Thai Food-No Thank You

[andrewbkk]

wow,

I have never met anyone who didn't like Thai food. Didnt know it was possible.

I farken love Thai food and would probably die if I couldnt eat it.

Twelve years in BKK. I only ever eat Thai food.

I've noticed that many farangs who stick to Western food are overweight.

Just my observations.

How can anyone not like Ghapao? Or Penang? Or Mussaman? Or Ghai pak phad nam man hoi?

Beats me.

[ChangMaiSausage]

My first port of call when arriving in Bangkok, we have arrived several times to walk away disappointed (busy busy) only to return an hour later, lunchtime rush hour is over.

Thanks, IB, I do regard myself as fairly flexible with food- Asia'll do that to you if you stay long enough.

One more thing about those really good Thai restaurants- they're typically NOT the kind of places that go for luxury- mostly open air, fan-cooled, fluorescent-lighted. They're also surprisingly affordable, usually- they make their money on volume, not high margins. Yet you can find even the wealthiest local Thais stopping in pretty often, or sending someone to order for them.

I'll put up one example, even one that's rather convenient for the tourist- the barbequed/grilled duck place (ok, it's more Chinese than Thai) at ground level just next to Times Square building (past the Sheraton) at Asok has been there for donkey's years- some older Thai friends of mine remember eating there as children- and it's still cheap, good, and popular as all-get-out.

Oh, and I'll stick up a hand for Filipino food, too (and I *have* known Filipino restaurants outside that country!).... in many ways, the issues are similar for 'average' Filipino and 'average' Thai food in terms of inexperienced, indifferent cooks. However, the better restaurants dish out some incredible chicken, fish, and pork. I'm a big fan of the Lapu-Lapu myself (barbequed baby grouper in sweet and sour sauce).

[WebBangkok]

wow,

I have never met anyone who didn't like Thai food. Didnt know it was possible.

I farken love Thai food and would probably die if I couldnt eat it.

Twelve years in BKK. I only ever eat Thai food.

I've noticed that many farangs who stick to Western food are overweight.

Just my observations.

How can anyone not like Ghapao? Or Penang? Or Mussaman? Or Ghai pak phad nam man hoi?

Beats me.

Especially mussaman.......... I dont think its possible not to like it.

[meom]

wow,

I have never met anyone who didn't like Thai food. Didnt know it was possible.

I farken love Thai food and would probably die if I couldnt eat it.

Twelve years in BKK. I only ever eat Thai food.

I've noticed that many farangs who stick to Western food are overweight.

Just my observations.

How can anyone not like Ghapao? Or Penang? Or Mussaman? Or Ghai pak phad nam man hoi?

Beats me.

Especially mussaman.......... I dont think its possible not to like it.

Like or not like who cares really?

I'm like a garbage can when it comes to food and in general eat whatever is available and as long as it fills my stomach I’m ok with most food be it Thai, Western or what have you.

[Travel2003]

Foodland soi 16 is must nice than soi 5, clean, not full of rifraff. Villa is the most expensive in town. I bought vvp espresso for 150 the other day that for as long as I can remember was 105 baht at all other place-price of coffee up perhaps? But that is a whopping hike in one month?

Maybe they try to get rid of the riff raff who only want to pay 105 Baht?

Kidding.

By the way, I think Foodland soi 5 has moved.

[andrewbkk]

wow,

I have never met anyone who didn't like Thai food. Didnt know it was possible.

I farken love Thai food and would probably die if I couldnt eat it.

Twelve years in BKK. I only ever eat Thai food.

I've noticed that many farangs who stick to Western food are overweight.

Just my observations.

How can anyone not like Ghapao? Or Penang? Or Mussaman? Or Ghai pak phad nam man hoi?

Beats me.

Especially mussaman.......... I dont think its possible not to like it.

Hey dude -- you're a mussaman man!

I had a really good mussaman a couple of days ago: a big potato; a beautiful onion; three or four pieces of perfectly cooked chicken; and all those delicious peanuts!

Really good.

[ianh68]

This is a fascinating thread. My very first taste of Thai food in a restaurant here was an indelible disappointment. But in four years I have learned, I have found what I like and have no qualms about spurning the rest, in particular the visually unappealing stuff. Fried vegetables and boiled meat just seems the wrong way round to me. It is not a question of being inflexible but adapting on the basis of experience. Thai food (and many other Thai things for that matter) do not live up to the hype, so you adapt. Taste buds are formed in early life so it's partly a matter of age as well. Cooking for yourself is the key. Buy a big freezer and cook in bulk.

