Photo courtesy of Shef

 

Thailand has emerged as the world’s best country for food, according to Condé Nast Traveller's Readers’ Choice Awards 2025. The prestigious survey awarded Thailand the top spot with a score of 98.33 out of 100, highlighting its bold flavors, vibrant street food culture, and exceptional fine dining scene. This recognition not only cements Thailand's status on the culinary map but also acknowledges its ability to attract food lovers from around the globe.

 

The inclusion of seven Bangkok restaurants among the world’s top 35, as reported by CNN, highlights Thailand's growing international culinary reputation. Thai cuisine, celebrated for dishes such as Pad Thai, Tom Yum Goong, and green curry, is known for leaving a lasting impression on food enthusiasts. Both street vendors and high-end restaurants contribute to dining experiences that are characterized not only by flavors but also by the cultural ambiance.

 

Italy took second place in the survey with a score of 96.92%, praised for its classic pizza and pasta offerings. Japan came third with 96.77%, earning admiration for its precision and delicate flavors in sushi and other traditional dishes. Meanwhile, Vietnam and Spain rounded out the top five, recognized for their fresh ingredients and innovative culinary practices.

 

Photo of Banthat Thong Road in Bangkok courtesy of Phuket 101

 

Ranked sixth through tenth were New Zealand, Sri Lanka, Greece, South Africa, Peru, and the Maldives, underscoring the diversity and richness of global culinary traditions. These countries were acknowledged for unique cooking styles, from New Zealand's Māori techniques to Peru's celebrated ceviche.

 

Looking ahead, Thailand’s recognition may further boost its tourism and culinary attractions, drawing even more international visitors eager to experience its renowned food culture. Other countries in the top rankings are likely to see increased attention as travelers seek diverse gastronomic experiences, reported The Thaiger.

 

Key Takeaways

• Thailand was named the best country for food with a score of 98.33.
• Italy, Japan, Vietnam, and Spain followed in the top five for culinary prowess.
• The accolade is expected to enhance Thailand's appeal as a top food destination.

 

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  Adapted by ASEAN Now from The Thaiger 2025-11-20

 

 

 

There are some tasty dishes here but if i were to rank Thai food it wouldn't be higher than a 50/100.

Just my opinion, i know lots of members here absolutely love it. 

I eat Thai food every day wife cooks it she is not a bad cook.

But they has been times she has not been here I get a bag of Currey or whatever from our local market most, are not very nice. far too sweet, along with MSG ,most of these dishes would not make it onto anyone's list.

We have one good restaurant nearby that is good, food not cheap by local standards, cater a lot for the passing /weekend trade.

These polls are all right, if they were more representative of all Thai food all over the country, including our local markets, the results would be very different. Thailand would be a lot lower on the list. 

thai food is an acquired taste, it took me nearly two years to appreciate chili and therefore thai food.

i like it, but i like other nationalities food also, in thailand it ranks top because of availability and price 

It's not only about Thai food!

I think the rating is fair when you consider the affordability factor as well.

I don't like it.

Mon dieu ! Elle est où la France ?? 🥖🇫🇷🥐🍷😭

Thai food is by far my favorite food, and the only food I can eat every day, without getting tired of it. Love it. Of course, I am referring to higher quality food, and not the fried street junk. 

They meant award to Thai Glucose 😂

17 minutes ago, spidermike007 said:

Thai food is by far my favorite food, and the only food I can eat every day, without getting tired of it. Love it. Of course, I am referring to higher quality food, and not the fried street junk. 

my wife had a restaurant when I first met her, was the cook too and said although she had older sisters, they hated cooking so from a young age her mother taught her about mixing herbs to make food tasty as they were a poor family.  Her meals are always exceptional in my opinion and I have been eating them for over 20 years.  She still comes up with different dishes but always, they are very tasty and usually healthy too.  Her restaurant was failing because she only bought good quality foods daily from the markets and the restaurant catered to a college of rich kids who were going home on weekends so  she just couldn't make a go of it and after I showed her the bottom line, she closed that restaurant and the regular students kept after her to stay open as her meals were really good quality.

