Restaurants In Thailand: A Sad State Of Affairs

[Jingthing]

I've never eaten Thai food outside of Thailand that was anywhere near as good as what you can get in some small, non-touristy establishments inside the country, mainly because the touristy places and the Thai restaurants in other countries have to dumb down the food for MacDonald's numbed taste buds.

I have. In areas with lots of Thais. Thaitown San Francisco, Thaitown LA, San Jose CA, and Washington DC suburbs. I'd probably agree the MAJORITY of global Thai eateries are dumbed down, but not all.

JT, where is Thaitown in SF?

It's small. Tenderloin between Union Square and Polk, mostly closer to Polk.

This area more precisely:

http://www.yelp.com/map/sai-jai-thai-restaurant-san-francisco

Edited June 29, 2013 by Jingthing

[MrRealDeal]

I'm not sure the Daily Meal is an authority although they would like you to think they are.

If you look at the list on a population basis it says that food is pretty much the same anyplace , with the places with higher population having more , it look to me like a list that figured out about how many needed to be chosen from each area before it even started rather than some coincidence that it turned out that way.

But either way your conclusion that a place with about 2 percent of the population has 2 percent of the best places to eat means it's worse then the rest is simply incorrect. It means it's just as good as everywhere else not worse.

[CodyB]

"Thai" restuarants in Thailand are not unlike it's many massage parlours, bars and shops. They are designed to be a quick, cheap (for them to set up) and weak substitute to what they would expect in their home country.

The food here is amazing though. You'll find it on the street or in a beer garden usually.

A strong restuarant culture is predicated on a mobile, high earning populace (not neccesarily affluent though) where competition is encouraged. Fitting out a restuarant in BKK would be relatively expensive when your target market (middle class) has a food budget of less than US$10 a day.

[Nuna]

Only farang's tongue restaurants made the list. No surprise.... I am Thai and I know what delicious Thai food is like. Why do I have to care about it. I am non-alcoholic so wine is not necessary and I can't trade my precepts for haute cusine.

For me, street kow soi taste much better than famous ones because it made for locals not tourists.

[Nuna]

The Thai food in the good Thai restaurants in LA's Thai town is fantastic. The quality of the produce available in the USA is 1000 times better than here and the good Thai chefs really know how to use it to prepare all the classic northern, southern, and Isaan dishes.

It made to fit farang's taste. Most Thais travel there time to time always complain about it. If you can read Thai, try this www.pantip.com/topic/30844953

[somtampet]

Who has this crazy idea about Thai restaurants. I can take you to many Thai Restaurants in Bangkok or Chiang Mai which are in my view top class. Some Thai restaurants over here are amongst the best in the world

Well, they're certainly among the best in Thailand.

I'm a bit surprised that my favorite, at the carwash on third road pattaya, isn't included in the list.

One of the better Tom yum khai's I have ever eaten in Thailand, and at 50 Baht including rice............

If that is the issan restaraunt,then i cant agree,there are cockroches all over the place,and cats too.Food ok but would never go back to that place

[iamanisland]

Only farang's tongue restaurants made the list. No surprise.... I am Thai and I know what delicious Thai food is like. Why do I have to care about it. I am non-alcoholic so wine is not necessary and I can't trade my precepts for haute cusine.

 

For me, street kow soi taste much better than famous ones because it made for locals not tourists.

You say you know what delious food tastes like because your thai????...

What has being thai got to do with food knowledge? ?

Im all confused now. Please correct me if im wrong here.... Thailand is the second largest user of MSG in the world only second to China wont bore ppl with % with population, china verses thailand but I think we all agree nearly all food here contains a lot of MSG. Mind altering drug that basically makes any food taste nice MSG is natural in some food products but here in Thailand "probably" all restaurants add it by the kg.

So my question is what does being a thai person know about good tasting food????? Just a question.

And as for famous local thai places where only thai ppl can go. You mean really those pasted on to pantip and facebook????

Famous famous famous.......... must go must go can we can we........been to many of those places with my wife. The only thing famous about them is the long long long line of ppl all rwading pantip waiting to eat lots of msg. Most of the time these places listed in pantip are no better than anywhere else in thailand. But we all know asia and there adicition to social media and the I want to be seen in these in places syndrome.... So i must go even if the food is terrible because its the most famous. Oh not forgetting to check in on facebook when you arrive and take a picture of your food.

There is good food and bad food everywhere in the world and trust me is doesnt make a diffence if you thai or english or american to locate it.

And I definitely dont need pantip or facebook to advise me.

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[TheSpade]

Who cars about awards. I care about eating tasty food and nothing else and I can get that on every street corner in Thailand.

[iamanisland]

Just found the award!

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