I live in Bangkok and shop a lot at Villa and Foodland. However, my wife comes from Isaan and we will be moving to Nong Khai eventually so the food issue does concern me, especially after reading about Makro and Lotus. There is a shop in Nong Khai that specializes in western ingredients, PM me if you want details. I've been told there is a Central at Udon Thani now so anticipate going there to stock up on a regular basis.

[Ulysses G.]

I pretty much hated Thai food when I first got here - even though I have always like Japanese and Chinese cuisine. However, after being here for a few decades, I have figured out a few dishes that I like and pretty much stick to them. If prepared properly, they are delicious indeed.

Thank God there are lots of other kinds of decent restaurants around these days or I would really be bored with the food.

[manarak]

OP's post made me a bit sad.. for him!

I like Thai food very much

I'm retired and didn't come here to change the way I have eaten for 65 years.

Well... up to you! be free to eat what you like, regardless of the time you have been doing so.

Maybe certain abilities of your stomach have been impaired by eating too much sterilized food for so long. Are you British or American?

Also, many Thai people don't like to eat spicy, and there are plenty of Thai dishes that aren't spicy at all or just very mildly spicy:

- satay skewers

- beef in oyster sauce

- many curries can be made "mai ped", I particularly like massaman curry and gaeng kio wan

- pad thai

- kao pad

- tom ka gai

- thai omelette

- etc.

[evanson]

lol this precious ! Carrots Cauli tomatoes and Spuds !!! Where do you think you are sweetheart ? Kent ? Rainy England or Scotland ?

Come on this is a serious forum, if you want to talk about Thai veggies please discuss indigenous ones otherwise it's just nonsense ...

Or is this one of this moaning pattern, like you'd also moan about how bad rambuttan papayas and mangoes tastes in your local Sainsbury's in UK ?

And there was me thinking that the above veggies were used as am essential in Thai stirfries and various curries , especially Southern style. What an error to make after 25 years of living here!!

I thought we were not referring to fruit which you quoted above and I had already acknowledge as being delicious!

So which Thai indigenous Thai veggies should we be referring to which I cant get at good old Sainsburys? Ive obviously missed the best indigenous stuff and my taste buds are suffering accordingly!

Please enlighten me ..............

I've met many who've lived here even longer than you who WON'T even attempt even a forkful of what they term 'that shit' and whom I deem largely responsible for the decline in standards of authentic Thai cooking. And, oddly enough, they are amongst the expats here the least likely to 'mix' with the locals, preferring to stay in their little walled farang ghettos and complaining on and on about 'the natives'.

Edited July 11, 2011 by evanson

[lomatopo]

A lot of Thai food has too much oil, sugar, salt, Ajinomoto. And over-spiced to the point where you cannot taste any of the protein or veg. (Some of these bottled sauces are horrendously over-used.) Obviously, when prepared with a balance of spicy, sweet, sour, salty and umami along with appropriate textures, it can be sublime. Not hard to do, but hard to find, IMLE.

[mizzi39]

I've met many who've lived here even longer than you who WON'T even attempt even a forkful of what they term 'that shit' and whom I deem largely responsible for the decline in standards of authentic Thai cooking. And, oddly enough, they are amongst the expats here the least likely to 'mix' with the locals, preferring to stay in their little walled farang ghettos and complaining on and on about 'the natives'.

Talk about hitting the nail on the head!

[ra1n85]

I've met many who've lived here even longer than you who WON'T even attempt even a forkful of what they term 'that shit' and whom I deem largely responsible for the decline in standards of authentic Thai cooking. And, oddly enough, they are amongst the expats here the least likely to 'mix' with the locals, preferring to stay in their little walled farang ghettos and complaining on and on about 'the natives'.

LOL!

A very vivid image comes to mind.