I've no particular argument with the top 5.  I might put them in a different order, but that's just my personal opinion.  

 

@kickstart I've had similar opinions when eating out of markets; I don't like the over-sweet taste.  But, I've had shedloads that is really good, fresh and tasty.

 

I live in Hong Kong and the street food can be fantastic, but sometime not so.

11 hours ago, kickstart said:

I eat Thai food every day wife cooks it she is not a bad cook.

But they has been times she has not been here I get a bag of Currey or whatever from our local market most, are not very nice. far too sweet, along with MSG ,most of these dishes would not make it onto anyone's list.

We have one good restaurant nearby that is good, food not cheap by local standards, cater a lot for the passing /weekend trade.

These polls are all right, if they were more representative of all Thai food all over the country, including our local markets, the results would be very different. Thailand would be a lot lower on the list. 

I think your right, also I think there has been a decline in the quality of street food and small restaurant food. I myself love good Thai food but eat less now because of the above, I think food prices will have something to do with this. 

31 minutes ago, carlf said:

Mon dieu ! Elle est où la France ?? 🥖🇫🇷🥐🍷😭

They raised the white flag and retreated further away from the front?

Jag tycker att det mesta av maten är antingen för stark eller för söt.

44 minutes ago, spidermike007 said:

Thai food is by far my favorite food, and the only food I can eat every day, without getting tired of it. Love it. Of course, I am referring to higher quality food, and not the fried street junk. 

Fresh wild catch and also food handpicked from either ocean, garden or the forrest, nothing can beat that. 

 

But you need to experience it first before you realize the difference, and also how much you will miss it when you do not have it available anymore. 

If I don't eat Thai food for 3 or 4 days, I actually miss it but not all are healthy if buying out. A Thai doctor at a famous Bangkok hospital warned me against eating too much

And NZ number 6! How the world has changed since I was a child in the 50s & 60s!

I was working for/with the RTAF for a few years. I had a crew that just HAD, to have a pot full of rice cooking all day right outside my office.

I normally LOVE Thai rice, but I went 9 months back in the USA before I could stand the sight of rice.

 

I DEARLY miss tom yam kung and som-tam though!

 

-------------

Som tam is HEAVEN on a plate.

 

My daughter is 20 now & has a dislike for Cambodians because they claim they  invented som-tam. She's a cute little ding-bat.

Just now, jaywalker said:

I was working for/with the RTAF for a few years. I had a crew that just HAD, to have a pot full of rice cooking all day right outside my office.

I normally LOVE Thai rice, but I went 9 months back in the USA before I could stand the sight of rice.

 

I DEARLY miss tom yam kung and som-tam though!

 

-------------

Som tam is HEAVEN on a plate.

 

With or without 'Pla-ra' and the black crab?

2 minutes ago, brewsterbudgen said:

 

With or without 'Pla-ra' and the black crab?

Well, a smidgen of Pla-ra goes a LOOOOOONG way.

 

I normally get it w/ the black crab.

 

=====================

Funny story about Pla-ra. It's a SUPER Fishy paste. I looks like refried beans & smells like dead whale's ass.

 

My wife imported some into Kuwait. She is from Surin and was VERY careful with it...it had to last her 6 months.

 

No bars in Kuwait but a THRIVING blaack market. A buddy came by & we worked on a jug of Johnny Walker. He wound up sleeping on the couch....No biggie.

 

He had the munchies and ate ALL my wife's pla-ra! 

 

It took a couple days to figure out, and we all laughed....Still laughing about it today!

Some dishes OK, but would not rank Thailand the best.

10 minutes ago, DUNROAMIN said:

Some dishes OK, but would not rank Thailand the best.

Yes, fish & chips and Shepherd's pie should be at the top. Or marmite and Vegemite. 

How close to the bottom is Britain anyway?

Any country whose most popular domestic dish is from India shows the local food is garbage.

4 minutes ago, DUNROAMIN said:

Some dishes OK, but would not rank Thailand the best.

