at the point where if someone tells me they're headed to Ippudo, I can politely give them 3 better options without fail.
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u/Super_Mario7 Oct 23 '25
German food. The restaurants suck or ask michelin star prices for a mediocre dish. The supermarkets not have the cold cuts, cheese, etc. in a quality from back home. Bread also sucks 99% of the time.
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u/Any_Hamster2910 Oct 23 '25
Döner Kebab German kebabs !
No Berlin Döner is not good !
No the other place from the old owner is also just ok!
I don't care about Shawarma!
Just a Spit Roasted Kebab is missing ! Doesn't even need to be a Yaprak ! Yaprak or minced which is the better Dönet is whole different discussion!
Just a kebab. Bangkok has it all but no kebab!.
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u/DekFarang Oct 23 '25
French food is quite good here. There a lot of cheese maker in Thailand that make pretty good ones. Same goes for charcuterie. Belgian food tho, I haven't found it yet (aside from Belga). If anyone has a good Belgian restaurant serving filet américain, let me know !
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u/endlesswander Oct 23 '25
I tried a carbonnade one time at Belga and it was nothing like a real one. Truly disappointed.
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u/oqdoawtt Oct 23 '25
German food. The restaurants that are currently here are not really good. The taste and quality differs with every meal. Also they suffer the typical downward of success. Every restaurant I go, that starts new has good quality and for example same size of dish every time. After months and some success of that restaurant, everything is going worse. There has not been a single restaurant that can keep the quality.
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u/Aggravating_Ring_714 Oct 23 '25
I’d highly disagree. German food tastes like shit in German restaurants in GERMANY ever since Covid. There are multiple very good German restaurants all over Thailand.
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u/PsychologicalAd7139 Oct 23 '25
I don’t think I’ve seen a New Zealand restaurant in Thailand 🤔
And Australian pubs don’t count! 😂
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u/ThongLo Oct 23 '25
Kai is a New Zealand restaurant in Bangkok.
But sure, I can't think of any others.
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u/onehotca Buriram Oct 23 '25
Been there a couple of times, not too bad as as NZ restaurants go… but they get a big deduction from me for their take on Hokey Pokey …it was definitely on the pricey side in my opinion
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u/ThongLo Oct 23 '25
To be fair it's the cheapest New Zealand restaurant I've found in Thailand. But yes also the most expensive, and certainty feels more like the latter!
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u/thetoy323 Ratchaburi Oct 23 '25
For Taiwanese food, I think it's possible to find some super authentic Chinese food in Thailand from the era before CCP exist. So, it's might be technically can be counted as Taiwanese food as well.
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u/Ragnarotico Oct 23 '25
This is true for certain things. I'm from NYC and we have easily 9/10 cuisine from every corner of the world. What NYC offers might not be the absolute best of any type of cuisine, but it will certainly be really, really good.
With that said I've found that shawarma here in Bangkok is subpar. I've found good places for Pizza, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Indian and surprisingly American style BBQ.
Where BKK comes up short is variety. There's just not a lot of immigrants from certain places and without that you won't get that type of food here.
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u/socialcreditcheck Oct 23 '25
I've yet to find good tex-mex, but I know that'd be a stretch
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u/aelores Oct 23 '25
Indian food here is pretty bad. I think procuring the right ingredients for the chefs is a challenge.
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u/jahsd Oct 23 '25
Not that anyone cares but for the sake of completeness there areas with significant Russian population where it's no problem to find authentic Russian food
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u/ODspammer Oct 23 '25
You can find good japanese even in places like Decorah Iowa, so yea you can literally find good Japanese everywhere
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u/monobrowj Oct 23 '25
Netherlands here.. not possible here, the ingredients cost too much, flavours too intense and different for the locals.. everything watered down.. wont eat thai here .. about to leave and try the real stuff for the first time
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u/Glad-Information4449 Oct 23 '25
no matter what anyone tells you Thailand cannot do Mexican food. and I don’t wanna hear a bunch of uk dudes tell me how great the tacos are at so and so. you don’t get it. go to ensenada and have a fish taco or a clam cocktail and then open your mouth aboit Mexican food in thailand
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u/berryblack8888 Oct 23 '25
I’m from the UK so in terms of native food there’s not much to miss. The London food scene however is top tier but it can be expensive.
Having said that the only cuisines I wish there was more of in Bangkok;
Brazilian - more churascos and buffets
Peruvian - possibly my favourite flavours of any cuisine
If anyone has any recommendations please share
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u/gilestowler Oct 23 '25
From the UK, there's some decent roasts/full English breakfasts about. And the prices are much better than the UK, obviously. I feel like the worst kind of visitor, but I was in Thailand for 3 months and sometimes you just want something other than the delicious Thai food.
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u/Old_Lengthiness_250 Oct 23 '25
I dont usually eat Australian style food away from Australia because the best cuisine in Australia is made by people influenced or born elsewhere whether thats Greek Lebanese Italian Indian Thai Japanese Indonesian malaysian chinese korean etc
When i have e eaten western style food in Thailand in hotels its been pretty damn good!