[tutsiwarrior]

my how times have changed...when I started posting on thaivisa many years ago I was bold enough to declare that thai food ain't much, much of which I wouldn't give to a cat and a cyberspace lynch mob was created on the spot with a lot of 'go home, ye bastid' and 'love or leave it, you cretin'...etc...on this thread those folks are in the sparse minority...and I dare say that the quality of the subject cuisine hasn't changed much...

the irony is that now I eat a lot of thai food when I go out with the family on shopping trips, etc, roadside stalls featuring different types of larb, mu daeng, kwiteo, noodle salads and sticky rice...when at home still do all of my own cooking...

now living in rural Vietnam I say the same thing about the local cuisine as I did 10 years ago in Thailand: the food fcukin' stinks! and can't wait to get back to civilization and a Burger King...sorta like thai country food without all the garlic and chiles; not even one dish to redeem it like khao man gai...after much effort I found a no star establishment to live where I can do my own cooking when there aren't any power cuts, etc...

I'm over 60 now and I love being a grumpy, complaining old fart...unseemly behavior 10 years ago as an idealistic middle aged person with great expectations...

[DavidARoss]

One wonders why on earth you live here.

Remember that there are plenty of Thai people living outside Thailand who only eat Thai food or the overwhelming majority of their meals is Thai food. There are Thais overseas who will cook 2 types of meals. A Thai meal for themselves and a non-Thai meal for their partner. That seems crazy to me, but it is their choice.

I always think that Thai people, upon returning to Thailand from holiday, are asked, "Could you get Thai food there?"

I also remember being on a flight and a Thai woman had several containers of Thai style cup noodles in her Louis Vuitton bag.

I really don't have a problem with people living in Thailand and sticking to the food they are accustomed. Like an earlier poster said (in my words) "After 65 years on Earth, you expect me to completely change my diet because I live in a different country?"

TheWalkingMan

Thank you Walking Man.

[DavidARoss]

OP's post made me a bit sad.. for him!

I like Thai food very much

I'm retired and didn't come here to change the way I have eaten for 65 years.

Well... up to you! be free to eat what you like, regardless of the time you have been doing so.

Maybe certain abilities of your stomach have been impaired by eating too much sterilized food for so long. Are you British or American?

Also, many Thai people don't like to eat spicy, and there are plenty of Thai dishes that aren't spicy at all or just very mildly spicy:

- satay skewers

- beef in oyster sauce

- many curries can be made "mai ped", I particularly like massaman curry and gaeng kio wan

- pad thai

- kao pad

- tom ka gai

- thai omelette

- etc.

I'm Canadian and have tried to eat foreign food in restaurants in Canada and didn't like much of it. I'm not fussy on rice except for fried rice with chicken or pork in it and I won't eat sticky rice.

[DavidARoss]

This topic should have a poll...

Thai food, I love it........ The OP needs to move on. If he has been in the north east for 5 years and hates Thai food then it's time to leave.

Why should I leave Thailand because I don't like Issan food or the food that's sold in the fast food restaurants in Big C for example. I do all my cooking at home and don't eat in restaurants anymore because when I order from the menu they either don't have it, or some of it will be missing from

it and substitued with something else. I've showed them pictures from the menu as to what I wanted only for them to come back and say that they didn't have it. Most of the meat is tough as nails, a lot of the food is bland without adding hot sauces or peppers or lemon grass to it. I happen to like it here, am married to a Thai. She cooks her Thai food for herself and the family and sits crosslegged and they all eat together and eat from the same bowl as they all do around here. I can't sit crosslegged so I suppose you'll tell me because I can't do this I shouldn't be living here and to move on. Get a life.

[ozsamurai]

I started a thread exactly along these lines about 2yrs ago..... how attitudes have changed! At the time I was met with the usual "Well if you don't like it, what are you doing here then?" brigade. It seems now we have not only one but a possible majority that could either take or leave Thai Food, and its preparation methods. Hear! Hear! I am an Australian and as such we enjoy VERY diverse cuisine, why would anyone want to JUST eat Thai Food, I'm not even a foodie and I like variety.

My advise to you is go and get yourself a chest freezer as I have. Pop off to places such as Makro once a month or so and stock up (don't forget your cool bags). Not only does this save you money somewhat, by buying in relative bulk, but it means you always have a choice at hand. Find out what you can get in the way of raw ingredients locally and incorporate them into the meal plan. As has been mentioned though, local beef just never seems to be worth the time, my father complains of this all the time, and he lives in Australia!

Me too -- Thai Food NO THANKS!