I would say the best food I ever ate is whatever I just ate.

 

I just polished off a big plate of Navy Beans & ham and cornbread.

 

I did eat half a raw onion with it.....could have murdered a few green cayenne peppers as well but didn't have any

 

Just be thankful for what I have.

 

When in Bangkok or Chiang Mai the selection, abundance and affordability of food always amazes me. This does also make me think about the unsold quantities that go to waste daily.

3 minutes ago, gargamon said:

Yes, fish & chips and Shepherd's pie should be at the top. Or marmite and Vegemite. 

How close to the bottom is Britain anyway?

I love my British friends, so this is not a jab at them, just a true story.

Myself and my buddy Jeff got invited to a Hash Houise Harriers (very British) drive across the sand dunes from Abu Dhabi to Al Ain. It was 1998 & I guess the weekend was Thursday & Friday...Some Muslim holiday mixed in there, so we had a 3 day weekend.

 

We came out of the desert to a VERY BRITISH villa, and they had food all cooked up & "HEY Everyone! EAT!"

 

I appreciated the generosity & never said a word, but there was not a grain of salt, pepper, garlic???? PFFF! Just meat and bread. No ketchup no mustard. Just meat and bread. It felt like chewing cardboard. I was hungry and I ate it and I said THANK YOU to the hosts.

 

I think it was John Letterman that had a British guy on his show, talking about how the British were searching for the Northwest passage to get to India.

 

Letterman: So you guys were looking for spices?

 

Guest: Yes

 

So you guys love spices....why don't you put any on your food?

 

 

I cooked some blackeyed peas and cornbread a long time ago, in Bangkok. My wife had never heard of this Farang food. 

 

It's a 4 -5 hour cook time. Crumbe the cornbread & ladle copious amounts of peas & ham all over it. Fresh onion on the side.

 

She LOVED it! Ate a BIG, HONKING plate of it. She is 4 foot 11 inches and weighs 99 lbs.

 

She went back and re-loaded her plate like she hadn't eaten in a week.

 

My sweet cornbread was just too good I guess?

 

It didn't take long till the bread started expanding. She was on the couch and could not move for most of the evening.

I like to sample, if not dig in, on local food where ever I travel.  Hopefully the local hygiene is up to snuff.  Street food vendors (hawkers) can bring some surprises, you get someone's handed-down recipe etc.  Malaysia makes a big deal of this in their tourist stuff, but it's everywhere in SEA.

 

I stayed in a town in Mexico, there was a woman there who made a big pot of overcooked beef, fell apart into short strings in jus.  At dinner time she sold tacos and tortas (a taco but in bread instead).  Absolutely delicious.  I'm writing about it 50 years later.
 

Tell a Thai woman who runs a stall how good her food is you'll likely get an ear-to-ear smile.  And maybe a 5 baht discount.

 

There you are Thailand number 1 at dinning and eating Thai food

So why not concentrate on promoting Thailand's Cuisine to 

Family and quality tourists instead of the usual beer bars  in Pattaya and Phuket 

Show there is more to see and visit in Thailand 

8 minutes ago, jaywalker said:

I cooked some blackeyed peas and cornbread a long time ago, in Bangkok. My wife had never heard of this Farang food. 

It's a 4 -5 hour cook time. Crumbe the cornbread & ladle copious amounts of peas & ham all over it. Fresh onion on the side.

She LOVED it! Ate a BIG, HONKING plate of it. She is 4 foot 11 inches and weighs 99 lbs.

She went back and re-loaded her plate like she hadn't eaten in a week.

My sweet cornbread was just too good I guess?

It didn't take long till the bread started expanding. She was on the couch and could not move for most of the evening.

 

Wow, getting some bean protein into the Thai diet!  No downside to that.

 

Why do I always treat stories  like this  as BS, food taste is subjective...and many surveyes are biased...simply look at SE Asia, including China  Japan and Sth Korean, all have excellent food...with many SE Asian countries having similar/same dishes  with a different name.