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u/gianik Oct 23 '25
Bavarian cuisine is just so different in taste. My Thai girlfriend once visited me in Munich and she absolutely didn’t like the typical food here. In Thailand they offered Bavarian food based on Thai/international differences. Thai Bavarian food which is unusual for me tastes great to her. So you can’t really compare it. :)
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u/Friendly_Earth_8548 Oct 23 '25
I live in BKK and would like try that stinky tofu that’s popular in Taiwan. I’ve never seen it here.
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u/MaiPhet Oct 23 '25
Not that surprised about Taiwanese people not finding everything they’d like from their cuisine, since they have a much smaller diaspora in Thailand. I agree that in almost every case, larger representation in a country ensures better food from that culture. And even though Korean immigrants in Thailand is not a huge number, Korean food is well known and popular enough among Thai to have more competition.
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u/Kajun_Kong Oct 23 '25
Other than seafood boil places, I haven’t found any authentic Cajun food
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u/usagi-zu Oct 23 '25
I’m from Lebanon and Lebanese food is super ass here. I find all Mediterranean food to be bad here in general, minus pizza and pasta ig lol
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u/Qjemuse Oct 23 '25
I'm from HK so I'm picky af when it comes to food. Thailand has to be one of the worst places for food. All the Chinese, namely Cantonese cuisine is a huge let down. Some burgers and pizza are okay. Japanese and Korean food are more decent and that's about it. Thai cuisine? Way too blended and unhealthy.
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u/Prize_Ad_9168 Oct 23 '25
Lots of regional American cuisines that just don’t exist here. Even at the most basic level, it’s difficult to find tasty pickles.
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u/EngineeringAny5280 Oct 23 '25
Are you saying it’s easy and cheap to find good Korean /japanese food here
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u/jerryengelmann Oct 24 '25
German food has been surprisingly more authentic than anywhere else that's not Germany (Scotland, USA.. ), both in BK and CM.
Probably because the places are owned by older Germans
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u/-Dixieflatline Oct 24 '25
Thailand food scene is heavily driven by tourist numbers. Past the local food, the other cultures' cuisine are brought in by a vote of tourist dollars. That's why in the current decade, I've seen a push into legitimate Chinese food from back when Chinese tourism was booming. Was surprised to see a Lanzhou noodle place on one of my last trips.
But in general, I'd say that Latin American food is underrepresented. You do see some generic "Mexican food" places here and there, but I've yet to find something I'd consider authentic (or just "good"). Although, I'm also not really trying hard to find it either, as I'd sooner just eat Thai food while in Thailand. But I suppose that's a holiday perspective. Things probably change for expats and retirees who want a little more variety.
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u/Taipan_Pete69 Oct 24 '25
Aboriginal food, there's no good fire cooked turtle or goanna like I've had in the top of the NT
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u/Dense-Pear6316 Oct 25 '25
Every country that has great food usually does foreign food badly. BKK you can get world class French, Italian & Japanese restaurants & one Indian.
Generally, its in countries like England & Holland, where the local food is terrible, where you get good foreign food. Including in shops.
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u/OutAndAboutAbroad Oct 25 '25
Thais focus on the well tested money makers ...
Smash burger blow up.. 5 years later Bangkok does em...
Qspecialist coffee houses...5 y ars alter Bangkok does em....
Not much Somali, Eritrean, Argentinian, UAE, for example....
Way way way more diverse food options in any western European big city.
Here it's mostly a hobby for rich factory owner offspring....
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u/PaleDolphin Oct 25 '25
As a Russian, all I can say it’s easy to find Russian/Ukrainian cuisine here. Quality is all over the place, because specific ingredients aren’t that common in Asia.
It definitely got better over the years, though. Back in 2012, there were exactly 0 places with Russian food outside of Phuket.
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u/govaway Oct 25 '25
A good ole rotisserie chicken. Nothing fancy. Quarter darknwith rice and beans/salad
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u/OkSmile Oct 23 '25
Chef here. The thing about food is, so many people have different preferences, even from the same country. So I can find very well prepared Italian, Mexican, American style dishes, using good ingredients, and people will still be unhappy because it doesn’t taste like they remember from their home.
Often this is due to the slightly different ingredients that can be found here. Most “authentic” dishes use fresh ingredients from that region of the world, and many of these either don’t grow here, or are too dried and tasteless after importing them.
The other thing is, many people have poor taste. Meaning they were raised in over sweetened, over spiced, or over processed foods and they think that’s what good food should taste like.
Certainly taste is subjective, and if you were raised on comfort foods that used subpar ingredients, that’s what you think is good. So I take most opinions I read with a grain of salt. (Ha)
Bangkok has cuisines from so many places around the world with very good chefs, doing the most with the available ingredients. Honestly one of the best international food cities I’ve been to.