Oz

[DavidARoss]

I am starting to find it isn't spicy enough. But I am use to it being from New Mexico where we have our own brand of hot and spicy. I do take a digestive aid on occasion when I eat to much fried food. My friend who lives in bangkok asked me if I wanted some farange food, I asked him why I am in Thailand lets have thai.

Forget Indian I donot know what spice they use but I eat that stuff for a week.

Hi, if you're from New Mexico then you probably like Mexican food like tacos and cheese dip. I don't like Mexican food either but it wouldn't stop me from going to Mexico. Mexican food is spicy also isn't it? That's why you can eat the hot Thai food.

[DavidARoss]

I started a thread exactly along these lines about 2yrs ago..... how attitudes have changed! At the time I was met with the usual "Well if you don't like it, what are you doing here then?" brigade. It seems now we have not only one but a possible majority that could either take or leave Thai Food, and its preparation methods. Hear! Hear! I am an Australian and as such we enjoy VERY diverse cuisine, why would anyone want to JUST eat Thai Food, I'm not even a foodie and I like variety.

My advise to you is go and get yourself a chest freezer as I have. Pop off to places such as Makro once a month or so and stock up (don't forget your cool bags). Not only does this save you money somewhat, by buying in relative bulk, but it means you always have a choice at hand. Find out what you can get in the way of raw ingredients locally and incorporate them into the meal plan. As has been mentioned though, local beef just never seems to be worth the time, my father complains of this all the time, and he lives in Australia!

Me too -- Thai Food NO THANKS!

Oz

Hello fello Aussie. I'm Canadian and am planning to buy a freezer soon so I can stock up on the things that I like and do my shopping only once a month. I go to the Macro in Nong Khai and they have a very large selection of Aussie food from Kangoro,deer alligator,beef and so on, all frozen of course. A lot more expensive but I'd be willing to try it. The only decline there is the amount of falang dry goods as there is less and less every day.

[maiphedmaiaroi]

I've been living in North-East Thailand,have never been to Thailand's south so all I know is Issan food.

Then why live there?

Maybe you need to discuss your food situation with your handler, there are a huge variety of Thai dishes that Western trained mouths can eat, you just need to explore with an open mind and open eyes to what is available.

BBQ Fish with satay sauce, roast duck with chestnuts, pumpkin curry. to name just a few.

You mentioning getting the runs after BBQ chicken, as this is typically eaten by hand - are you washing your hand properly - might it be a case of self-inflicted hygiene issue?

I'd like to know your nationality because where you live tells the tale of what you like to eat. Perhaps your country eats the same kind of spicy food as mine doesn't . As far as why do I live here then, I'm retired and didn't come here to change the way I have eaten for 65 years. I like this country but it doesn't mean that I have to like their food. When Immigrants come to my country do you actually believe they change the way they eat,of course not. We cater for these Immigrants and they probably have more fresh food from their country than their own. As far as my personal hygiene is concerned when handling food you'd better have a good look at the way the Thais hygiene handling food at a market or the food itself with all the flies. And the BBQ chicken,How long did it sit in the heat before it was cooked and were their hands washed after going to the toilet which has no toilet paper?? Happy eating.

How do you know people wash there hands which are hidden away in kitchens?

I would rather eat something that is cooked infront of me. You can check to see if there fingernails are clean or not, this is a good way to check personal hygiene of a person.

Regards to not using toilet paper. Not using toilet paper is infact more hygienic than using it. Think about it

[manarak]

OP's post made me a bit sad.. for him!

I like Thai food very much

I'm retired and didn't come here to change the way I have eaten for 65 years.

Well... up to you! be free to eat what you like, regardless of the time you have been doing so.

Maybe certain abilities of your stomach have been impaired by eating too much sterilized food for so long. Are you British or American?

Also, many Thai people don't like to eat spicy, and there are plenty of Thai dishes that aren't spicy at all or just very mildly spicy:

- satay skewers

- beef in oyster sauce

- many curries can be made "mai ped", I particularly like massaman curry and gaeng kio wan

- pad thai

- kao pad

- tom ka gai

- thai omelette

- etc.

I'm Canadian and have tried to eat foreign food in restaurants in Canada and didn't like much of it. I'm not fussy on rice except for fried rice with chicken or pork in it and I won't eat sticky rice.

