Food in Thailand. It really seems to vary by region. My teaching is in the Isan region (Northeast) part of Thailand and so the Isan food is very unique. It brings in influence from Lao and Vietnam. Some foods I have been enjoying:
Restaurant food:
The "Best" restaurant: named by previous volunteers. It gets this name for a reason. Delicious. My favorite dishes here are the Chicken with Cashew Nut and the Sweet and Sour Fish.
Dee Dee's (also known as the Red Balloon by volunteers because it has red Chinese style lanterns out front): Very good. We often come with big groups. Everything is good here. Especially known for the fried catfish.
Daeng ___ (I can't remember the name) is a famous Vietnamese restaurant: Their menu is super short but really all anyone gets is the make your own Vietnamese spring rolls. You put in lettuces, mint leaves, cut up veggies, sausage and an amazing peanut sauce. Really really good.
Street food:
Street food tends to be cheaper. We have street food for dinner most weeknights. Usually we end up going to Prajak road (one over from the main one, Meechai) where they have tons of street carts (all safe to eat :) ) Street food might consist of pad thai, fried rice, noodle soup, etc. Usually it's pretty basic. They fry it up for you on demand though.
Lunch at school:
Weekdays they feed us lunch at school. Usually this is rice and veggies or maybe noodles.
The "Ladies":
Named by previous volunteers, there are various street carts that we have named based on the food they serve. Usually it is a female serving, hence the "lady" part. Here are some of my favorites:
Curry Lady
Pineapple Lady (serves cut up pineapple as well as other fruit)
Milkshake Lady (not a real milkshake. Just fresh fruit and ice blended. My favorite is watermelon)
Banana Pancake Lady (tried the banana one once but I don't really like banana so now I just get plan pancake. )
Pad Thai Lady
Fried Rice Lady
Really, this is just the drop in the bucket of what there is to eat and what I've had. I've noticed that a lot of the food is very different from a Thai restaurant I'd go to in the US, so maybe a lot of that is from other regions like the Central (Bangkok) region or the Southern (beach) region. Regardless, the food is good and cheap. :)
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Sounds delicious! I'm jealous. I hope you are taking pictures of the food and of the ladies and the street carts...I'm excited to see pics when you get back.
ReplyDeleteDon't forget you said you post about the teaching when you have time...I'm really interested in that part. And what are you doing for fun when you have downtime? And I'd love to hear more about the monks!
It amazes (but doesn't surprise) me that the food is so healthy everywhere - even the street food and the school food. Sounds SO good. My mouth is watering! Would love to have a taste. Thanks for the descriptions.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Deids - would love some details on teaching and downtime activities. And hope you're taking lots of pictures. I can't wait to see the kids, the people on the street, you with sweat pouring down your face...ALL of it! So excited for you and happy you had this opportunity. Love these blog posts! Keep 'em coming.