Stupid_American

There is no don't that I am a big fan of street eats, but I prefer mine to be a bit less mobile. Impromptu eats, such as these, may lack the organization that more established carts have. Their facilities may not just be lacking, but totally non-existent. I prefer more "established" carts, where the vendor has garnered a reputation, and although possibly hidden, usually has some some hygiene standards. ------- There's something of interest in the second photo: It shows the frugality of some Thai people. Notice the recyclable container labeled "Pop Oil"? Now, recycled oil might be a good alternative energy source, but it's use in cooking - a relatively common Thai cart practice - has been questioned. I don't even want to know what might be in the green container!

"Bo bpen nyang, say I." And all this time I thought you was a city boy!

Have a nice lunch at Point Loma Seafoods. Very casual.

If you find some time at the airport, why not check out it's food court. It would be interesting to find if it has anything good to offer.

Maybe printing out the photos of the storefronts could also be useful. It would be extremely difficult to locate these without my wife.

Find any?

The Importfood.com Saochingcha guide is full of great eateries. The ones we have tried have all been exceptional. My personal recs, all over Bangkok, are here: Cheap Eats At Aw Taw Kaw, be sure to try the ba mee this lady's stall:

You forgot the King!

But, do they still taste of a perfect combination of onion and gasoline?

Maybe if one had a sense of humour, one might have appreciated the comment for what it was... ← From past threads, I couldn't tell!

"How can you live in Bangkok and not have eaten at Dosa King? That's terrible!" Maybe, if one has found Indian food not to one's liking, one might live in Bangkok without any intention of ever visiting Dosa King.

Be sure to try some ba mee: From the ba mee lady: Everything is fresh made, even her noodles!

Words of wisdom!

Knowing I liked chicken rice, our Singaporean friends took us to Pow Sing. It is the only culinary memory I have of our 5 days in Singapore.

Since all Thai food isn't necessarily spicy, some of the "dumbing down" for Western tastes involves avoiding other ingredients. Around Bangkok, although rarely found in restaurants, there are many carts and stalls that specialize in guts. Curdled blood is standard in many soups and other dishes. As far as the States goes, even restaurants around LA's huge Thai population avoid the innards.

I ran across this thread. It's a pretty good list of schools, all over the country.

Yes, I recommend the book (unfortunately out-of-print). It's a great guide to the cuisine; helps you to know what you are looking for/at. I just didn't want you to expect the locations (maps) to necessarily be accurate. But, most of the described dishes can be found anywhere.

The book is great for an introduction to street food, but don't get your heart set on any specific stalls or carts mentioned. The book is a little dated and many of these small establishments come and go.

With so many cheap, great eats, and such tight quarters, many Thais don't cook!

Yes, you can always tell a good restaurant by all us decrepit old white guys hanging out with our girlfriends/wives a quarter our age. Although not half my height, she is half my weight.

All I've ever had there was their soup. Mighty salty!

Any local taxi driver should know Hua Pla Chong Nonsi. It's in the southern part of Chong Nonsi, on Rama III. Although my in laws love they place, I have renamed it "Salt Soup Restaurant". Next trip you will have to try Lek Seafood. It is very convenient, located directly beneath the Chong Nonsi BTS platform. I'm sure your friend knows it.

They didn't use unicode fonts. I switched to "Windows Thai" and it worked. The first menu item was "raw" crab. Just a couple years back a BKK women's club had a few member acquire worms from somtam pu!

I found that Bangkok maps, although they give you the lay of the land, they don't give you the variables, like traffic patterns and such. I've actually had it take an hour to travel 1 kilometer. I now own a scooter so that I can split traffic. What appears a short distance can become quite a ride with congestion and one-way streets. After spending some time in this city, you'll find that even which side of the street you flag a taxi can make a huge difference in the drive. For a casual visitor, I always suggest something near the BTS. From 6am until midnight, you'll have a hard time getting lost and virtually no chance of being taken for a ride. You can buy all-day passes and use it to explore the city from 10 meters up. I believe the passes also work for the Chao Phraya express boats. Unfortunately, because I reside here, I'm really no good at suggesting actual accommodations.

Chinatown (Yaoworat Road) doesn't make downtown an easy access. The Skytrain is quite a ways away too. Unless Chinatown is your destination, I wouldn't suggest staying there. What is your budget for accommodations? Is anyone finding the ImportFood.com site working? If not, I can upload the Soachingcha map.