Well, you are a culinarian isolationist!

No problem with that :-)

But I wonder if the aversion against "foreign food" is really in your palate/stomach and not rather cerebral.

My grand father was like you, he hated for example Chinese food.

Once he ate at our home and we prepared a soup.

He said several times how delicious the soup was and asked for more.

Until we told him the receipe was Chinese, at which point he turned pale, was feeling bad and came near to throwing up.

*ting tong* is all what I can say :-)

But he was a good grandfather and a good man!

Everone has his little excentricities.

[DavidSL]

Thai food doesn't fill me up, that's the biggest problem I have with it. I've eaten far too many McDonald's here, and although I love my KFC it really messes with my stomach here. That said, I really do try to eat healthy here as my body suffers when I eat bad, fatty food all the time. I make my own sandwiches for work, but it can sometimes be boring. I LOVE my Chinese food, so I'm rather blessed living in Bangkok, as I can get BBQ pork and egg noodles most places I've visited. I'm not so big on Japanese food, but I do love Ramen and Japanese Curry - which I treat myself to on the odd weekend. MK is pretty good, though I really didn't like it much at first.

However, how anyone can call Thai food bland is beyond my understanding. They have some fantastic food here - some of the best in the World! Khao Soi is divine, and even though it's sometimes a little spicy, Green and Penang (Red) Curries are amazing! Top of my list has to be Massaman curry, though I believe that's not actually of Thai origin.

I find living in Bangkok the place to be if you want to live off of Western food. You really never need to touch Thai food here, though you will find yourself eating a lot of junk. I guess the situation is pretty different up North, but really - if you live here, you'd better start being less fussy!

[F1fanatic]

I've met many who've lived here even longer than you who WON'T even attempt even a forkful of what they term 'that shit' and whom I deem largely responsible for the decline in standards of authentic Thai cooking. And, oddly enough, they are amongst the expats here the least likely to 'mix' with the locals, preferring to stay in their little walled farang ghettos and complaining on and on about 'the natives'.

LOL!

A very vivid image comes to mind.

Really? I don't think I've met any Westerner that has not tried to get on with Thai food.

Like many others, I tried v hard before giving up.

I'm sure you're right though, there are many ex-pats who came here with the full intention of living in their own "ghetto" with no intention of trying to assimilate....

[F1fanatic]

I am starting to find it isn't spicy enough. But I am use to it being from New Mexico where we have our own brand of hot and spicy. I do take a digestive aid on occasion when I eat to much fried food. My friend who lives in bangkok asked me if I wanted some farange food, I asked him why I am in Thailand lets have thai.

Forget Indian I donot know what spice they use but I eat that stuff for a week.

Hi, if you're from New Mexico then you probably like Mexican food like tacos and cheese dip. I don't like Mexican food either but it wouldn't stop me from going to Mexico. Mexican food is spicy also isn't it? That's why you can eat the hot Thai food.

The problem is that Mexican food is tasty - the food available in Thai markets is all heat and no taste IME.

[happyrobert]

I am starting to find it isn't spicy enough. But I am use to it being from New Mexico where we have our own brand of hot and spicy. I do take a digestive aid on occasion when I eat to much fried food. My friend who lives in bangkok asked me if I wanted some farange food, I asked him why I am in Thailand lets have thai.

Forget Indian I donot know what spice they use but I eat that stuff for a week.

Hi, if you're from New Mexico then you probably like Mexican food like tacos and cheese dip. I don't like Mexican food either but it wouldn't stop me from going to Mexico. Mexican food is spicy also isn't it? That's why you can eat the hot Thai food.

The problem is that Mexican food is tasty - the food available in Thai markets is all heat and no taste IME.

Grasa de cerdo normas

(pork fat rules!)

[monty1412]

One of the best nights I had in LOS was sitting at a roadside cart with my Thai girlfriend eating kinds of food i wouldn't have really been game to do by myself.

Great meal one beer each total USd 6

Iv e been eating western food for 50 years now and thats exactly why Im changing.... think old.. be old.

By thew ay ever wondered why thai people compared to us fatty ole farangs are slim, why complexions are generally much better.. nah cant be anything to do with diet can it. My girlfriend eats far more vegetables and fish than us meat lover farangs.

By the way since Iv e regularly been eating som tam Iv e lost about 8 kgs and Mr Percy seems more responsive and able....

