Thai cuisine is world-renowned for its fantastic flavour profiles, unique style, and heat that can rival the temperatures on a Thai beach in summer.
The Kingdom does not disappoint with its long list of luxurious beverages either. Whether you are looking for a refreshing soft drink to cool you down or a tropical cocktail to start your night right, Thailand has you covered.
Take a trip with me through popular Thailand food and drinks and explore the best food in Thailand.
Indulge in the rich culture of food in Thailand
Thailand is known around the world for its incredible food culture. It is difficult to walk around any major city around the world without seeing multiple restaurants serving classic Thai dishes.
Thai food has become such a hit globally due to its unique and powerful flavours. This distinctiveness comes from the many influences the country has had over the centuries.
The Chinese brought stir-frying and steaming, while Portuguese traders introduced the chilli pepper from the Americas. Mixing these ingredients and methods, along with the already strong traditional cooking culture, led to an explosion of flavour that’s totally unique to Thai food and drinks.
When in Thailand, you must try as much of this amazing cuisine as possible. While international Thai restaurants bring a taste of Thailand to every corner of the globe, there really is no substitute for the incredible food on offer within the country itself — where the key ingredients are at their freshest and most flavourful.
Green curry is an excellent introductory dish for anyone new to Thai food (particularly for anyone apprehensive of spice). Known as “gaeng keow wan” in Thai, green chillies pack a punch without being overly spicy, while coconut milk makes this dish a creamy delight.
For quite possibly the best green curry in the world, you can’t miss Smooth Curry in the Plaza Athénée, Bangkok. The huge portions at this fine dining restaurant will leave you incredibly satisfied.
Why not try some dishes you might never have had back home? Order “larb moo” at pretty much any restaurant to enjoy a minced pork salad that is fresh and packed with taste.
Pad kaphrao is another flavourful dish, ranked as the fourth-most common dish ordered by tourists in Thailand. Some of these are worth the price of your plane ticket alone!
Thai food is famous for incorporating — and beautifully balancing — sour, sweet, spicy and bitter. Coconut (in the form of milk, cream, or even dried shavings) will be in most of the dishes you will try in Thailand, and for good reason! This delicious drupe can bring smoothness to any dish it is added to and wonderfully balances spice and sweetness.
Other prominent culinary protagonists include lemongrass, which adds a citrusy freshness, peanuts, coriander, fish sauce, and shallots.
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The best food in Thailand
While in Thailand you will have an excellent opportunity to try food from some of the most fantastic restaurants in the world, such as the original Blue Elephant in Bangkok, world-class Thai fusion at Black Ginger in Phuket, or incredible food with an even better view at Saaitara Restaurant in Koh Chang.
Authentic flavours exist beyond luxury restaurants, though. In fact, some of the best food in Thailand can be found curb-side, from the multitude of vendors and stalls lining the streets and alleyways, forming an integral part of the cultural heritage.
When you inevitably spend an evening walking down the manic Khao San road in Bangkok, you will have the opportunity to sample a smorgasbord of Thailand street food treats and desserts. Hand-wheeled carts sell ice creams and other sweets to keep you going until dinner time, or can be a delicious treat after a pad Thai. Indulge yourself while soaking up the incomparable sights, sounds and smells.
In Bangkok, you can visit the city’s only street food stall to boast a Michelin star. The 70-something goggle-wearing chef-owner was awarded the Michelin star in 2017 for her eponymous restaurant, Jay Fai, and its outstanding Thai dishes.
Although you will be paying a premium in Thai prices for her food, with her most famous dish, a crab omelette costs around $25 USD, but it is free to watch her work. This may be the only chance you get to watch a bonafide Michelin star chef in action.
If you are just travelling through Bangkok and find yourself at the Victory BTS station, why not try some of the very best Thailand street food while waiting for your bus? Rest assured, the remainder of your journey will be spent dreaming of the unforgettable tastes.
If you head north to Chiang Mai, you’ll have the chance to enjoy a vegetarian take on Thai food. Chiang Mai boasts one of the most charming and delicious vegan and vegetarian restaurants in all of Thailand, Anchan Vegetarian restaurant. It won’t break the bank either as you can get yourself an amazing and filling dish for about $3 USD!
Prefer fine dining? Chiang Mai has that too. BAAN Landai Fine Thai Cuisine is a beautiful Thai restaurant just outside this culinary hub and is the perfect place to cap off a wonderful day in one of Thailand’s most breathtaking cities.
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Cheers to that!
The local favourite soft drink has to be Cha Yen or Thai iced tea. Sweetened condensed milk and ice make this a refreshing morning beverage.
If you’re more of a coffee fan, then you’ll love Oliang, a simply sublime black iced coffee. The locals often drink oliang with breakfast, but nothing is stopping you from having this yummy beverage all day long.
If you’re of the legal age for drinking (20 in Thailand), then you might be interested in the world-famous nightlife that the country has to offer. Bars and clubs abound throughout the country, offering cocktails and entertainment of varying degrees of quality.
For beers, you can’t go wrong with Thai beers like Chang or Singha, which are tasty, light and refreshing. Many bars are likely to stock your favourites from back home too, especially in more tourist-centric areas.
When it comes to cocktails, often the experience is as important as the drink itself. Well, in Bangkok, you can get one of the coolest cocktail drinking experiences out there. In #Findthephotobooth, a secret panel reveals itself to be a doorway into a ‘darkroom’ used for developing photographs, this then opens up to a fully equipped cocktail bar that oozes class alongside a classic menu.
Also hidden away in the Bangkok streets is a charming train carriage-themed cocktail bar called Q&A. This hotspot nails the trendy prohibition-era speakeasy vibe, and patrons may purchase a passport book on which to record all the stops they make along their “cocktail journey,” for which this place is famous.
If cocktails on a tropical beach are more your thing, you’d best get out of the city. Beachfront restaurants, bars and clubs line Thailand’s popular strips of silver sand. Enjoy an opulent beachside experience at Koh Samui’s Elephant Beach Club where you can party until your heart’s content, enjoying their attractive happy hour deals.
When on the beach, there is very little else on this earth that goes down better than coconut water. Buy from a beachside stall where you will be given a full young coconut (opened of course) and a straw. The refreshing water inside is the perfect companion to a relaxing sunbathing session by the sea.
READ MORE: Thailand nightlife, what to do in Thailand after dark
A trip to Thailand is so much better if you dive into the country’s epicurean delights, so add this culinary adventure to your travel wishlist. Your tastebuds will thank you for taking them on their own journey through Thailand!
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