[DavidARoss]

I've been living in North-East Thailand,have never been to Thailand's south so all I know is Issan food.

Then why live there?

Maybe you need to discuss your food situation with your handler, there are a huge variety of Thai dishes that Western trained mouths can eat, you just need to explore with an open mind and open eyes to what is available.

BBQ Fish with satay sauce, roast duck with chestnuts, pumpkin curry. to name just a few.

You mentioning getting the runs after BBQ chicken, as this is typically eaten by hand - are you washing your hand properly - might it be a case of self-inflicted hygiene issue?

I'd like to know your nationality because where you live tells the tale of what you like to eat. Perhaps your country eats the same kind of spicy food as mine doesn't . As far as why do I live here then, I'm retired and didn't come here to change the way I have eaten for 65 years. I like this country but it doesn't mean that I have to like their food. When Immigrants come to my country do you actually believe they change the way they eat,of course not. We cater for these Immigrants and they probably have more fresh food from their country than their own. As far as my personal hygiene is concerned when handling food you'd better have a good look at the way the Thais hygiene handling food at a market or the food itself with all the flies. And the BBQ chicken,How long did it sit in the heat before it was cooked and were their hands washed after going to the toilet which has no toilet paper?? Happy eating.

How do you know people wash there hands which are hidden away in kitchens?

I would rather eat something that is cooked infront of me. You can check to see if there fingernails are clean or not, this is a good way to check personal hygiene of a person.

Regards to not using toilet paper. Not using toilet paper is infact more hygienic than using it. Think about it

I've thought about it and think that wiping my ass from s---it with toilet paper and then washing my hands with soap thoroughly afterwards is a lot better than wiping the sh--t with my hands and not having soap or on paper to wipe my hands with afterwards and handling food afterwards. The best hospital AEK in Udon Thani in their man's toilet had no soap, no hot air dryer or paper towels to dry my hands , I always bring my own supply with me ,Thank you.

[DavidARoss]

One of the best nights I had in LOS was sitting at a roadside cart with my Thai girlfriend eating kinds of food i wouldn't have really been game to do by myself.

Great meal one beer each total USd 6

Iv e been eating western food for 50 years now and thats exactly why Im changing.... think old.. be old.

By thew ay ever wondered why thai people compared to us fatty ole farangs are slim, why complexions are generally much better.. nah cant be anything to do with diet can it. My girlfriend eats far more vegetables and fish than us meat lover farangs.

By the way since Iv e regularly been eating som tam Iv e lost about 8 kgs and Mr Percy seems more responsive and able....

H

i, I tried eating Thai food the first year I was living here and lost almost 8 kilos. My pants were falling off me and I looked like a skeleton, I was about 68 kilos and I'm 5 ft 10 in. I'm now 75 kilos and back to normal eating the western food that I can get which is not too much here. Actually I'm always on a diet here,not my choice mind you, because I can't find enough food that I like so I go without. When I go out with friends to a restaurant I don't eat but wait for them not complaining while I sip on a beer and when I get home I can cook what I want.

[DavidARoss]

my how times have changed...when I started posting on thaivisa many years ago I was bold enough to declare that thai food ain't much, much of which I wouldn't give to a cat and a cyberspace lynch mob was created on the spot with a lot of 'go home, ye bastid' and 'love or leave it, you cretin'...etc...on this thread those folks are in the sparse minority...and I dare say that the quality of the subject cuisine hasn't changed much...

the irony is that now I eat a lot of thai food when I go out with the family on shopping trips, etc, roadside stalls featuring different types of larb, mu daeng, kwiteo, noodle salads and sticky rice...when at home still do all of my own cooking...

now living in rural Vietnam I say the same thing about the local cuisine as I did 10 years ago in Thailand: the food fcukin' stinks! and can't wait to get back to civilization and a Burger King...sorta like thai country food without all the garlic and chiles; not even one dish to redeem it like khao man gai...after much effort I found a no star establishment to live where I can do my own cooking when there aren't any power cuts, etc...

I'm over 60 now and I love being a grumpy, complaining old fart...unseemly behavior 10 years ago as an idealistic middle aged person with great expectations...

Hi, I'd like to know a bit more about Vietnam and the way they live, plus the retirement view if you have the time. Thanks